I selected a hard-throwing starter for my fantasy baseball team. However, he hasn’t pitched well in the 2021 season. The one problem is that he just gave up too many home runs. And, I was wondering which pitchers have the same problem.
I went to check on the two great websites, Fangraphs and baseball reference. Here’s what I found.
It’s probably a bad season that Jesus Luzardo would like to forget. He pitched 13 games so far and has a 6.87 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP. He gave up 11 home runs in 38 innings. Last season, he gave up 9 home runs in 59 innings. With a high HR/9 rate, his performance doesn't satisfy the A’s and he was optioned to AAA in June. Also, he was placed on the injured list once because he broke his finger while playing video games. He’s only 23 years old and has something to learn in his career.
Last season, Dean Kremer tossed 18.2 innings and didn’t give up any home runs. But, in 2021, Kremer already allowed 14 home runs. He threw 49.2 innings so far and his HR/9 is over 2.5. In particular, he gave up 10 home runs at home. He was optioned to the Norfolk Tides in late June.
Trevor Stephan made 23 relief appearances for the Indians and he has a HR/9 rate of 2.45. In addition, Bailey Ober was called up on May 18 and he already made 8 starts for the Twins, allowing 9 home runs in 33 innings.
Moreover, it’s quite interesting to see Marco Gonzales on the list. He has been very consistent in the Mariners rotation since he joined the team in 2017. However, he has some problems this season. By far, Gonzales allowed 15 home runs in 56.2 innings and his HR/9 is 2.38. In the 2020 season, Marco Gonzales tossed 69.2 innings and gave up 8 home runs.
Some pitchers have a relatively high HR/9 rate. In the meantime, some pitchers don’t give up home runs easily and have a very low HR/9 rate.
Clayton Kershaw is one of the most dominant pitchers in this generation. It’s extremely hard to hit against Kershaw, of course, it’s hard to see Kershaw allow a home run. His career HR/9 is only 0.72. However, Kershaw’s HR/9 was over 1 in each of the last two seasons and in 2021, he already tossed more than 100 innings with a HR/9 of 1.1.
Adam Wainwright has pitched for the Cardinals for 16 seasons. He will turn 40 in August. He doesn’t give up home runs easily and his career HR/9 is 0.75. That might be a possible reason to tell us why he can pitch for so many years. But, his HR/9 in a single season has been over 1 since 2017.
Charlie Morton signed a 1-year deal with the Braves and he’s been pitching well in 2021. Morton already earned 8 wins this season and has a 3.64 ERA. He gave up 9 home runs in 99 innings. In his career, his HR/9 is under 0.80.
After the first half of the 2021 season, there’s no doubt that Jacob deGrom is a Cy Young award favorite and he’s truly dominant on the mound with a 1.08 ERA and a 0.54 WHIP. He gave up 6 home runs in 92 innings. In his career, deGrom’s HR/9 is 0.77. If deGrom stays healthy and keeps pitching dominantly, his HR/9 will surely be lower.
MLB batters are hitting the ball in the air and there are more home runs in baseball. Fewer home runs, less troubles. It’s important for a pitcher to avoid giving up home runs and we can see that some pitchers have some lessons to learn. However, pitchers such as Jacob deGrom and Clayton Kershaw don’t give up home runs easily and most of them have been very successful for a long term in their careers.
No comments:
Post a Comment