During the regular season, Oakland Athletics’ starters tossed 894 innings with 862 strikeouts, posting a 3.91 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. Opponents batted .250 against them. At the same time, the Astros’ starters threw 881.2 innings this year and owned a 3.60 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. Opponents hit .227 against the Astros’ starting pitchers. Meanwhile, the Reds’ starters threw 864 innings and the White Sox let their starters eat more than 850 innings in the 2021 season. Back in 2019, there were 4 teams that their starters threw at least 900 innings. This season, no team has done that.
The Orioles lost 110 games this season and their starters didn’t pitch well. They posted a 5.99 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. John Means threw 146.2 innings for the Orioles this season and he owned a 3.62 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. He tossed a no-hitter and that’s probably the most memorable moment of the Orioles starters this year. Moreover, the Padres were eliminated from the playoff race and finished the season with 79 wins. It’s surely a disappointing season and a possible reason is that the Padres starters only tossed 741.2 innings with a 4.54 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. Meanwhile, the Rays have a great 2021 season and they clinched the AL East title again. The Rays starting pitchers only threw 752.2 innings this season with a 4.08 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. A 4.08 ERA doesn’t look very good, however, without Tyler Glasnow in the rotation, the Rays pitching staff can still handle the job. Furthermore, the Pirates starters threw 753.2 innings, posting an over 5 ERA.
The Dodgers starting pitchers posted a good 2.93 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP, both leading the majors. In addition, they punched out 947 opponents. Walker Buehler is the only pitcher in the Dodgers to throw more than 200 strikeouts this season. Moreover, The White Sox won the AL Central title for the first time since 2008. They have a pretty rotation this season and their starters threw 944 strikeouts. Dylan Cease and Lucas Gilolito each threw more than 200 strikeouts in 2021. Additionally, the Brewers starters threw more than 900 strikeouts this season as well. Two Brewers’ pitchers, Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff, each threw more than 200 strikeouts.
When we look at walks per nine innings, the Dodgers starters didn’t give up walks easily during the regular season. In the same division, the San Francisco Giants did the same. The Giants starting pitchers posted a 2.46 BB/9, slightly behind the Dodgers. The A’s starting pitchers had a 2.50 BB/9, lowest in the AL.
In baseball, a starting pitcher is normally expected to throw a significant portion of the game. If a starting pitcher can’t eat enough innings, it will increase the workload of the bullpen. The A’s and the Astros each let starters eat a lot of innings this season and they got the job done. The Orioles starting pitchers couldn’t pitch long this season and it told us that they were knocked out early during a game. Moreover, the Padres had the same problem and they will have to solve this problem this offseason. The Rays have been very creative in baseball and their starters don’t pitch long. However, they found their way to be the best team in the American League.
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