Great to be back to the NL Central?

In late November, Sonny Gray and the St. Louis Cardinals agreed to a 3-year deal. Gray made 32 starts for the Minnesota Twins in 2023, posting a 2.79 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP over 184 innings. Gray was great on the mound last year. He was selected to the All-Star game and finished 2nd in the AL Cy Young voting.

 

Sonny Gray had a great 2023 season and he’s been one of the most reliable starting pitchers in the majors. However, do the Cardinals really make a good decision to ink a deal with Sonny Gray?

 

Pitching in the NL Central isn’t new to Sonny Gray, from 2019 to 2021, he took the mound for the Cincinnati Reds for 3 seasons. Gray owned a 3.49 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP over 366.2 Innings and in 2019, he was selected to the Mid-Summer classic.

 

So, by far in Gray’s career, does he pitch well against NL Central teams?

 

Against NL Central Teams (Sonny Gray, 2013~2023)
	Brewers	Cubs	Pirates	Reds
G	13	11	10	1
IP	70.1	60.1	51.2	7.2
ERA	2.82	2.98	4.35	2.35
WHIP	1.24	0.91	1.26	0.78
BAA	.220	.186	.244	.185
SO	91	79	53	4

 

Firstly, Sonny Gray only pitched 1 game against the Cincinnati Reds and it was back in 2016. He tossed 7.2 innings and gave up 2 runs.

 

In addition, he made 13 starts against the Brewers. He owned a 2.82 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP over 70.1 innings against the Brewers. Moreover, he punched out 91 Brewers batters. The last time he faced the Brewers was in 2021.

 

Thirdly, Gray has been pitching well against the Chicago Cubs. By far in his career, he made 11 starts against the Cubs, posting a 2.98 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP over 60.1 innings. And he threw 79 strikeouts against the Cubs. The Cubs batters didn’t hit well against Gray and their batting average against Gray was below .200. Gray made 1 start against the Cubs last season and gave up only 1 run in 5.1 innings.

 

Finally, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Gray made 9 starts and 1 relief appearance, which was his MLB debut, thus far in his career. Against the Pirates, he owned a 4.35 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP over 51.2 innings. Furthermore, the Pirates batters’ batting average against Gray is .244. In 2023, Gray made 1 start against the Pirates. In that game, Gray tossed 6.2 innings and gave up 4 runs (all earned).

 

Well, Gray’s career ERA against the Pirates is over 4. However, against other 3 teams in the NL Central, he did pitch well over the last few years with an ERA below 3. In particular, he made 11 starts against the Cubs and batting average against him was below .200. Additionally, Gray now has a 3.31 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP while pitching at Busch Stadium. So, he might be glad to call Busch Stadium a new home.

 

Without doubt, Gray had a great 2023 season and he’s a very reliable starting pitcher in the majors. However, there are some concerns. He just turned 34 last November and in 2022, he missed some playing time. Furthermore, opponents hit .301 against Gray’s four-seam fastballs in 2023 and had a .275 BA against his sinkers. Hence, there’s something that he and the Cardinals front office will have to figure out how to effectively use 2 types of pitches.