5) Cliff Lee: Lee is 34 years old, but he is still one of the elite starting pitchers in the game. Everyone that I have talked to has told me that Cliff Lee had a disastrous season last year, and some people have went as far as saying his career is not far from over. I get it, a win-loss record of 6-9 for 2012 does not sound good, and while I agree that wins are important, they are not everything. If someone is going to say Lee was horrible this past year and is numbers have no chance of improving, I want more proof than just a win loss record. Take into account Lee pitched to a 3.16 ERA in 2013, 211 IP, and he struck out 207 batters while only walking 28. Sure, it looks like a far cry from the 17-8 record Lee posted in 2011, along with an ERA of 2.40, and he lead the National League in shout outs at 6. Over the past three seasons, Lee has been a dominant pitcher posting these numbers: an ERA of 2.91, a win-loss record of 33-26, 655 IP, and he has struck out 630 batters. The win-loss record is still not mind blowing, but Led pitched half of 2010 with the Seattle Mariners, and 2012 was just an unlucky year for Lee. Nonetheless, he deserves a spot on this list and the fifth spot seems right even though he could easily have placed as the number there or four slot on this list...
4) Gio Gonzalez: Gonzalez was not well known until this past season after the Washington Nationals acquired him from the Oakland Athletics and he had what most would term a "breakout season," but that is not the case. Gonzalez had the best season of his career to date, winning 21 games, and posting an ERA of 2.89., pitching 199 innings, and striking out207 batters. But Gonzalez has been consisten the last three years, posting an ERA of 3.08, a win loss record of 52-29, pitching 601 innings, and striking out 575 batters. Perhaps Gonzalez went relatively unnoticed due to "East Coast Bias," maybe because Gonzalez posts a high walk rate and doesn't always pitch 200+ innings pitched. Whatever the case though, he has been dominant and consistent enough to claim the top spot on this list.
3) Cole Hamels: Hamels is one of Lee's rotation mates. Hamels is an elite pitcher who seems to get better every year. Last season, Hamels posted an ERA of 3.05, a win-loss record of 17-6, he pitched 215.1 innings, and he struck out a career high 216 batters. Hamels has collected three All-Star game appearances, two of which have come back to back in the 2011 and 2012 season. Over the last three seasons, Hamels has pitched 640 innings, posted a win-loss record of 43-26, an ERA of 2.97, and struck out 621 batters. Along the way, Hamels has placed in the top ten of the NL CYA voting each of the last two seasons (5th and 8th respectively). The ace will be 29 years of age at the beginning of next season, and as his pitching game evolves, he make his way up my list, but he has a ways to go before he catches number 2 and number 1, so for now, Hamels slots nicely in the third spot ahead of Lee and Gonzalez. So who has placed ahead of Hamels?...
2) David Price: Price slots right ahead of Hamels on my list. Price had an excellent season pitching for the Tampa Bay Rays in the hitter heavy AL East. Price had a career year, he posted an ERA of 2.56(leading the AL), he tied for the lead in wins/winning percentage posting a win-loss record of 20-5. In short, Price's season was good enough to earn him the AL CYA. Moreover, Price has been a phenomenal pitcher over the last three seasons posting these stats: an ERA of 2.92, pitching 644 innings, a win-loss record of 52-24, and striking out 611 batters. Along the way, Price has appeared in the last three All-Star games, while also placing in the top three of the AL CYA voting two of the past three seasons (placing 2nd in 2010 and 1st I'm 2012 respectively). Price throws a fastball at 97+ MPH, and has some impressive braking pitches, and while the 27 year old may be around for awhile, even if he keeps his recent success at its current rate, he will probably still be stuck behind the guy at the top of this list...
1) Clayton Kershaw: Maybe Justin Verlander is considered the best pitcher in baseball, but I am inclined to disagree; I believe Kershaw is the best starting pitcher in all of baseball or at least he is going to be. While Verlander has been nothing short of spectacular over the last few years, Kershaw has be unbelievably dominant. Last season, Kershaw posted the following statistics while pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers: An ERA of 2.53, a win-loss record of 14-9, 227 IP, and he also struck out 229 batters. This is not a fluke either, excluding his rookie year in 2008, Kershaw has posted an ERA under 3.00, pitched at least 171 innings (204 the last three seasons), and he has struck out no fewer than 185 batters (212 the last three seasons) each of the last four seasons. So how about the numbers he has compiled since 2009? Kershaw has accumulated an ERA of 2.63, a win-loss record of 56-32, pitched 836.1 innings, and struck out 874 batters. Despite these numbers, Kershaw did not appear in an All-Star game or recieve any votes in an award category until 2011. In 2011, Kershaw went to his first All-Star game, finished 12th in the NL MVP voting, and he won a Gold Glove and the NL CYA. In 2012, Kershaw finished 16th in the MVP voting, 2nd in the CYA voting, and appeared in his second consecuitive All-Star game. He lead the National League in ERA, WHIP, H/9 in 2011 and 2012, and in 2011 he also led the tied for the league lead in, wins and strikeouts. Kershaw has not even begun to enter his peak, which is typically considered to start around age 25. Kershaw has just completed his age 24 season. I look forward to watching Kershaw perform over the rest of his career, and I believe he will eventually be recognized as the best pitcher in Major League Baseball. Five Additional Considerations (No particular order):
1) Wandy Rodriguez: Rodriguez has was the subject of many trade rumors for years. He was finally traded from the Houston Astros to the Pittsburgh Pirates this past season, and he has been a consistent pitcher, who has been constantly overlooked because he played for the Astros.
2) Andy Pettitte: Pettitte is an older pitcher, and he just came out of retirement this season in order to play with the New York Yankees. He pitched effectively, but he suffered from an injury mid-season unfortunately.
3) Jason Vargas: Vargas has pitched effectively for the Mariners the past three seasons and now finds himself with the Los Angeles Angels.
4) Ross Detwiler: Detwiler is a pitcher for the Washington Nationals, who was their fifth starter this past season even though he posted a mid 3.00 ERA. This is good production from a fifth starter.
5) Madison Bumgarner: Bumgarner is a pitcher for the San Franscisco Giants. He is a young pitcher who has helped the team win those two championships in the last two years.
Other Considerations: J.A. Happ, Derek Holland, Barry Zito, Mike Minor, etc.
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