As time goes on, one thing I have learned to appreciate more and more in the game of baseball is dominating starting pitching. With the exception of Zack Greinke’s brilliant 2009 season, the Kansas City Royals have been bereft of quality starting pitchers for a couple of decades. Yes, we’ve got to see Kevin Appier and David Cone in that time, along with Greinke, but that is a short list when you consider what the Phillies run out to the mound on a daily basis this year. This list is not based on this season alone – a consistent, dominant history went along way, especially when deciding on position. I would take any of these guys in a second for the Royals, I can tell you. The numbers provided are career numbers.
10. Dan Haren – Haren made this list ahead of some other deserving hurlers because of his health record. He has made at least 33 starts for 6 straight seasons going into this year. He has been remarkable consistent, turning in good ratios and strikeouts numbers for years. Only 30 years old, Haren should have several quality seasons left.
101-80, 1602.1 IP, 1368/344 K/BB, 3.58 ERA, 1.175 WHIP
9. Cole Hamels – Certainly one of the most exciting young arms in the majors, Hamels is quickly becoming a dominant force in filling out the Phillies’ Big Three. As he matures, Hamels seems to becoming more and more awesome. His numbers thus far in 2011 are crazy good and at only 27, Hamels has plenty of time to move up this list.
71-49, 1077.1 IP, 1018/272 K/BB, 3.38 ERA, 1.147 WHIP
8. Clayton Kershaw – I really questioned myself about putting Kershaw this high. At 23, he is the youngest and least experienced on the list. The deciding factor came down to his overwhelming strikeout numbers, combined with his declining walk tendencies. He is on pace for nearly 300 strikeouts. He has also improved his WHIP each season. With his youth, if he can avoid injuries, he could be at the top of this list within 5 years.
36-27, 620.2 IP, 652/261 K/BB, 3.11 ERA, 1.219 WHIP
7. Cliff Lee – After I compiled my list, I was surprised I had Lee this low but after taking a closer look, I think I have him in the right position. At 32, Lee has only been a dominating since 2008. At this point in his career, Lee is the most Greg Maddox-type on the list. He definitely knows how to pitch. I could see him having several more years of excellence, if not dominance, in front of him.
111-67, 1546.1 IP, 1222/379 K/BB, 3.76 ERA, 1.238 WHIP
6. Jeff Weaver – Maybe the biggest surprise on the list, Weaver gets the nod because of his steadily improving numbers. He went from a nice, solid starter to a dominating force. He is only 28 and doesn’t get the luxury of throwing to pitchers like many on this list. He is one pitcher whose numbers this season really impressed me enough to move him up the list. He has become a 200 plus strikeout pitcher and this proves he truly is deserving. Weaver is also very durable and should be a Top 10 hurler for years to come.
75-43, 1036.1 IP, 899/283 K/BB, 3.32 ERA, 1.166 WHIP
5. Felix Hernandez – In reality, there is very little difference in the next four spots as far as talent goes. I gave this position to King Felix because of the crappy team he works for. How incredible is it that he won the 2010 Cy Young with a 13-12 record? This really is par for the course of his career. He has amazing, workhorse-like numbers, put up for an offensively hindered ball club. Hernandez is only 25 but has worked a ton of innings and this could be worrisome in the future. He is as steady as they come and if he ever gets on a good team, the sky is the limit, if his arm holds out.
79-60, 1298.2 IP, 1182/400 K/BB, 3.20 ERA, 1.216 WHIP
4. C.C. Sabathia – What a monster of a man! And what a workhorse! He has averaged 227 innings pitched for his career and I have seen many predictions that his workload and his size were going to do him in. There have been no signs that I can see. He has not been as consistently dominating as some of the others on this lists but he has been far above average his whole career. Still only 30, he should have several big seasons in front of him, especially if he stays with the Yankees. He just keeps going along, putting up big numbers and he has really earned this spot.
170-92, 2272.2 IP, 1913/699 K/BB, 3.52 ERA, 1.224 WHIP
3. Justin Verlander – If Verlander didn’t pitch in the AL Central, he might not be so high. Unfortunately, I get to see him on a regular basis. I think he is terrific. Some of his career numbers are above average but not spectacular and his 2011 numbers have helped him into this rating. He has been awesome so far this season. Like so many pitchers on this list, he is an absolute workhorse, throwing a big number of innings every year, averaging 210 a season. It feels as if Verlander has been around forever but he is still only 28. If his arm does not give out, he could put up some giant careers stats.
95-57, 1221.1 IP, 1118/386 K/BB, 3.61 ERA, 1.213 WHIP
2. Tim Lincecum – This kid has been about as dominating at an early age as any pitcher could hope to be in this day and age. Still only 27, he is working on his 4th straight 200 K season. His career ERA and WHIP are mind boggling. To do that consistently is just incredible. We all know about his freaky delivery and his slight body type. We still don’t know if he will suffer from his awesome workload. Until he shows signs of breaking down, Lincecum will be high on this list and no one is more deserving as he is.
64-34, 940.1 IP, 1046/341 K/BB, 3.04 ERA, 1.184 WHIP
1. Roy Halladay – I don’t think it was any mystery who was going to sit atop this list. Doc is the oldest name on this list but he has only gotten better with age. He has been pretty good his whole career but his last 6 plus years have been phenomenal. He had some injury problems early in his career but has had no issues for years now. He has supreme control (only 502 career walks) and seems to have no hit stuff every night he pitches. He is showing no signs of slowing down with age. I think we can expect a least 2 or 3 more years of dominance from this great pitcher. I certainly hope so.
180-89, 2440.2 IP, 1852/502 K/BB, 3.27 ERA, 1.172 WHIP
Others I considered for this list include Josh Johnson, David Price, Josh Beckett, Matt Cain, Tommy Hanson, Tim Hudson, Chris Carpenter, Zach Greinke, and C.J. Wilson. Stats through 7/15/2011
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