Atlanta Braves may be at odds with MLB on who did best in May

Don’t mess with Braves Twitter… that’s the message being sent every time there’s a hint of disrespect coming from the MLB offices.  It’s happened again.

The pitching for the Atlanta Braves has been off the chart lately – not just in winning games, but even keeping them in games that might have gotten out of hand quickly in recent years’ past.

So while we’ve been feeling pretty good about what our starting rotation has been putting together (last night being merely then latest example), there was this…

Okay, 2 guys from the NL, two from the AL.  That’s fair.  But there’s a particularly curious bit about at least one name on that list:  Jacob deGrom.

ERA title rules require that a pitcher throw at least as many innings as their team plays.  So for the season, 162 innings is required for a pitcher to be “qualified” for the leaderboards in ERA, wins, etc.

In May, the Mets played 29 games.  Jacob deGrom threw 26.0 innings.  So… why is he even on this poll?  Is MLB considering an unqualified pitcher as pitcher of the month??

Of course, equally fresh in the minds of Braves fans is Thursday’s game against deGrom and the Mets:

• he yielded 1 earned run in 7 innings… which actually raised his ERA for the month
• Max Fried matched his effort and thanks to a whirlwind comeback against the Mets’ bullpen (Seth Lugo specifically), the Braves won the game – a no-decision going to deGrom since he was pulled after 7.

So sure:  he was excellent in May… but probably shouldn’t even have been on the list because of the usual measuring sticks.

Who Belongs?

Braves’ fans have immediately gone to bat for their guys – on twitter of course…

Well, if you indeed limit the field to the National League, then you have these candidates:

• Jake Arrieta PHI (30 innings, 2-1, 5 starts, 0.90 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, .234 avg against)
• Ross Stripling LAD (29 IP, 3-0, 5 starts, 1.24 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, .220 AA)
• Jeremy Hellickson WSH (27.2, 2-0, 5 starts, 1.30 ERA, 0.76 WHIP, .198 AA)
• Gio Gonzalez WSH (30.2, 3-0, 5 starts, 1.47 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, .191 AA)
• Sean Newcomb ATL (35.0, 5-0, 6 starts, 1.54 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, .154 AA)

Mike Foltynewicz actually didn’t qualify either:  28 innings for Atlanta’s 29 games, but his numbers were good too 2.57 ERA in 5 starts, 2-2 record, 2.57 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, .222 AA).  Last night’s gem, of course, will count toward June’s totals.

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Objectively, Arrieta had the best month.  That much seems clear.  But there’s a serious argument that should be had about #2.

Newcomb had the most innings, wins, and best average against among those not named Arrieta.  Stripling had the best ERA in this group, Hellickson the best WHIP, Gio… lead in none of these.

Unfortunately for Newcomb, his worst start came against the Red Sox in Boston … a tough place to play under normal circumstances, but other factor (family, home area) conspired against him that day as well.

Still, there’s a solid case to be made for him, and I’d personally vote to give him the nod – while removing deGrom.  I could even be okay with any of those other candidates, but the stat people need to stay consistent with their own standards.

Next: What happened last night?

deGrom was good; there’s no doubt about that… but he didn’t get over the bar in May.  You missed it, MLB.