Today let's take a look at the free agent market for starting pitchers.
- ERA leaders: Randy Wolf (3.24), Joel Pineiro (3.24), John Lackey (3.56), Jarrod Washburn (3.78), and Jason Marquis (3.98).
- Prefer xFIP? We've got Pineiro (3.69), Lackey (4.06), Wolf (4.27), Marquis (4.43), and Andy Pettitte (4.48).
- Best strikeout rate (K/9): Rich Harden (10.9), Erik Bedard (9.8), John Smoltz (8.5), Randy Johnson (8.0), Lackey (7.2), Pettitte (7.0), Wolf (6.8), Doug Davis (6.5), and Carl Pavano (6.4).
- Best control (BB/9): Pineiro (1.1, leads all of baseball), Smoltz (1.6), Pavano (1.7), Wolf (2.4), Lackey (2.4), Washburn (2.5), and Jon Garland (2.7).
- Lowest home run rate (HR/9): Pineiro (0.31), Marquis (0.66), Tim Wakefield (0.71), Lackey (0.74), and Jose Contreras (0.87).
- Best groundball rate: Pineiro (61.4%, leads all of baseball), Marquis (55.2%), and Looper (46.8%).
- Lowest hit rate (H/9): Bedard (7.0), Wolf (7.5), Harden (7.8), Washburn (8.2), Lackey (8.7), and Pettitte (8.8). Along those same lines, your BABIP leaders: Washburn (.254), Wolf (.256), Marquis (.285), and Braden Looper (.286).
- Innings leaders: Marquis (206), Wolf (203), Pineiro (203), Garland (194.6), Pettitte (184.3), Pavano (183), and Looper (182.6).
- Most pitches thrown: Davis (3253), Wolf (3112), Pettitte (3096), Marquis (3085), Garland (3084), and Looper (3075).
- Highest average fastball velocity: Brad Penny (94.0), Harden (92.1), Padilla (91.9), Contreras (91.7), Sidney Ponson (91.7), Lackey (91.6), Bedard (91.5), Todd Wellemyer (91.5), and Smoltz (91.5).
- Under 30 years old in 2010: Daniel Cabrera, Harden, Brett Myers, and Mark Prior.
- Scott Boras represents Washburn and Rodrigo Lopez.
- Projected Type A free agents: Lackey, Harden, and Wolf. Projected Bs: Pettitte, Wakefield, Bedard, Justin Duchscherer, Brandon Webb, Pineiro, Garland, Vicente Padilla, Looper, Marquis, Davis, and Wellemeyer.
- Pitchers who were solid in 2008: Ben Sheets, Webb, Wellemeyer, Bedard, Duchscherer, and Johnson. Freddy Garcia, Tim Hudson, and Myers are other interesting injury bounceback candidates.
- Smoltz, Penny, and Padilla have been somewhat effective upon moving to the NL.
- Pitchers with 2010 options: Cliff Lee (an obvious choice to exercise at $8MM), Garcia, Garland, Hudson, Looper, Brian Moehler, Wakefield, and Webb.
