Mid-rotation innings eaters don't necessarily grace ticket stubs and souvenir programs the way a Clay Buchholz or Felix Hernandez might. But most teams rely on veteran starters to provide steady innings, not to electrify the fan base. Once the offseason begins, GMs will bid on innings eaters as they look to fill out their rotations.
Rodrigo Lopez, Jon Garland, Bronson Arroyo, Jeremy Bonderman, Dave Bush, Bruce Chen, Doug Davis, Freddy Garcia, Aaron Harang, Hiroki Kuroda, Ted Lilly, Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla, Javier Vazquez and Jake Westbrook all fit the description to an extent and all could hit free agency this winter. Here's a preliminary look at which teams might be in the market for innings eaters in the 2010-11 offseason:
- Yankees
- Orioles
- Indians
- Royals
- Tigers
- Twins – Minnesota figures to offer Carl Pavano arbitration and if he turns down their offer, they could go after an innings eater.
- Mariners
- Nationals
- Reds – The Reds could pick up Bronson Arroyo’s 2011 option.
- Cardinals
- Pirates
- Cubs – The Cubs’ interest in free agent pitchers depends on whether they trade Carlos Zambrano.
- Astros
- Diamondbacks
- Dodgers
- Padres
- Rockies
So pretty much every team then? Is this really even news worthy?
You’re right, this isn’t super interesting…but I’m sure this is one of those articles they will link to this winter when we start hearing buzz about Jon Garland, etc.’s next contract.
You’re right, this isn’t super interesting…but I’m sure this is one of those articles they will link to this winter when we start hearing buzz about Jon Garland, etc.’s next contract.
So pretty much every team then? Is this really even news worthy?
Yah, the much shorter list would be who doesn’t need pitching this offseason.
Yah, the much shorter list would be who doesn’t need pitching this offseason.
When the hell did Clay Bucholz become an innings eater, he has 152 inning pitched this year. He’s not even in the top 50 for innings pitched. He’s 81. Even if he pitched 5 more games to be on par with Games Pitched for starters and threw 9 innings each of those 5 starts, he still wouldn’t be at 200 innings. He’s no innings eater. He might not even be a 200 inning pitcher over the course of a full year with 32-34 starts. SERIOUSLY, someone is failing as a poster on MLBTR. There are 80 OTHER PITCHERS who have pitched more innings than Clay Bucholz yet you still put him in front of Felix Hernandez in post about innings pitched, Come On Cliff Lee missed more time then Bucholz and has outpitched him. If Bucholz didn’t pitch for Boston, nobody would even care about him.
Buchholz is never labeled an innings eater in this post. He is simply described as someone who is popular and sells tickets (as opposed to a lesser known innings-eater).
Buchholz is never labeled an innings eater in this post. He is simply described as someone who is popular and sells tickets (as opposed to a lesser known innings-eater).
If Buchholz didn’t pitch for the Boston no one would care about him? Is that a serious comment? 15-7 with a 2.53 ERA in the AL East. Yeah, who cares about that sort of ERA in the best division in baseball.
Clay BUCHHOLZ became an innings eater the same time you learned how to read. The article not only never said Buchholz was an innings eater, it never even alluded to it. Also, the reason Buchholz has such a low number of IP is because he was on the DL.
Buchholz figures to be a 210-220 IP guy when healthy and in the bigs for an entire, uninterupted season.
Finally, if Lee has outpitched Buchholz, why does he have less wins and a higher era?
I’m sorry but if you used wins and ERA as measurements for pitchers’ competency, stop following MLBTR and continue watching ESPN. Don’t get me wrong Buchholz is really good but he’s not (yet) the pitcher of Cliff Lee’s caliber, a guy who pitches effectively deep into games with consistency. And don’t forget Lee spent time on DL this year as well, yet he has accumulated 6.3 WAR in comparison with Buchholz’s 3.1.
Clay BUCHHOLZ became an innings eater the same time you learned how to read. The article not only never said Buchholz was an innings eater, it never even alluded to it. Also, the reason Buchholz has such a low number of IP is because he was on the DL.
Buchholz figures to be a 210-220 IP guy when healthy and in the bigs for an entire, uninterupted season.
Finally, if Lee has outpitched Buchholz, why does he have less wins and a higher era?
When the hell did Clay Bucholz become an innings eater, he has 152 inning pitched this year. He’s not even in the top 50 for innings pitched. He’s 81. Even if he pitched 5 more games to be on par with Games Pitched for starters and threw 9 innings each of those 5 starts, he still wouldn’t be at 200 innings. He’s no innings eater. He might not even be a 200 inning pitcher over the course of a full year with 32-34 starts. SERIOUSLY, someone is failing as a poster on MLBTR. There are 80 OTHER PITCHERS who have pitched more innings than Clay Bucholz yet you still put him in front of Felix Hernandez in post about innings pitched, Come On Cliff Lee missed more time then Bucholz and has outpitched him. If Bucholz didn’t pitch for Boston, nobody would even care about him.
What about Rodrigo Lopez? Is there going to be any interest in him?
What about Rodrigo Lopez? Is there going to be any interest in him?
Jarrod Washburn anyone?