At any given moment, there are 150 Major League rotation spots, give or take. Injuries and unconventional alignments lead to fluctuations in the number of spots, but we’re essentially dealing with five per team. Each one of those spots is highly coveted, because starters pitch more innings and generally earn more money, whether through arbitration or free agency. 18 of the pitchers in projected rotations around MLB are at least 35 years of age or will turn 35 at some point in 2012. Here’s the complete list, sorted by age:
- Jake Westbrook (35 in September)
- Ryan Vogelsong (35 in July)
- Bruce Chen (35 in June)
- Roy Halladay (35 in May)
- Ryan Dempster (35 in May)
- Bronson Arroyo (35)
- Freddy Garcia (36 in October)
- Randy Wolf (36 in August)
- Carl Pavano (36)
- Ted Lilly (36)
- Tim Hudson (turns 37 in July)
- Chris Carpenter (37 in April)
- Livan Hernandez (37)
- Hiroki Kuroda (37)
- Kevin Millwood (38 in December)
- R.A. Dickey (38 in October)
- Derek Lowe (39 in June)
- Bartolo Colon (39 in May)
Projected rosters via MLBDepthCharts.com.
Andy Pettitte is a starting pitcher!!!!
Pettitte is only 5 years old in dog years…
You’re doing it backwards…….
He’s probably not on the list because he signed a minor league deal, and thus is not (yet) on the 40-man.
Vogelsong and Chen, both at 34, just entered into their prime last year. Dickey entered into his prime at 35.
Their “prime” is not one lucky season
Correction: Livan Hernandez (43)
Here’s hoping Jamie Moyer returns to the majors and destroys this list at the spry age of 49.
This is a disproporionately National League list. 6 of 18 are on AL rosters. 2 of the 6, Lowe and Kuroda, signed in the off season after multiple NL seasons. None pitched his whole career in the AL: Garcia comes the closest. Many are clinging to the edge of the cliff in the NL, no longer good enough for the AL (Westbrook, Lilly, Arroyo, Millwood, Dickey).
Obviously Doc, Hudson and Carpenter (when healthy) can pitch anywhere. But the NL is where old AL pitchers go to hang on.
You are so wrong about Dickey.
Once he comes off the DL, AJ Burnett should be on this list. Age 35 right now.
Roger Clemens not making a comeback this year?
I remember when these guys were rookies.
I’m so old.
What is the point of this post? Is the author suggesting that since these guys are 35 (or turning 35) they are more prone to be injured or perform poorly? Why was 35 chosen?
He is a machine!
Halladay and Ryan are/was great, don’t get me wrong but Moyer must be losing his mind in his old age as he has also been teamates with Maddux, Clemens, Big Unit and Pedro who are all historically superior to Halladay and Ryan. Those four are the best pitchers since the mid eighties and Moyer played with all of them.
Annoying, you are. But clever I will admit that.
You could only make that argument based on 1972. Clemens (though a cheat), Maddux, Big Unit, Pedro all had more consistant careers. Carlton is in the mix, but not obviously better than any of them.