MLB Showdown Cards

2011 Starting Pitchers 200-290 Points 

            Alright, we are starting to get into the real bottom of the barrel here. Not below where I look for a majority of my starters when I like to mash. That is besides the point few if any of you managers have the dedication to read next weeks post for 3 or your 4 starters. This will be the 4 starter for some balanced teams. Maybe 3 and 4 starters for people who are a little hitting heavy.  The guys we have already covered are going to do well with a little help from the teammates. These guys are going to need a little help from the teammates to do average. Getting a quality start of 6 IP and 3 runs is going to be a nice accomplishment usually. Then after 6 innings you may be lucky to have a good lead and can stretch or coast into the win. If not then prepare for the dog fight. 290 or less points is just not enough for a quality starter but that has never stopped us from looking before.

            There are not 6s or 5s at all in this range so do not bother looking. So power is going to do some damage verse these guys no matter what you do. If you do not like that then get out of the deep end and  lower one of the guys in your line up. There are two 4s and one is much better then the other. Chein-Ming Wang is a player I can not say enough good things about at the points. He has a below average top of the cart with a 20 2B and 16-19 1B which under most situations would be a death sentence. What is the redeeming quality? Not the none advancing out, he has the worst in the league at 1-4. His 5-11 GB though is fantastic. He is significantly better then Villanueva and should be taken ahead of him no matter what.

            I think 2 of the 3 players in this range who have 3 controls are serviceable. Charlie Morton at 280 is a 1-16 out with 17 BB. Decent none advancing out of 1-6. The 7-13 GB for a guy who will have his fair share of player on base has its uses. He only pitches 5 innings on his card which is why I may actually prefer Luke Hochevar for 240. For 40 points less you get an extra inning and he gives up 1 more walk for a 1-15 out. He has the same size GB with a 6-12. His none advancing is 1 lower. Pick what you prefer. Joel Pinerio is just an odd assortment of stats but is cheap. I would not say he is awful just tough to project him.
            The twos have what look like clones of the same players. 5 guys fit in this range. 2 players for 230 points who have 1-16 outs and 17-18 BB while the 3 players for 210 only have 17 BB. Best player here is Trevor Cahill with his 7-14 GB (see a pattern developing?). He is going to have plenty of Pingers on base against him and maybe you catch lightning in a bottle and erase a few lead off singles with double plays. There have been worse theories proposed over the years. All the other guys are pretty much just a matter of preference.

            The few of you who are brave enough to try 1s and 0s have my blessing.  The lone 0 option is Jeremy Gutherie who does not have a good chart for the points. Paying for a 7 IP that he will never reach. He has a 1-6 none advancing which is average. 7-11 GB is nothing to write home about. No BB and gives up a 2B with a 20. No deal Howie. For the 1s John Danks is over priced so don't even bother. Carl Pavano is the same player with an extra IP. I may look at RA dickey here as a 1 with an 1-18 out. He can dominate some low on base line ups. He may also may have some success with people trying to attack with bad offensive charts. Not a lot of success but maybe as much success as other 200 point players.  You are only spending 200 points you are only going to have so much success. He has a 6-13 GB which again is a helper. No real help with the none advancing outs of 1-5. Just dominate the pitchers and punts I guess.

            These guys are all going to get hit around a little bit. We knew that coming into it. Do not get frustrated after a single blow out. You are cheap it is your own fault. Make sure with the points you save you go get a super star somewhere else you enjoy playing with. We all know you get what you pay for with pitching.