Comments on: Zimmermann: Best Rookie Pitcher?

By: Coon

Coon — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 16:48:56 +0000

Atlanta Braves’ Tommy Hanson by the end of the year will have the best stats.. Mid 90s Fastball and a Curve that falls off a table. This kid will be a stud!

By: Tommy

Tommy — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 06:58:05 +0000

I agree Zimmermann deserves much more credit, but even if he had better “mainstream” stats, he would probably not finish in the top 3. I’m not saying this because I don’t like him, it is just that he pitches for the Nationals, and no matter his production, there is no way in today’s game that he will garner enough attention.

Another rookie who pitched very well was Hanson on the 4th. 7 innings of 3 hit, 1 walk ball with only a solo home run allowed to Adam Dunn that snapped his 26 shut out innings streak. He would’ve received the win if not for a bullpen meltdown. Considering his ERA, record (can’t believe it is still used as a factor), and uber prospect status, I think he has to be a front runner for ROY.

By: Nick

Nick — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 05:26:12 +0000

I would argue that Brandon Webb should have gotten more attention than Willis in 2003

By: daniel

daniel — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:48:41 +0000

Randy Wells and his 3.24 FIP and 6.3 IP/start would beg to differ. Sure, Zimmerman and Romero maybe have more long-term upside, but Wells has been a revelation in Chicago. Groundball tendencies, impeccable command (2.0 BB/9), and a great presence on the mound point. When he first came up this year he was asked what the most important thing he had ever been told about pitching was and he answered “Throw strikes or go home” – not the kind of mentality most young pitchers have. Obviously he is already 26, but if we’re talking about best performance as a rookie and not not best chance of future success, Wells has to be in the conversation.

By: Greg

Greg — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:43:39 +0000

Nice use of the possessive form. That’s the type of bold grammar usage that keeps me coming back to Fangraphs over and over again.

By: joe

joe — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:33:18 +0000

The fact these import “rookies” can qualify for RoY, just makes me lol…

Id say Ricky Romero is the best rookie pitcher out there so far. Unlike every other rookie, he is consistently going deep into games, and it’s not because he throws a lot of pitches, he is very efficient. He is averaging 6 1/2 innings per start, and has in fact pitched into the 7th in all but 3 of his starts. It’s a shame he was injured, otherwise he would have somewhere around the tune of 16 starts and would be on everyone’s radar.

In plate discipline, compared to Zimmermann, hitters are making far less contact on his outside-zone pitches (49.7% to 69.3%) and overall (76.9% to 80.6%), but his first pitch strike and zone rates are at or below league average. Everything else is very similar.

His FIP may be a little high, but thats almost certainly because of his 17% HR/FB rate. He also gives up a lot less line drives (17.4% to 24.5%), so he helps his own cause by making it easier for fielders to record an out. His K/9 and BB/9 of 7.55 and 3.02 aren’t too shabby either.

Its a close one, but personally i think its more important to get a lot of innings out of your starter and to rest your bullpen, and the 2 are close enough to make the innings advantage important.

By: Charlie Saponara

Charlie Saponara — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:37:27 +0000

And his defense just got better with the addition of Nyjer Morgan.

By: Erik

Erik — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:28:45 +0000

Because that guy that gets paid to swing the bat actually hits like he’s paid to pitch.

By: Davidceisen

Davidceisen — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:10:27 +0000

I don’t think it was part of the strategy to let Zimmermann hit a single.

By: David

David — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 18:53:06 +0000

Wrong link – his name has an extra “n” at the end.

I think Koji Uehara (3.51 FIP, 6.48 K/9, 1.62 BB/9, 0.95 HR/9) would be in this conversation if he could stay healthy and get deeper into games. Of course, there is the argument that he’s not much of a rookie, being a 34 year old Japanese import.