By: Tyler Ward
This year has proven to be the year of the pitcher. There have been four total no-hitters this seasons, with two of them being perfect games.
April 17 - Ubaldo Jimenez (vs. Braves); No-hitter
May 9 - Dallas Braden (vs. Tampa Bay); Perfect Game
May 29 - Roy Halladay (vs. Marlins); Perfect Game
June 26 - Edwin Jackson (vs. Tampa Bay); No-hitter
With so many great pitching performances this year, it has inspired me to write an article about the best young pitchers in the major leagues (For this, I consider "young" 26 years old or less by the end of the 2010 season). So, with that said, here's my Top 10:
Honorable Mention: Clay Buchholz, Boston Red Sox; Matt Cain, San Francisco; Johnny Cueto, Cincinnati Reds; Mike Pelfrey, New York Mets; Jamie Garcia, St. Louis Cardinals; Francisco Liriano, Minnesota Twins
10. Tommy Hanson, Atlanta Braves: While Hanson was in Class A in 2006, he was named the fourth highest-rated prospect in baseball. After spending three seasons in the minors, Hanson was finally called up to the big leagues in 2009. Before his call-up, he was ranked as the #1 prospect, according to MiLB. He certainly has lived up to his expectations, as he has compiled a 17-7 record in his first 1 1/2 seasons. He was also named the National League's Rookie of the Month in June 2009. In Hanson's first 4 starts in MLB, he had an amazing 0.78 ERA. At one point, he threw 22 consecutive scoreless innings and became the only rookie in history to win against the Yankees and Red Sox in back-to-back outings. He finished third in the NL's Rookie of the Year balloting last year. He is expected to be at the top of the Braves' rotation one day, and I think he can become one of the best pitchers in baseball.
9. Phil Hughes, New York Yankees: Hughes was selected in the first round of the 2004 MLB Draft by the Yankees. Hughes made his major league debut on April 26, 2007, as he became the second-youngest player at the MLB level. In 2008, Hughes was involved in trade rumors, as the Yankees tried to bring Johan Santana to the big apple. Trade talks died and Hughes would stay in New York. After three sub-par seasons, he came out of the gate this year on fire, posting a 10-2 record with a 3.58 ERA. Hughes is only 24 years old, so he still has a lot of years left in him. He is expected to be in the Yankees' starting rotation for years to come.
8. Jon Lester, Boston Red Sox: Jon Lester perhaps has one of the most heartfelt stories out of all the players in MLB right now. After being diagnosed with Lymphoma in 2006, it was unclear if Lester would ever pitch again. However, he was able to pitch again and won Game 4 of the World Series against the Rockies in 2007. The following season, Lester pitched a no-hitter against the Royals, becoming the first left-handed Red Sox pitcher to throw a no-hitter since Mel Parnell over 54 years ago. Lester has proven that he can win games, as he went 46-18 in his first 100 starts (a .719 winning percentage). It is the ninth best all time, with legend Whitey Ford leading the way. Lester can very well be one of the best left handers in baseball right now, and he is expected to be in the MLB for a long time.
7. Stephen Strasburg, Washington Nationals: First and foremost, the only reason I have Strasburg this low is because he hasn't made enough starts for me to consider him in the Top 5. He is a very good pitcher and could be a Hall-of-Fame caliber player if he keeps up the pace. Entering his Saturday start, Strasburg had an overall record of 2-2 with a 2.17 ERA. I think Strasburg could have won all his starts, but the Nationals have failed to give him run support. I think that if Strasburg can get on a perennial contender, he can be one of the greatest pitchers ever. Yes, I said ever. Taken #1 overall in this year's draft, many scouts didn't expect that he would be in the major leagues that early. He appeared in his first start on June 8 against the Pittsburgh Pirates, when the season had only been roughly a little over two months. Strasburg is a great pitcher and he could possibly make the NL All-Star roster this year due to his publicity. But, I think that he deserves to make it anyway, because for such a young player, his stats have been impeccable thus far.
6. Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers: Kershaw is by far the youngest player on this list. He's already been in the big leagues for over two years, and he's only 22 years old. Overall, his stats may not seem fantastic, but being as young as he is, he has all the time to become better and better. Kershaw won his first major league game against the Nationals on July 27, 2008. He pitched over six innings of scoreless baseball and only surrendered four hits. He finished the 2009 season at a mediocre 8-8, but he led the major leagues in opponent's batting average, hits per nine innings, and opposing slugging percentage. Kershaw had a reasonable 2.79 ERA, along with 185 strikeouts. So far this year, Kershaw is 7-4 with a 3.19 ERA. Like the aforementioned Jon Lester, he is expected to be one of the best left-handed pitchers in baseball. He has a very good amount of time to become the player everyone has thought he would be.
5. Josh Johnson, Florida Marlins: Johnson is perhaps my favorite pitcher on this list. He has a lot of talent, even though he's on an average Florida Marlins squad. Johnson was chosen in the fourth round of the 2002 MLB amateur deaft by the Marlins. He made his MLB debut in 2005, with the appearance coming in relief against the Phillies . He placed fourth in NL Rookie of the Year balloting in 2006. The same year, Johnson, Scott Olsen, Anibal Sanchez, and Ricky Nolasco became the first quartet of rookie pitchers to win 10 games each in a single season. Since 2008, he has slowly become one of the best pitchers in the National League. In the last 2+ seasons, Johnson has boasted a gaudy 30-9 record. He is 8-3 this year with a 1.82 ERA, which leads the National League in that category.Earlier this year, Johnson signed a 4-year/$39 million extension with Florida. Right now, he is at the top of the Marlins' rotation and is expected to be there for a very long time. He was named an All-Star last year, too. So far in his career, Johnson has posted a 42-19 record with an astounding 3.11 ERA.
4. Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners: This is another player on this list that I like. Nicknamed "King Felix", Hernandez has proved time and time again that he is the ace of the Mariners' pitching staff. He signed with the Mariners in 2002 as an amateur free agent. In 2005, Hernandez was ranked as the #2 prospect in all of baseball, only behind last year's AL MVP, Joe Mauer. Also, late in the 2005 season, he debuted against the Detroit Tigers. At the time, he was only a shade over 19 years old, becoming the youngest pitcher to start a game since Jose Rijo in 1984. The one thing that takes away from Hernandez is that he plays on one of the worst teams in baseball. He has only compiled a 64-46 record since his debut in 2005. He had a career-best year last year, posting a 19-5 record with a 2.49 ERA. He also made his first All-Star appearance last year and I'm sure there are many more to come.
Like Strasburg, I think Hernandez will have to go elsewhere if he wants to prove his talent. He will never be able to post Hall-of-Fame worthy numbers if he stays in Seattle. He could also very well be #1 on my list if he was on a contending team. But, in the end, Hernandez will eventually leave and exceed his expectations.
3. David Price, Tampa Bay Rays: In 2007, the Rays took Price first overall in the draft. Many didn't know what to expect out of Price because the Rays have made some less than spectacular picks since their expansion. Price made his MLB debut against the Yankees in 2008, and the first home run Price fittingly gave up was to future Hall-of-Famer, Derek Jeter. The same year, the Rays faced the previous year's AL Champion, Boston Red Sox. In Game 2, Price earned his first win ever against those same Red Sox. Price won a postseason game before he even won a regular season game. He recorded the final four outs in Game 7 of the ALCS to get his first career save and he also eliminated the defending World Series champions.
On May 30, 2009, Price earned his first regular season win against the Minnesota Twins, while striking out 11 in 6 innings. He finished the season with a 10-7 record and a 4.42 ERA. This year, he became the first AL pitcher to 10 wins. As of right now, Price is 11-4 with an AL-leading 2.42 ERA. He is expected to be the Rays' ace for many years to come and I think he will succeed in that role. So far, Price has proven that he was worthy of the #1 overall pick and he looks to continue the pace for the rest of the season.
2. Ubaldo Jimenez, Colorado Rockies: There is one word that describes Ubaldo Jimenez: Amazing. If it weren't for the one player in front of him on my rankings, Jimenez would be the sure fire winner. Jimenez was signed by the Rockies after the 2001 amateur draft. Many didn't know what to expect from him, as no one had really heard much from him. He proved otherwise, as he is turning into one of Colorado's bright spots. Entering this year, he was mediocre at best, but this year, he has started on an amazing hot streak.
Not only has Jimenez done exceedingly well this season, he dominated every aspect of the game on April 17, throwing the Rockies' first no-hitter ever. So far, Jimenez is no doubt the front runner to win the NL Cy Young award. Entering Saturday, Jimenez has posted a 14-1 record with a 1.83 ERA (that's a .933 winning percentage thus far.) Through his first 11 starts, Jimenez had the lowest ERA in MLB history than anyone else in that stratch (0.78 ERA). He even carried home some hardware in April and May, winning the NL's Pitcher of the Month.
I think that at the end of the season, Jimenez will have racked up at least 22 wins with an ERA somewhere around 2.50. There is no doubt in my mind that he will win the Cy Young award this year. I'm fairly confident when I say that Jimenez will be a cornerstone of any pitching staff for the next decade or so. And for that, he places #2 on my list. This means that #1 is...yep, you guessed it..
1. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants: I don't even think that Lincecum is the best young pitcher in baseball. I think he's actually the best pitcher, period. Taken 10th overall in the 2006 MLB Draft, many people didn't think that Lincecum would be this good.
He made his MLB debut on May 6, 2007, against the Philadelphia Phillies. He earned his first career win against the Houston Astros less than a week later. In his inaugural season, he posted a 7-5 record with an even 4.00 ERA.
Lincecum has won the last 2 NL Cy Young awards and was the first player since Dwight Gooden and Bret Saberhagen in 1985 to win the Cy Young in his second year in the major leagues. Nicknamed "The Freak", Lincecum went 18-5 in his sophomore season and as stated previously, he went on to be the best pitcher of the season. This was only the second time in Giants history that one of their pitchers won the Cy Young (Mike McCormick). He also had a 2.62 ERA that year and led the National League in strikeouts, becoming the first Giants pitcher to do so since Bill Voiselle in 1944.The following season, Lincecum had the mindset that he could do even better. Although his stats were not as good as the stats in 2008, he still managed to be the best pitcher in the NL. He was elected as the NL's starting pitcher for the 2009 All-Star game. "The Freak" finished the season with a 15-7 record, 2.48 ERA, and an NL-leading 261 strikeouts. The Sporting News gave Lincecum their NL Starting Pitcher of the Year award for the second straight season, also. He won the Cy Young again, barely beating out the St. Louis Cardinals duo of Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright. This was the first time in MLB history that a player would win the Cy Young in their first 2 full seasons in the major leagues. So far this year, Lincecum is 8-4 with a 3.28 ERA.
