FG on Fox: The Decline of Yovani Gallardo
On Monday, while the world was reacting to the news of Max Scherzer’s signing, the Texas Rangers made a nifty little trade, acquiring Yovani Gallardo from the Milwaukee Brewers for three so-so prospects that they probably won’t miss too much. Gallardo immediately slides in behind Yu Darvish and Derek Holland as the team’s #3 starter, giving them some much needed pitching depth in their quest to avoid a repeat of their disastrous 2014 season.
The Rangers clearly needed at least one more reliable starting pitcher, and Gallardo has made 30 or more starts in six consecutive years, proving to be a durable innings eater at worst, while occasionally flashing some front-of-the-rotation stuff. But there’s a reason the Brewers traded him, and it wasn’t just to open up a rotation spot for young hurler Jimmy Nelson; Gallardo’s slowly becoming a different kind of pitcher than he was earlier in his career.
The graph below is the easiest way to see Gallardo’s evolution as a pitcher:
Read the rest on Just a Bit Outside.
Dave is the Managing Editor of FanGraphs.
In fairness, a big part of the Rangers’ last-place groundball rate last year stems from the fact that they have Yu, who consistently leads the league in Ks, and Lewis, a noted flyball pitcher, and the fact that Perez and Harrison, the 2 groundball machines, were out almost all year.
Agreed, I actually think the Rangers have been a pitch to contact team in recent years, so they might be okay with the approach. Especially with what should be an above average infield defense (at least from 2B left).
Except for Yu, and to a certain extent, Holland.