Lince-Who?
The San Francisco Giants currently sport one of the worst offenses of all time, but have posted an 11-14 record on the strength of some quality pitching. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard of Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum, both of whom have been anointed by various pundits as the best young pitcher in the National League in the last year. Lincecum, in particular, is getting plaudits at the moment, as he’s off to a terrific start to the 2008 campaign, and his tiny frame and unique delivery make him interesting to watch even when he’s not dominating. However, the Giants don’t just have a big two, and there’s a guy getting lost in the hype shuffle.
See that green dot? That’s Jonathan Sanchez, San Francisco’s 25 year old southpaw with a knockout slider. He’s struggled with command problems and nagging health issues around his arm, but he’s healthy now and making hitters look foolish. His fastball doesn’t have the velocity it used to have, but he makes up for it with a slider that’s among the best swing-and-miss pitches in the game.
Using that weapon, he’s reinstating himself into the discussion of potential aces hanging out in San Francisco. In fact, the K/BB ratio above makes a pretty strong argument that Sanchez is a better bet for the future than Cain, and the difference between he and Lincecum isn’t nearly as large as most people would believe.
When you’re talking about good young arms in baseball, don’t forget Jonathan Sanchez.
Dave is the Managing Editor of FanGraphs.
This is the first Sanchez post I’ve seen anywhere. It’s about time, thanks Dave.
It does seem a little weird that the guy leading the majors in K/9 isn’t getting a little more attention…. Nicely done!
The dip in velocity is standard for a pitcher moving from the pen to the rotation, isn’t it?
Sanchez was touching 95 in the minors as a starting pitcher. I’d imagine his velocity drop is more due to the injuries he’s dealt with in the past few years.
Dave, I remember you having a very strong opinion of Lincecum being very overrated. Have you had a change of heart or do you still believe he’ll disappoint his biggest fans?
I think that’s probably characterizing my position too strongly, but it’s true that I am not as high on Lincecum as some others. His command is still a very real problem, and it’s extremely difficult to sustain a long, all-star career with his current strike-throwing abilities. I think the exuberance around Lincecum is a bit ahead of his actual talent levels, so I probably do think he’ll disappoint his biggest fans, but don’t take that to mean that I don’t recognize that he’s a talented pitcher.