Mook vs the next generation of pitchers

Pitchers are dominating this year. There have been 3 perfect games (if you count Galaraga) and 2 more no-hitters. Plus a bunch that went 8+ innings. And not only that, but there are more shut-outs than I can remember.

Young pitchers are particulary dominating
In anticipation of Stephen starssberg’s debut, ESPN did an article on the top pitchers of the next decade(not including Starssberg).

(This was pretty interesting in one of my fantasy leagues where Strassberg (and some others) were traded for Felix… and then this article ranks Felix #1)

Interesting that Lincecum didn’t even make the cut. And neither did Zach Greinke who was ridiculous last year.

Here are my top 12 pitchers in the next 5 years
1. Wainright
(he reminds me a lot of Greg Maddux- a complete player. He performed under pressure in the playoffs, and has Dave Duncan as his coach)
2. Lester
(Take out his April this year and his numbers would be mind-blowing. A lefty for a perennial contender… he already has a perfect game to his name and overcame cancer
3. Lincecum
(Scouts don’t like his unusual technique, but it has been working)
4. Halladay
(He still has 5 good – great- years left in him)
5. Ubaldo
(he’s coming back to earth, but he’s still pretty incredible)
6. David Price
(like many of the others before him I like his playoff experience… we forget how much hype he had last year)
7. Strassberg
(he will be great, but he’ll also have some growing pains)
8. Josh Johnson
(he is often mentioned as one of the top 3 pitchers in the NL- but usually for shock value… but he has been darn good this year, again no one notices).
9. Cliff Lee
(Seems to be coming into hiw own these last 3 years)
10. Verlander
(does anyone throw harder?)
11. Phil Hughes
(has gone thru some growing pains, I think he’s ready to bloom
12. Clayton Kershaw
(he’s stil 21 and improving a lot)
Honorable mentions
13. Mat Latos
14. Clay Buchholz
15. Bret Anderson

Noticeably missing
1. Felix
(he has a lot of wins, big deal. He reminds me of CC or Bartolo Colon
2. CC
(I’ve never been impressed by CC- expect for his brief tenure with the Brewers which was incredible. He is extremely inconsistent though, and due for a breakdown)
3. Greinke
(he looked like the next Saberhagen… but maybe that is what he is, a couple amazing years, and a decent career, but nothing special)
4. Tommy Hanson
(I’m sure he will be good, but I think others will be better)

Top Ten in the next ten years?
1. Strassberg
2. Price
3. Wainright
4. Bret Anderson
5. Lester
6. Kershaw
7. Ubaldo
8. Josh Johnson
9. Lincecum
10. Some guy we haven’t heard of yet

Of course no one knows what will happen. We all saw what happened with Prior & Wood with the Cubs. Any one of these guys could blow their arm out (though Johnson & Lester already went thru major surgeries). Or we could recall guys with funky deliveries like Fernando, D-train, or Nomo and assume Lincecum is bound to fail too.

Of course we don’t know. Only God knows.
But we like making predictions. We like preview magazines. We like picking our brackets for march madness and we like playing fantasy sports. And if we’re right, we can say “I knew it” or at least “I called it/ predicted it”
Just like only the writers of LOST actually knew the ending (ok maybe they didn’t either, those bastards… liars…idiots), no one knows how things will turn out.

I mean if anyone was going to have a great career it was Doc Gooden. Check out his stats! He was 24-4 with a 1.53 era and 16 complete games & 8 shut-outs, 268 k's- as a 20 year old!... 276k's as a 19 year old!


Only God knows. He knows the future, He knows all outcomes. He foreordained it. Does God really care about baseball? I guess He must be a fan… Some of His children are playing, so…
Yeah, God knows. And these guys may feel like a god on the mound…. But they’re not. And the same God who gave them that talent, can take it away.

This reminds me of the comedian when Kirk Gibson showed up in LA, some were calling him Jesus, and the stand-up joked could you imagine… Jesus up to bat, hits a routine grounder to the thirdbaseman and… he goes blind! The ball goes thru… Or… there’s popup to left field should be an easy out…. Wait a second! There comes a bird! HE has the ball and… yes! It’s a homerun!

OF course Jesus wouldn’t do that, it would be cheating, and God doesn’t cheat… Of course… He wouldn’t have to…

Anyway, I know we may not know, but it’s fun to predict. What are your predictions?

Mook vs Stephen Strassberg & Jason Heyward

Strassberg pitched another 6 shutout innings tonight. He clearly is a phenomenon. For all the hype, i didn't think he'd live up to it. But her has- and has been much better than expected even! Sure the Nationals set him up for success having him pitch against some awful teams- one of the smartest things ever if you ask me- but i still expected some slip-ups. He has been great. And of course he could be like Mark Prior, but you gotta think his career will be something special.

Heyward of course got the starting job out of spring training as a 20 year old. All th critics said no 20 year old could do well. The best comparison i thought though, was Ken Griffy Jr. Heyward has all the tools. He can hit, and hits for massive power. His first month he was leading the league in rbis. And i gotta think he is a big reason why the Braves are in 1st place. He has struggled lately, but he has played a big role in the team's success.



Heyward was voted in by the fans, and if they could vote for pitchers Strassberg may have made it too! There was much debate if Strassberg should make it, even though he only played for one month before the break.


These guys will have plenty of chances to play in All-star games. But i think the all-star game is for the fans. It is not a real game- no matter what Bud Selig says.

Why not create another game: oldies vs newbies.
Then we could have had a game with players like:
1. Buster Posey (who should also be in many all-star games),
2. Starlin Castro(another 20-year old),
3&4. Buchholz & Hughes (who made the AS team anyway),
5&6. Car Go & Colby Ramsus (who should have made it)...
7. Casey McGehee (a surprising 2nd year star who deserves some props)
8. Brennan Boesch (who should be the ROY)

along with Strssberg & Heyward among others on the Future stars team

And the old vets team we could have
1. David Ortiz (who undeservedly made the AS team)
2&3. Andy Petitte & Tim Hudson (who should have been automatics on the AS team anyway)
4. Billy Wagner (Another guy who got screwed
5. Michael Young (see my all star post)
6. Chipper (a HOF who is retiring)
7. Mags... Roy Oswalt...Omar Ifante
10. Jamie Moyer (simply b/c he is so old)

Wouldn't that be fun to watch?

Maybe it wouldnt work every year...
This year has been an incredible year for young stars. If you were going to join a dynasty fantasy baseball league, this would have been the year to do it.