Red Sox vs the AL East: starting pitching
By Conor Duffy
Sep 20, 2014; Bronx, NY, USA; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Marcus Stroman (54) pitches during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
5. Toronto Blue Jays
This rotation consists of a pair of former star pitchers in Dickey and Buehrle and a pair of former top prospects in Stroman and Hutchison, but it still likely has the lowest floor and the lowest ceiling of any rotation in the division. Dickey (14-13, 3.71 ERA last season) and Buehrle (13-10, 3.39 ERA last season) are no longer the studs they once were, but they’re not the problem with this rotation. Those two are still a pair of solid mid-rotation starters and that’s really all you can expect from two pitchers over 35. The real problems with this rotation is its lack of upside and depth.
Don’t get me wrong, Stroman isn’t the issue here either as the 23-year old profiles as an elite arm for the future and is coming off a rookie season which saw him post a 3.65 ERA (with a 2.84 FIP suggesting he was even better than his results) in 26 games (20 starts). Behind its front three, however, in which two of whom don’t even really belong in the front half of a contending team’s rotation, this pitching staff has no sure things. Hutchison was better than his 4.48 ERA made him out to be last season (his FIP was 3.85 and he had a K/BB over 3), but Estrada was even worse than his 4.36 ERA would indicate, as his FIP was 4.88 in Milwaukee last season.
In case of injuries, the Blue Jays do have top prospect Daniel Norris, who had a fantastic season across the three highest levels of the minors last year and could be ready to pitch in early in the 2015 season. However, it will take a few lucky breaks for the Blue Jays to even have an average rotation next season and more than likely, they’ll fall below that mark.