Red Sox: Sale is among the most accomplished lefties ever under thirty
| Player | bWAR/IP | bWAR | IP | From | To | Age | SO | ERA | FIP | ERA+ | BB/9 | SO/9 | SO/BB |
| Clayton Kershaw | 0.0304 (1st) | 58.8 (1st) | 1935 (31st) | 2008 | 2017 | 20-29 | 2120 (2nd) | 2.36 (6th) | 2.60 (8th) | 161 (1st) | 2.36 (35th) | 9.86 (2nd) | 4.18 (3rd) |
Who else could it be?
Clayton Kershaw prevented runs better than anyone else when adjusted for context per ERA+, he accumulated more bWAR and at a better per inning clip than anyone else. He struck out batters at a faster clip than anyone except for Sale and accumulated more K’s than anyone except for Sam McDowell.
He already has an NL MVP award, three NL Cy Young awards, four more top five NL Cy Young finishes, five ERA titles, three strikeout titles, seven All-Star appearances, and a career that would easily land him in the Hall of Fame if his arm fell off tomorrow.
Who else could maintain an ERA of 2.36 as a starting pitcher in this era? Until the injury bug started biting in 2016 there was an outside chance that Kershaw could’ve gone down as the greatest left-handed pitcher in baseball history.
Kershaw could still do it if he regains his health and has a fantastic second act of his career, but for now, it looks like Lefty Grove will maintain the top spot (who is notably absent from this list since his career debut didn’t come until he turned 25).
Next: The Red Sox need to trade for a catcher
Clayton Kershaw is the most dominant pitcher since Pedro and we should all savor his every start. He is undoubtedly at the top of this list as the lefty who has accomplished the most before turning thirty.