Elder Statesman: Five Starting Pitchers

As we continue to look at some of the elder statesman around the league, we turn to starting pitchers. There are quite a few ageless wonders throughout baseball who you almost wonder how they continue to succeed. 

It’s impossible, you think, yet they just go out and get the job done, year in and year out.

Let’s take a look at if any of these pitchers could be usable for your fantasy squad this season:

Randy Johnson - San Francisco Giants - 45-years old

We’ve spoken about him a bit in the past, but he certainly fits into this class.  At 45-years old, it’s amazing to me that he continues to be able to post such lofty strikeout totals. Last season, he placed 11th with his 8.46 K/9—almost unbelievable.

Staying in the NL West will help him continue to post solid numbers, with ERA’s under 4.00 each of the past two seasons (since returning to the NL after pitching for the Yankees).

He also has solid control, walking under three hitters per nine innings every season since 1998. Couple that with his strikeouts and he’s going to post a good WHIP (1.24 last season).

Health is the main concern, with a history of back issues. Still, with the type of pitcher, he’s proven capable; he’s worth the gamble. He’s simply too good to ignore.

Andy Pettitte - New York Yankees - 36-years old

As there seems to be almost every season, there were once again questions on if Pettitte would return to the mound, as well as if it would be to the Yankees or elsewhere. 

In the end, he re-upped with New York, which really was not good news for fantasy owners.

Last season, he struggled to a 4.54 ERA and 1.41 WHIP (actually his best number in the past three seasons). Couple that with a lack of exceptional strikeout potential (a career K/9 of 6.6) and you really don’t get a pitcher with much value.

Calling the AL East home certainly does not help him in the least.  He’s going to have to routinely face the Red Sox (7.04 ERA over 15.1 IP) and Rays (4.13 ERA over 24.0 IP), further devaluing him. The chances of him returning to putting up impressive numbers appears to be slim to none, so he’s a pitcher I wouldn’t touch.

Tim Wakefield - Boston Red Sox - 42-years old

When you’re a knuckleballer, you can simply pitch forever. Just look at Charlie Hough, for instance. He’s also proven to be a solid pitcher every season but far from a great one.

Over the past five seasons, his best K/9 is 6.03 (in 2005), so he certainly isn’t getting much value there. While he posted a 1.18 WHIP last season, he’s posted three WHIPs of 1.33 or higher out of his past five, so it’s far from a guarantee that he’ll be useful there as well.

Throw in the fact that he hasn’t posted an ERA of less than 4.09 since 2002, as well as pitching in the AL East, and you should get the complete picture.  As a pitch-and-ditch option when the matchup is favorable, absolutely. 

Anything past that and Wakefield is simply an usable fantasy commodity.

Jamie Moyer - Philadelphia Phillies - 46-years old

After going four straight seasons with ERAs of 4.28 or higher (including a pair above 5), he was able to post a solid number last season at 3.71. The chances of him repeating that number, especially in Citizen’s Bank Ballpark, seem unrealistic at best.

Over the past five seasons, his best WHIP came in 2006, when he posted a 1.32. He has a career K/9 of 5.40 and has had numbers of 4.59 and 4.60 among his past four years.

Yes, the Phillies should offer him plenty of chances to get victories, but there really isn’t much else that he offers. If there’s a good matchup, possibly, but probably not. There is just too much inherent risk in using him, given his “success” over the past few seasons to take the plunge.

Pedro Martinez - Free Agent - 37-years old

There has been talk that he’s hitting 90 mph on the gun, though who knows if that is fact or fiction. Without knowing where he may be pitching this season, it's tough to factor in his potential value, but injuries over the past three seasons make him an incredibly big risk.

He showed flashes in August last season, with a 3.83 ERA over 7 starts but backed that up with a 7.77 ERA in September. No matter what they say, he’s never going to be the strikeout artist that he once was, so don’t expect him to have much of a rebound there.  He could be useful (he was even last season with a 7.18 K/9) but not one to carry the load.

The bottom line is going to depend on where he signs.  If he’s in the NL and has the opportunity to pitch against weaker teams, it is very possible that he becomes a pitcher worth using at times this season.  If he goes back to the AL, he should just be ignored.  Monitor where he ends up before committing to him.

So, what do you think?  Would you use any of these five older pitchers this season or would you rather avoid them all?

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM