Biggest Scapegoats of Failed 2014 MLB Pennant Chases
With just two days of games remaining in the 2014 MLB regular season, the complete playoff picture has still not been sorted out, as one playoff spot and two division titles are still up for grabs at this point.
There are a number of teams that managed to stay in contention heading into the final month of the season, but three teams in particular stand out as having entered September with a real chance at making the playoffs, only to squander that opportunity.
At the start of the month, the Milwaukee Brewers were tied atop the NL Central standings, the Atlanta Braves were 1.5 games back for the No. 2 NL wild-card spot and the Seattle Mariners were a half-game back for the second spot on the AL side of things.
Technically the Mariners have not been eliminated from contention just yet, but they will need to win their final two games and have the Oakland A's lose their final two games just to set up a one-game playoff, so things are looking bleak.
So with those three teams in mind, what follows is a look at one hitter and one pitcher who can be pegged as a scapegoat in the team's failed pennant chase.
LF Justin Upton, Atlanta Braves
1 of 6
Stats on Aug. 31
131 G, 483 AB, .280/.360/.520, 30 2B, 26 HR, 91 RBI, 70 R
Stats since Sept. 1
22 G, 79 AB, .152/.221/.266, 3 2B, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 5 R
Overview
With an .825 OPS and his first 100-RBI season, Justin Upton is having one of the best seasons of his career this year, and he's been the Atlanta Braves' biggest offensive weapon in 2014.
However, it was a disastrous showing from that offense in September that sent the team spiraling out of postseason contention, as they have averaged just 2.30 runs per game this month while hitting .211 as a team.
When a team performs that poorly as a whole, it's hard to point to one guy as a scapegoat, but Upton has been as much to blame as anyone, and more was expected of him given the season he was putting together up until the final month of the year.
SP Ervin Santana, Atlanta Braves
2 of 6
Stats on Aug. 31
26 GS, 168.1 IP, 13-7, 3.53 ERA, 1.289 WHIP, 2.8 BB/9, 8.3 K/9
Stats since Sept. 1
5 GS, 27.2 IP, 1-3, 6.51 ERA, 1.554 WHIP, 3.6 BB/9, 7.8 K/9
Overview
Signed out of necessity just before the start of the regular season after three starters went down with injuries, Ervin Santana has been a rock-solid veteran starter behind Julio Teheran for much of the season.
However, he has turned in just one quality start in five outings this month, with the team going 1-4 in those games. He still has a team-high 14 wins, and his 3.39 FIP on the year is impressive, but he's collapsed when it mattered most.
After agreeing to a one-year, $14.1 million deal last winter, it will be interesting to see how much he gets on the free-agent market this time around. He has no doubt hurt his stock a bit in September.
LF Dustin Ackley, Seattle Mariners
3 of 6
Stats on Aug. 31
125 G, 435 AB, .260/.307/.414, 26 2B, 11 HR, 60 RBI, 58 R
Stats since Sept. 1
16 G, 59 AB, .136/.188/.305, 1 2B, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 6 R
Overview
The addition of Robinson Cano and a big season from Kyle Seager helped make for an improved offensive attack in Seattle this season, but the team lacked a third impact bat for much of the season.
That is until Dustin Ackley emerged as that guy, and from the start of the second half of the season until the beginning of September, he hit .319/.351/.550 with 21 extra-base hits and 31 RBI in 40 games.
The former No. 2 overall pick in the 2009 draft turned in a big second half last season as well, so there was reason to think he could continue to make an impact for the stretch run, but instead he fell off significantly.
The offense has gone along with him, averaging just 3.64 runs per game this month, and the result has been a minus-20 run differential.
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SP Hisashi Iwakuma, Seattle Mariners
4 of 6
Stats on Aug. 31
23 GS, 155.1 IP, 13-6, 2.90 ERA, 0.985 WHIP, 0.8 BB/9, 7.4 K/9
Stats since Sept. 1
5 GS, 23.2 IP, 2-3, 7.61 ERA, 1.563 WHIP, 3.0 BB/9, 10.3 K/9
Overview
With Hisashi Iwakuma slotted alongside AL Cy Young contender Felix Hernandez, the Mariners had arguably the best one-two punch in all of baseball this season for much of the year, and they were relying heavily on those two to carry them down the stretch.
Iwakuma had numbers right in line with what he produced last season on his way to a third-place finish in AL Cy Young voting, that is until the wheels fell off in September.
The struggles actually go back to his final two outings in August, as he's posted a 7.88 ERA in his last seven starts, and a spike in his walk and hit rates has been a big reason why.
“I’m physically healthy,” Iwakuma told Bob Dutton of The News Tribune. “There’s no issue with that. This late in the season, we’re all tired. We feel fatigue at times, and we’re trying to overcome that."
Chris Young also fell off significantly, putting a ton of pressure on rookies James Paxton and Roenis Elias, but as essentially the second staff ace, it's Iwakuma who ranks as the biggest scapegoat on the pitching side of things.
3B Aramis Ramirez, Milwaukee Brewers
5 of 6
Stats on Aug. 31
109 G, 402 AB, .301/.346/.458, 19 2B, 14 HR, 61 RBI, 45 R
Stats since Sept. 1
22 G, 86 AB, .233/.275/.314, 4 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 2 R
Overview
Few hitters were more productive in August than Aramis Ramirez, as he posted a .380/.421/.540 slash line with 11 extra-base hits and 13 RBI, helping carry the Milwaukee Brewers offense for stretches.
Ramirez is by no means the only Brewers hitter who has struggled this month, as Ryan Braun (.227 BA, .632 OPS), Scooter Gennett (.227 BA, .540 OPS) and Khris Davis (.203 BA, .579 OPS) have all provided little as well.
That being said, Braun has been slowed by a thumb issue all season and both Davis and Gennett were young players in their first pennant race, so Ramirez is the one they were really counting on more than anyone to carry the offensive load alongside Jonathan Lucroy and Carlos Gomez.
Despite his subpar performance amid the team's collapse, the Brewers announced that they plan to exercise their end of a $14 million option on the 36-year-old Ramirez for next season.
SP Yovani Gallardo, Milwaukee Brewers
6 of 6
Stats on Aug. 31
27 GS, 165.2 IP, 8-7, 3.26 ERA, 1.262 WHIP, 2.5 BB/9, 6.6 K/9
Stats since Sept. 1
5 GS, 26.2 IP, 0-4, 5.06 ERA, 1.650 WHIP, 2.7 BB/9, 8.1 K/9
Overview
The Milwaukee Brewers had no clear-cut staff ace this season, as their rotation was solid top-to-bottom, but they lacked a legitimate stud arm in the role of staff ace.
Yovani Gallardo is the closest thing they have had to a frontline arm for the past several seasons. While his win-loss record did not necessarily reflect it, he had been the team's best pitcher for most of the season this year.
The 28-year-old also struggled down the stretch back in 2011, the last time the Brewers reached the playoffs, posting a 4.35 ERA in five starts. He has recorded a quality start in two of his five starts this month, but when he's been off, he's been really bad.
Like Ramirez, the late-season struggles did little to dissuade the Brewers from making him a part of next year's plans, as they announced they plan to exercise their $13 million option on the right-hander for 2015.
Unless otherwise noted, all stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference, and are current through Friday, Sept. 26.
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