The Case for Atlanta Braves P Javier Vazquez and the NL Cy Young

Like Rodney Dangerfield, Braves pitcher Javier Vazquez gets no respect.

For the entire 2009 season Vazquez has gone largely under the radar and unnoticed by media and fans alike. This year is the Puerto Rican native's 12th, and it is so far one of his best. So good, in fact, his numbers are probably good enough to put him in contention for the NL Cy Young Award. 

All of Vazquez's career, he has been an average to a slightly above-average pitcher. He started his career in 1998 with the Montreal Expos and stayed with them until 2004. In Montreal, Vazquez posted 64-68 record with a 4.28 ERA, decent numbers with a team that ultimately moved because of financial problems and its lack of winning.

In 2004, Vazquez moved on to play for the Yankees but only stayed there for one year due to underperforming and was traded to Arizona in a package for Randy Johnson. After a season with the Diamondbacks, Vazquez wanted to be traded.

He was, and from 2006 to 2008 Vazquez played for the White Sox. While there, Vazquez struck out more than 200 batters in two different seasons in addition to throwing over 200 innings in all three seasons. 

His tenure in Chicago saw some of his worse ERAs, though. Vazquez also drew the ire of coach Ozzie Guillen, who claimed Vazquez wasn't a big-game player. Guillen also stated he wasn't aggressive enough and needed to step up in big-game situations.

In December of last year, Vazquez was traded to the Braves and was glad to get out from under Guillen, going to the point of saying he was happy to get away from the negativity and start fresh.

A fresh start indeed. So far Vazquez is enjoying his best year yet and is emerging as one of the National League's premier pitchers worthy of Cy Young talk. Nobody, however, is really talking about him.

It's hard to explain why. The reason why nobody is talking about him is because media outlets tend to stick to the household names and big-time companies such as ESPN appear to be more wrapped up in what the Yankees and Red Sox are doing.

Thankfully, media companies don't vote in the Cy Young. Only members of the Writer's Association can (though many newscasters do belong to it).

Vazquez's numbers, however, speak loudly for him. He has a 10-7 record and a 2.90 ERA along with 171 strikeouts. He ranks ninth in ERA and is only second in strikeouts to reigning Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum. Vazquez is deadly on the mound this year, making batters look silly with his combination of fastballs, sliders, and curveballs.

The main competition for the award alongside Vazquez is Lincecum and his teammate Matt Cain.

Lincecum has been nasty on the mound, throwing for a 12-3 record, 2.20 ERA, and 198 strikeouts. His numbers may just garner him the triple crown in pitching.

Cain is throwing almost equally well. He has gone 12-4 with a 2.44 ERA and 124 strikeouts.

Both Lincecum and Cain's numbers are better than Vazquez's, but these are just the main numbers that scratch the surface. During most of Vazquez's starts Atlanta produced little or no run support for him, thus affecting his win/loss record. Sometimes the best pitcher isn't the one with the best record.

Lincecum and Vazquez stand toe-to-toe in the other, more advanced statistics.

Lincecum has a 10.89 K/9 figure while Vazquez has a 9.91 K/9. Vazquez slightly has the edge in BB/9 with a 1.85 compared to Lincecum's 2.31 average.

Both pitchers are identical in their WHIP averages at a 1.04. Lincecum's opponent batting average is slightly better, at .218 compared to Vasquez's .227 average.

All in all, though, Vazquez probably will not win the award. Lincecum is simply just "The Freak" and has the dominance of both Nolan Ryan and Greg Maddux. If he does win the triple crown for pitching this year, it will be almost unanimous that Lincecum will win his second straight Cy.

Vazquez cannot be ignored, though. He's been sludging his way through along with the rest of the Braves, who are very much alive in division and wild card races. Vazquez has improved greatly from last year and is one of Atlanta's best, if not the best, pitcher on the staff.

The team is almost always guaranteed a quality start from him each time out. Even though his experience in the postseason is faulty, come October, if Atlanta can make it, he will be a force to be reckoned with on the hill.

Even though he may not win, Vazquez deserves recognition when the votes are tallied.