Trevor Cahill and the 6 Most Underrated Starting Pitchers in MLB
Underrated is a term thrown around a bit too much, I think. Mostly it seems to be used by home fans talking about their own player, who, while good, is certainly over-hyped by the home fans.
Here I will try to use it correctly: someone who is very good but is possibly overshadowed by a flashier but not necessarily better teammate.
There are numerous position players and pitchers who are underrated, but I'm going to focus on starters. A theme in common with all of them is an eye-catching teammate that manages to hog the spotlight, unintentionally mostly, from the very deserving other pitcher.
Trevor Cahill
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The Oakland Athletics have a number of very talented starters, and Trevor Cahill is no exception. Cahill manages to be "under the radar" because of the talent that surrounds him.
Time and time again Gio Gonzalez and Brett Anderson are bandied about as the more talented pitcher when in fact Cahill holds far superior career numbers.
Cahill finished last season with an 18-8 record and an ERA under three. Yet everyone seemed to pay more attention to Gonzalez's 15 wins and Anderson's struggles with injury. Now, Cahill is not a flashy pitcher; he gets outs usually using his sinker and has managed to parlay that into a 6-0 record and 1.72 ERA in eight starts this year.
Though he might not be noticed quite as frequently as his teammates, his contributions are nothing to underrate.
Tim Hudson
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Tim Hudson is the one member of the A's former big three who is still enjoying a great deal of success in the majors.
He overcame Tommy John surgery two years ago to post a 17-9 record and 2.83 ERA last season. Hudson has continued to pitch well so far this year with a 4-2 record and 2.86 ERA.
Why is he underrated? I think because every start he gets the job done. You don't really notice him doing the same great job day in and day out. He seems pushed to the back just a bit because of the Atlanta Braves' young talent of Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson. Hudson actually has a career record of 169-89 and a minuscule career ERA of 3.41. Betcha didn't know that, did you?
Young, Hudson is not. Good, definitely. Underrated both on his team and in the major leagues—I'd say so.
Dan Haren
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I didn't notice till now how many of these players were on the A's at one time or another.
Anyway, Dan Haren is another one of those very underrated players. He's always been a very solid pitcher, from his start with the Cardinals through his stints with the A's, Diamondbacks and now Angels.
He'd probably be a No. 1 on most teams, but on the Angels he's used to playing second fiddle to Jered Weaver. Now, Haren doesn't get the big, eye-popping strikeout numbers of Weaver, but he is a competitor, an innings eater and doesn't walk many.
In 2011 Haren is 4-2 with a 1.87 ERA and 56 strikeouts. Maybe he does get those high K rates. In his career he is 95-76 with a 3.59 ERA and over 1,300 strikeouts. He is an extremely durable pitcher, never with a significant injury.
Consistency is a virtue, but occasionally it gets mistaken for average. In Haren's case consistency is anything but average.
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Jon Lester
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How can a Red Sox player be underrated, right? They're always all over the news and national sports coverage. True, but I believe that how good Jon Lester truly is is still not completely known.
He's been one of the best, most dominant pitchers in the AL over the past four years. He has a record of 65-26 in 130 career starts. He has 758 strikeouts in 812 career innings. His ERA is 3.48 over the span of his career.
So why is he underrated? Because of the constant media attention put on the rest of his teammates, from David Ortiz to Carl Crawford, from Josh Beckett to Jonathan Papelbon. He's better than them all. Okay, probably not as a hitter, but you get my point.
Maybe he's been under the radar so much because of his battle with lymphoma. In 2006 he was diagnosed with anaplastic large cell lymphoma; he got treatment, fought through it and now is one of the best pitchers in baseball.
He's been through a lot at the young age of 27, but he's still pitching and still dominating.
James Shields
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David Price has the flash, but James Shields has the style. Okay, I just needed an intro line.
Fireballers always get more attentions than finesse pitchers, but it's been proven that those with control have much longer and much more successful careers. I've got nothing against David Price, but James Shields has been the Rays' rock in the rotation over the past six seasons.
Shields struggled last year, but consider that his career record is 59-52 despite the Rays' lack of talent early in his career. He, like Dan Haren, is an innings eater, and while he doesn't overpower opposing pitchers, his command is undeniable. He has a career K/BB ratio of 4:1, better than most starters over the past five years.
Most Rays don't get much love on the national scene, and Shields is one who certainly deserves it if and when it comes to him.
Matt Cain
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Matt Cain is the epitome of underrated due to a teammate.
Tim Lincecum is the personality and the media darling, but Matt Cain is the rock for the Giants.
He's never been significantly injured. He has pitched over 190 innings in each of his full seasons. He's got a career ERA of 3.45. The only thing that hurts him is his career record of 59-64, but you can't fault him for that; over the past five season he has gotten some of the worst run support in baseball.
He's matured over time and has modified himself from a strikeout pitcher to a contact pitcher. In doing so he's increased his reliability, while lowering his profile.
It's hard to compete with the flash of the Freak, but you ask most people and they'd rather have Matt Cain over the long term because of his consistency and reliability.
Like I've said, reliability might not be exciting, but I prefer someone who gets the job done.
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