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On Saturday, I wrote a post at my other blog, Knuckle Curve Semi-Drop where I picked the All-Decade Team among position players. Today, I'll be concluding that post with the selection of the pitching staff. Catch up on the other guys here, or here if you want to just see the team without my explanation.
Same rules apply here as they did there. Stats cited were produced only during this decade (2000-09). A player needn't have played all 10 years, but the more the better. MVP candidate (and Cy Young, for this post) means that a player finished in the top-20 of the voting for the respective award. Drumrolls, envelopes, and tearful acceptance speeches are sure to come after the jump.
Starting Rotation
RHP Roy Halladay, Toronto Blue Jays. Decade stats: 1,883 IP, 3.40 ERA, 133 ERA+, 1.17 WHIP, 1,400 Ks, 3.74 K:BB, 5-time Cy Young candidate (top 5 all 5 times, including 1 win), league-leading 47 complete games.
The man they call Doc is a throwback kinda guy in the sense that his managers coddle him less than they do other pitchers, and let him go out there for 9 innings. Which I like. It helps that he's also great when he does it. Fun tidbit: did you know his name is actually Harry Leroy Halladay?
LHP Johan Santana, Minnesota Twins/New York Mets. Decade stats: 1,709 IP, 3.12 ERA, 143 ERA+, 1.11 WHIP, 6-time Cy Young candidate (4 top-5 finishes including 2 wins), 3-time MVP candidate, 9.1 K/9, 3.66 K:BB.
Johan has put together a Hall of Fame-caliber career, but finishes just short here in large part because he's thrown almost 200 less innings than Halladay – a function of the fact that he didn't make 30 starts until 2004. He's got more strikeout stuff than Halladay, but gives up a shade more home runs (1 per 9 as opposed to 0.7 per nine) and has a bit less control. Which, of course, is nitpicking when you're comparing future Hall of Famers.
LHP Randy Johnson, Arizona Diamondbacks/New York Yankees/San Francisco Giants. Decade stats: 1,885 IP, 3.34 ERA, 137 ERA+, 1.11 WHIP, 2,182 Ks, 4.51 K:BB, 3-time Cy Young winner, 1 second-place finish, 4-time MVP candidate.
I for one had forgotten that the Big Unit started the decade off by winning 3 consecutive Cy Young awards (and he won in 1999 to boot). He's one of the most overpowering pitchers of all time, and though he's been sidetracked quite a bit by injuries, he still struck out 8 per 9 this past season at age 45.
RHP Curt Schilling, Philadelphia Phillies/Arizona Diamondbacks/Boston Red Sox. Decade stats: 1,569 IP, 3.54 ERA, 133 ERA+, 1.13 WHIP, 1,545 K, 6.01 K:BB, 3-time Cy Young runner up, 3-time MVP candidate.
Schilling had perhaps the best control of any power hurler ever. That 6.01 strikeouts per walk is simply astounding, especially given that he did that in his age 33-40 seasons. He and Johnson were unstoppable rotation mates in Arizona, where they both won their first World Series. Schilling would go on to pitch for two more title teams, giving us the infamous Bloody Sock game in which he pitched shortly after having an experimental procedure done to staple his ankle ligament to the bone.
RHP Roy Oswalt, Houston Astros. Decade stats: 1,803 IP, 3.23 ERA, 135 ERA+, 1.20 WHIP, 1,473 K, 3.58 K:BB, 5-time Cy Young candidate (top-5 finishes each time), 4-time MVP candidate, 2nd place in Rookie of the Year.
Oswalt has rather quietly put together an outstanding decade. He started with a bang in 2001 and hasn't looked back, though injuries sank his ERA+ to a career-low 102 last season. He's been a consistently excellent guy, with plenty of 200-inning seasons to his credit, and has done all this in the pitcher-unfriendly Minute Maid bandbox.
Other candidates:
CC Sabathia, Cleveland Indians/Milwaukee Brewers/New York Yankees
Carlos Zambrano, Chicago Cubs
Mark Buerhle, Chicago White Sox
Javier Vazquez, Montreal Expos/New York Yankees/Arizona Diamondbacks/Chicago White Sox/Atlanta Braves
Greg Maddux, Atlanta Braves/Chicago Cubs/Los Angeles Dodgers/San Diego Padres
Bullpen
RHP Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees. Decade stats: 713 IP, 2.08 ERA, 219 ERA+, 0.96 WHIP, 8.4 K/9, 4.88 K:BB, 3-time Cy Young candidate (top-5 each time), 5-time MVP candidate.
The greatest reliever of them all takes the top spot. Pinpoint control, strikeout stuff, and an arm that seems to never wear down make this an easy choice.
LHP Billy Wagner, Houston Astros/Philadelphia Phillies/New York Mets/Boston Red Sox. Decade stats: 580 IP, 2.40 ERA, 184 ERA+, 0.99 WHIP, 10.8 K/9, 4.11 K:BB, 1-time MVP and Cy Young candidate.
Wagner's gone somewhat downhill of late, his petulant attitude and aging arm casting him in an unflattering light. But at 37, he's still got the whiplash southpaw delivery and electric fastball/slider combination that have utterly overpowered batters for years.
RHP Joe Nathan, San Francisco Giants/Minnesota Twins. Decade stats: 594 IP, 2.53 ERA, 173 ERA+, 1.06 WHIP, 10 K/9, 3.07 K:BB, 2-time Cy Young candidate (top-5 both times), 2-time MVP candidate
Nathan didn't start throwing regular innings until he was 28, and was part of a rather lopsided traded whereby he, Francisco Liriano, and Boof Bonser made their way to Minnesota in exchange for A.J. Pierzynski. Nathan built upon the flash of dominance he had demonstrated in his final year by the bay, and has been shutting the door for the Twins ever since.
RHP Francisco Rodriguez, Los Angeles Angels/New York Mets. Decade stats: 519 IP, 2.53 ERA, 174 ERA+, 1.14 WHIP, 11.4 K/9, 2.80 K:BB, 3-time Cy Young candidate (top-5 all 3), 1-time MVP candidate.
Holder of the single-season saves record (for whatever that's worth) and also a 3-year/$37 million contract, K-Rod entered the league in style, hurling an utterly dominant 5 regular season innings in 2002 (20.6 K/9), and then shutting teams down in the playoffs en route to a World Series title. His – shall we say – demonstrative mound behavior has earned him his fair share of detractors, and his stuff is on the decline, but for 3 or 4 years there he was one of the most potent strikeout arms in baseball.
RHP Francisco Cordero, Texas Rangers/Milwaukee Brewers/Cincinnati Reds. Decade stats: 624 IP, 3.17 ERA, 148 ERA+, 1.34 WHIP, 9.3 K/9, 2.30 K:BB. 1-time MVP candidate.
Cordero doesn't get the love that other closers do, and I'm not entirely sure why. The flamethrower doesn't have the greatest command, but a decade of 9+ K/9 is going to put you on a short list for best relievers of the decade.
RHP Scot Shields, Los Angeles Angels. Decade stats: 651 IP, 3.03 ERA, 147 ERA+, 1.21 WHIP, 8.2 K/9, 2.43 K:BB.
Ah, the ever-unsung setup man. For as much love as closers get, the rest of the 'pen usually gets nothing. Such is the fungible life of a reliever, I suppose. But Shields has been the rare relief arm that has been consistently excellent while not closing games. His presence has been an essential part of the 1-2 punch at the back end of Angels 'pens since 2001.
Other candidates:
Eric Gagne, Los Angeles Dodgers/Texas Rangers/Boston Red Sox/Milwaukee Brewers.
Brad Lidge, Houston Astros/Philadelphia Phillies
Trevor Hoffman, San Diego Padres/Milwaukee Brewers
I don't know, your favorite closer can probably go here. Relievers are relievers; if they had one or two great seasons they probably qualify. Big Scott Proctor fan? Sure, why not! Maybe Tom Gordon is more your type? That's fine by me, too. Or, hey, how about Ugeth Urbina? Well, I mean, I'd like for my team to not include guys who lit people on fire and attacked them with machetes, but, hey, if that's your style, then we'll open up the bullpen gates for him, too.
So, to recap, here's the 25-man roster and batting order. We'll be using a DH, because I believe in making baseball fun. Since I didn't have the foresight to pick an all-decade DH, I'm just going to use the guy who I feel had the hardest luck in missing out on the team. Which if I were completely shameless would have been Chipper Jones. So keep that in mind when you hate on me.
RF Ichiro Suzuki
CF Jim Edmonds
1B Albert Pujols
LF Barry Bonds
DH Manny Ramirez
3B Alex Rodriguez
C Joe Mauer
2B Jeff Kent
SS Derek Jeter
BN: Chase Utley
BN: Chipper Jones
BN: Vladimir Guerrero
BN: Carlos Beltran
BN: Jorge Posada
SP: Roy Halladay
SP: Johan Santana
SP: Randy Johnson
SP: Curt Schilling
SP: Roy Oswalt
RP: Mariano Rivera
RP: Billy Wanger
RP: Joe Nathan
RP: Francisco Rodriguez
RP: Francisco Cordero
RP: Scot Shields
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