Photo Courtesy of Missouri Net
Every year, we see no-name rookies jump to prominence in the postseason. Last year, it was Trevor Rosenthal out of the Cardinals bullpen, while this season, it has been Michael Wacha out of St. Louis’ rotation. (In 2011 it was David Freese out of their lineup.) We’ve also seen the likes of David Price who debut on the big stage and keep on rolling.
Just as often, but less notably, October brings around the disappearing act for some of the games’ bigger names. Sometimes, it’s underperformers like Barry Zito and Dan Uggla who get left off of rosters entirely. Other times the players in question come along for the ride, but don’t make nearly the splash you’d expect. Sometimes, they loose their normal jobs entirely.
This World Series has given us a couple such players. On Boston’s side, one of their major off season acquisitions was starting pitcher Ryan Dempster. Dempster, who was the biggest piece to move at 2012’s trade deadline, signed a 2 year deal worth more than $26 million this winter with Boston. Going into the season, he was being counted on to be a mainstay in a revamped rotation. So far this postseason, he’s thrown only 3 innings, all low-leverage relief, and given up a dinger.
In Game 4 of the World Series, the Red Sox needed some long relief and manger John Farrell went to lefty Felix Doubront, who had already thrown 2 innings the night before, rather than Dempster. That, plus the rumor that if Clay Buchholz couldn’t go and the Sox needed a starter it would have been Doubront over Dempster, doesn’t say good things about the way Boston views the veteran righty.
And why should they? This season, Dempster posted a 4.57 ERA over more than 170 innings and had a losing record on a team that had 97 wins. He clearly isn’t one of Boston’s 5 or 6 best starting options. Despite his name recognition, he simply doesn’t deserve the nod in any meaningful situation. As a result, the Red Sox are toting along a $13.5 million cheerleader.
Even that is preferable to the situation that the Cardinals find themselves in. This season, Shelby Miller was a revelation, posting a 15-9 record with a stellar 3.01 ERA, and a 1.2 WHIP in about 173 innings. Miller went 3-0 in September, but his 173 innings best his previous career high by more than 40 and he is still just 23 years old. By the end of the season, the Cardinals felt that Miller was fatigued and they have opted not to use him much this postseason.
Really, that’s an understatement. Miller, the teams’ second best starter this season, has pitched one inning in October, and that was back in the NLDS. Miller has become persona non grata during the World Series with manager Mike Matheny opting to start Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly over him. Further, in Game One, when Adam Wainwright struggled mightily, Matheny decided to stay with his Ace to eat a few extra innings rather than bring on Miller in a long relief role, a position he’s perfectly suited for right now. As a result, the Cardinals are essentially playing with 24 players, since there is a guy on their roster that they are seemingly unwilling to use.
Miller could have been a weapon for St. Louis this postseason. Even if the Cards want to limit his innings, a guy who had a 3 flat ERA over 170+ innings could be a valuable commodity out of the bullpen. Instead, Miller will continue to be a sleeper option in your fantasy drafts next year.
Miller and Dempster have certainly fallen by the wayside this October, though for slightly different reasons. Perhaps if the series gets to a game 7 and both clubs take an all hands on deck approach, we might see some big moments from one of these under the radar starters.
-Max Frankel
