How Important Is Era In MLB By Sebastien Veilleux At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

Today we are going to look at ERA and find out just how important having a pitcher with a good ERA is for a team. We'll look at the top 10 pitchers, ERA wise, in the American League. Does knowing having a top 10 pitcher in ERA equate to wins? Does this mean we can pick more winners and take home more cash? Let's find out.

Our journey starts in the American League. Here's a listing of the top 10 pitchers for ERA as of this writing.

1. Santana – Minnesota
2. Verlander – Detroit
3. Halladay – Toronto
4. Kazmir – Tampa Bay
5. Sabathia – Cleveland
6. Lackey – LA Angels
7. Mussina – NY Yankees
8. Zio – OAK
9. Haren – OAK
10. Wang – NY Yankees

The first thing we see is that most of these teams are in the playoff hunt. The worst team to have a pitcher in this top 10 is Tampa Bay. Sabathia plays for Cleveland. The Indians are playing just under .500 ball right now. These two are the exception. However, the other 8 pitchers all play for teams that are either in the playoff hunt or are playing above .500.

Given that 80% of the top 10 plays for winning clubs, I'd say there is a strong coloration between having a top 10 pitcher in ERA and winning. By the way, the next three pitchers are Schilling with Boston, Bonderman with Detroit and Escobar with the LA Angels. So, now we have 11 of the top 13 ERA pitchers on winning clubs. That's 84.6%. The numbers are too strong to ignore.

It's not the end all, but paying attention to the ERA of pitchers on a team can help determine their overall ability. Starting pitchers typically pitch 6-7 innings per game on average. That means they account for the pitching in 66% to 77% of each game they start. While you can't bet solely on starting pitching, because the bullpen still accounts for up to 33% of the game on average, you can begin to get a great picture of the game by looking first at the starting pitching.

The next time you are deciding who's going to win, give some thought to where the pitcher ranks—for ERA—in the league. It just might be the one piece of information that helps you rope in another winner.

Published At: Isnare Free Articles Directory http://www.isnare.com
Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=80295&ca=Sports

Important Notice DISCLAIMER: All information, content, and data in this article are sole opinions and/or findings of the individual user or organization that registered and submitted this article at Isnare.com without any fee. The article is strictly for educational or entertainment purposes only and should not be used in any way, implemented or applied without consultation from a professional. We at Isnare.com do not, in anyway, contribute or include our own findings, facts and opinions in any articles presented in this site. Publishing this article does not constitute Isnare.com's support or sponsorship for this article. Isnare.com is an article publishing service. Please read our Terms of Service for more information.