For Los Angeles Dodgers‘ left-hander Julio Urias, run prevention is a clear strength.
He is once again posting some excellent numbers from a major league mound.
This year, he is 7-6 with a 2.57 ERA in 87.2 innings in 16 starts so far.
However, his excellence goes well beyond 2022: he has been amazing for an entire year.
“Julio Urías has the lowest ERA (2.25) among all starters in baseball since July 1, 2021,” Blake Harris, who covers the Dodgers on a daily basis, tweeted.
Julio Urías has the lowest ERA (2.25) among all starters in baseball since July 1, 2021
— Blake Harris (@BlakeHarrisTBLA) July 5, 2022
A 2.25 ERA is mind-blowing, but then again, Urias is used to running low ERAs.
He has been an extremely consistent performer for years, and he has gotten better with experience.
It’s a little hard to believe he is still somehow 25 years old.
He Has Been Dominating Hitters For A While
He has been pitching at the MLB level since 2016, when he was 19 years old.
Back then, he was an extremely talented southpaw with a small control problem.
But he broke out in 2019 with a 2.49 ERA and much-improved control.
Since that year, the highest ERA he has posted in a season has been 3.27.
That’s his highest mark in the last four years: imagine how good he has been that has been his absolute worst.
With Clayton Kershaw‘s body starting to break down, Trevor Bauer‘s suspension, Dustin May‘s injury, and some other difficulties the Dodgers have had to endure, having Urias take the ball every five days and deliver quality start after quality start is huge.
He finished with a 20-3 record and a 2.96 ERA last year and couldn’t even sniff the Cy Young award.
Perhaps he can take it up a notch in 2022 and finally earn his hardware.
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