Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara has taken a step forward this season.
It’s hard to imagine a man who pitched 205.2 innings of a 3.19 ERA last season reaching the next level, but that’s just what he has done.
In 99.1 frames this season, he has lowered his ERA to an incredible 1.72.
Yes: he has chopped significantly more than a run from his ERA in almost 100 innings.
He has been marvelous at the top of the young Marlins rotation.
His latest gem came on Sunday, when he held the NL East-leading New York Mets to two runs in eight innings.
He struck out eight hitters against just one walk, and earned 13 groundouts against just one fly.
“MLB Innings Pitched leaders (with ERA in parentheses): Sandy Alcántara, 99 1/3 (1.72); Aaron Nola, 89 2/3 (3.11); Robbie Ray, 84 2/3 (4.25); Logan Gilbert, 83 (2.28); Chris Bassitt, 82 2/3 (4.03). Almost 10 more innings than anyone else and a 1.72 ERA?!?,” Codify Baseball tweeted.
MLB Innings Pitched leaders (with ERA in parentheses):
Sandy Alcántara, 99 1/3 (1.72) 😮
Aaron Nola, 89 2/3 (3.11)
Robbie Ray, 84 2/3 (4.25)
Logan Gilbert, 83 (2.28)
Chris Bassitt, 82 2/3 (4.03)Almost 10 more innings than anyone else and a 1.72 ERA?!? https://t.co/c3xYFrPZXD
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) June 20, 2022
Length Is What Makes Him Special
Alcantara is considered one of MLB’s best starters for a few reasons.
The first one, and perhaps the most evident one, is run prevention.
He is the second-ranked pitcher in baseball in ERA, trailing just San Diego Padres ace Joe Musgrove (1.59).
But lots of pitchers can have a low ERA.
The reason why Alcantara is such a special pitcher is his ability to cover a lot of innings: stamina and durability make him a top-five pitcher in baseball, because no one can throw as many innings as him.
He currently leads the majors in innings pitched by a considerable margin: almost ten frames!
Alcantara is a unicorn: in a time in which starting pitchers usually don’t cover five or six innings, he usually goes seven, eight, and sometimes nine.
He is special, folks.
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