What To Know About Drew Pomeranz, Red Sox' Newest Starting Pitcher
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- The wake of a big baseball trade can be a confusing time. Did the team give up too much? How good is this guy? Who won the deal? Does any of this really matter in the grand scheme of life, where we're all just tiny ants on this big, big planet, going about our days and moving pebbles up hills, even though we know it's just going to eventually roll right back down?
OK, so that last question is a tough one to tackle, but the rest will get sorted out over time.
As it relates to the Boston Red Sox' latest move, young pitcher Anderson Espinoza may very well turn out to be the exceptional pitcher that many scouts and executives believe he'll be. Perhaps he'll be an All-Star. Maybe he'll be a Hall of Famer. There's a chance he ends up being the greatest pitcher of all time.
He also might flame out, lose his command, require Tommy John Surgery, quit the sport altogether to pursue another passion, or just be plain bad. Literally no person on earth knows how his career will turn out.
What we do know is that Drew Pomeranz is now on the Boston Red Sox. And we know a few other things about him.
He's Big And He Throws Baseballs With His Left Hand
This one's pretty self-explanatory. But the world loves big, tall, lefties. If a big, tall lefty threw the exact same stuff as a 5-foot-9 righty but both pitchers were terrible, the big, tall lefty would get at least five more chances to revive his career before teams gave up on him.
And so, at 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds, Pomeranz is a big, tall lefty. And the world likes that type of pitcher.
He's Having His Best Season, But His Last Two Haven't Been Bad
The local knock on this acquisition has been that Pomeranz is having the season of his life, and thus the Red Sox are buying him when his price tag is at its highest point.
Well, yes.
But while Pomeranz has already reached single-season career highs in wins and innings pitched, it's not as if this season has come out of nowhere.
In 2014, at the age of 25, Pomeranz made 20 appearances (10 starts) for Oakland and went 5-4 with a 2.35 ERA and 1.116 WHIP.
Last year, Pomeranz made 53 appearances (nine starts) for Oakland and went 5-6 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.186 WHIP.
In those two years combined, he averaged 8.5 strikeouts-per-9 and posted a respectable 2.5 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
All told, even with his learning-on-the-job years in Colorado, he owns a career ERA of 3.66 and WHIP of 1.265. His progression through those years into an All-Star this year (8-7, 2.47 ERA, 1.059 WHIP) was likely an encouraging element in Dave Dombrowski's decision to acquire him.
He Really Is Having A Good Season
The numbers look good on their own, but in context:
--Pomeranz had the fourth-best ERA in the National League, behind Clayton Kershaw, Madison Bumgarner and Johnny Cueto.
--He ranked ninth in the NL in WHIP, just ahead of Noah Syndergaard. Of the eight people with better WHIPs, seven were All-Stars.
--He tied for ninth in strikeouts with Cueto.
--He ranked ninth in WAR. Be honest, nobody knows how that thing is calculated. But top 10 in the NL, that's pretty good.
His Production Boost Is Not Without Explanation
That is to say, this major step forward in 2016 is not a random occurrence.
This year, for the first time in the history of anybody named Drew Pomeranz, this particular Drew Pomeranz added a cutter to his arsenal. As a result, he's gone from throwing his fastball roughly 72 percent of the time from 2011-15 to just 47.6 percent this year.
When you only average 91 mph on your fastball, you're going to have to complement it with a wider array of pitches. Pomeranz has done just that.
He's throwing his cutter 12.8 percent of the time this year, and he's also throwing his curveball more than ever at 39.2 percent.
The expanded arsenal helps explain away the "randomness" of his success this year.
He's Not A Petco-Produced Phenomenon
Petco Park is a pitcher's park. Everyone knows that. Even that bozo you know from accounting knows that. (What is with that guy?)
But the success of Pomeranz this year cannot be attributed solely to the blessing of being able to pitch in San Diego for half of his starts.
This year at home, Pomeranz is 4-3 with a 2.64 ERA, 1.112 WHIP and a .203 opponents' batting average.
This year on the road, he is 4-4 with a 2.32 ERA, 1.012 WHIP and a .166 opponents' batting average.
He Entered The All-Star Break Quite Magnificently
In his last three starts for the Padres, he pitched 21 innings and allowed one total run. He struck out 19 batters and walked three. Opponents batted just .139 and slugged just .181.
It did come against three light-hitting lineups in the Reds, Yankees and Dodgers. But those games count, too.
He's Cheap, And He's Under Team Control
The significance of this aspect can't be overstated. While Anderson Espinoza may well one day be a pitcher who can help a major league team, Drew Pomeranz is currently a pitcher who can help a major league team. And he'll be doing that for the Red Sox for the next two-and-a-half seasons.
He's making just $1.3 million this year, and he won't reach free agency until 2019.
Again, there's a chance (we'll call it 50 percent to be generous) that Espinoza becomes a bona fide big league pitcher who contributes to a big league team from, say, 2019-2027. But in the meanwhile, Pomeranz will contribute to the Red Sox in 2016, 2017 and 2018 -- and perhaps beyond.
He's Not Clay Buchholz
Seriously. You don't have to complain on Twitter every fifth day at being subjected to another Clay Buchholz start. Rejoice.
He's Not A Savior
And he doesn't have to be.
Even after a cooldown period in June, the Red Sox still lead all of baseball in runs scored. Their 490 runs are 43 more than the Blue Jays, who are currently second in the AL. The Red Sox' team batting average of .292 is also the best in baseball, 20 points better than the Royals, who are second in the AL. And the OPS follows suit, with the Red Sox' team .833 OPS being the best in baseball, 33 points ahead of second-place Baltimore.
The Red Sox offense remains prolific. The demand on the starting pitchers is to simply be capable. And Drew Pomeranz is capable.
Steven Wright and Rick Porcello have been steady. David Price has largely turned his season around, posting a 3.14 ERA since May 12. He's averaged seven innings per start and really only has one clunker in there.
Adding Pomeranz to the roster eliminates half of the stress on the back end of the rotation. So whether it's Eduardo Rodriguez, Sean O'Sullivan ... Clay Buchholz ... or anyone else, the dire need for just five mediocre innings from a mediocre pitcher now applies once every fifth day instead of two straight days in a row. Over the grind of the summer, the presence of another capable starter will go a long way in alleviating the burden on the entire pitching staff.
You can email Michael Hurley or find him on Twitter @michaelFhurley.
