Gaudin has been pitching in the majors since he was 20!!! This year he just turned 26. Still a puppy. I remember Gaudin from his days in Oakland where he was a reliever, turned starter, turned reliever again. Now he’s back to a starter. What better place than SD!
His career stats…
K9 6.7
BB9 4.3
HR9 0.9
Normally I’d shy away from a pitcher with such a high career walk rate, but there are a couple mitigating circumstances here.
1. He’s young, only 26
2. He’s been moved around a lot. He’s been on three teams in the past year. How would YOU feel if you were working for three different employers in 3 years? Would your work suffer?
3. He’s moved from the AL to NL and into the best pitcher park in baseball
4. With young players, I only like to look at his stats for the last one year (two at the most)
His one year stats (62 IP in OAK; 27 IP in CHC; 39 IP in SD)...
K9 7.4
BB9 3.7
HR9 0.8
Certainly headed in the right direction. Based on the past 5 years of ACTUAL starting pitcher data, that translates to an ERA of 3.93 and a whip of 1.37. Decent totals, but I think there is room for more optimism. His K9 in the NL-only (27 IP in CHC; 39 IP in SD) is 8.5.
If he can attack the strike zone more in Petco park without fear of getting blasted by homeruns, I think there is a modest profit to be had.
This week Gaudin plays at home against the Diamondbacks. I know they blasted Gaudin 2 weeks ago, but that game was in Arizona. On the road, Arizona is one of the worst teams in baseball (based on OPS and K/AB). If he can limit the walks, he should be in line for a very nice start. Enjoy!
[ June 03, 2009, 10:50 AM: Message edited by: Gordon Gekko II ]