Stream, Stream, Stream: A 2013 2xSP Review

With another regular season fully in arrears, now is a good time to look back on the season that was for 2xSP.

This was the second season I covered two-start guys for Rotographs, and this year I kept meticulous records on a Google Drive spreadsheet for all to behold. 

I think that was a pretty solid upgrade, but if there are things you think can be done better, I’m all ears. Please leave suggestions below.

Here’s a breakdown of the season:

41-47 record

The record was obviously not idea, as I was hoping for a .500 mark. But even though we as analysts don’t really care much about the win for starting pitchers, it’s still something we have to seek out as fantasy writers.

Ultimately, I’ll look for pitchers that will be put in good situations to win, but I’ll admit it’s not going to be the first qualification I look at.

3.77 ERA

This is probably the mark I’m most proud of, as the ERA hung at 4.00-4.20 for a good part of the season. A six-week run to end the season where the worst ERA was a 3.27 mark (9.2-9.8) definitely helped in that respect.

For some context, a 3.77 ERA would fall 53rd among all qualified starters, with starters like Jon Lester, Andy Pettitte, and A.J. Griffin in that proximity.

6.8 K/9, 2.5 K/BB

This is not a particularly high mark, but not bad either. The 6.8 per 9 mark would rate 57th among qualified starters, right behind Doug Fister and ahead of Jordan Zimmermann. The major league average for starters in 2013 was 7.2, which is where I’d have preferred to be.

A lot of weeks I’d look for strikeout-types, but every now and then there’s a safer matchup with a Jake Westbrook-type that’s hard not take on.

The K/BB rate is pretty much exactly in line with the major league average for starters, and in a lot of ways maybe isn’t something fantasy players look all that much at in my opinion.

1.28 WHIP

The league mark for was 1.31, so not too bad of a mark for just grabbing readily available pitchers, huh?

Best Week

This is awfully hard to judge, but I’d have to go with week 22 (9.9-9.15) which featured Ubaldo Jimenez, Gerrit Cole, and Martin Perez. Perez lost twice, but Cole and Jimenez were so good that the unit went 4-2 with a 2.01 ERA, 8.7 K/9, and a solid 1.22 WHIP.

Worst Week

Again, a few contenders, but week 16 (7.29-8.4) was particularly bad. That week, Felix Doubront, Brandon Beachy, and Westbrook combined to go 1-3 with a 5.91 ERA. The week wasn’t a total loss, however, as the trio combined to fan 7.0 per 9.

Conclusion

I’d like to think overall it was a successful season of recommendations. Definitely not an A by any means, but maybe a solid B/B+. Again, please leave your suggestions, criticisms, and praise below!