Tuesday, February 03, 2009

Not Sold on Perez

The Mets finally got what they wanted and signed Oliver Perez for $36 million over three years. While the Mets feel that Perez is the guy who will take them to house with a reworked bullpen, the Fan has big reservations.

According to the Hardball Times (THT), Perez had 8 Win Shares last year as a starting pitcher. Looking at THT's list, there were 32 starting pitchers in the National League alone that had a better year. Perez walked 105 batters last year and hit 11 more with pitches. His WHIP was a pretty hefty 1.40. He's just not that good a pitcher.

Perez has a lifetime record of 55-60 with an ERA of 4.39. In his eight big league seasons, he has had five seasons with an ERA over 5. Perez has also consistently pitched with a high pitch count and has a very steady average of only 5.7 innings per start.

While the Fan can see Perez as a better option than a Randy Wolf, Ben Sheets would have been a better move with more possible impact. Frankly, the little interest in Sheets has been surprising. Sheets made 31 starts last year. His WHIP of 1.20 and his 6.4 innings per start far surpasses anything done by Perez.

The thing with Perez is that he is a tease. He can have a game where he is just brilliant and make the hitters look foolish. He might even have two of those games in a row. But he is just as apt to make two starts after that where he has walked five batters by the third inning and has to be bailed out by the bullpen.

The Mets can't and couldn't resist the tease and have been enticed to pay $36 million over three years to pay for Salome's dance. That gives the team three years of hoping for a peak at glory through fabric every once in a while.

1 comment:

Josh Borenstein said...

I think the Mets are still 1 or 2 starters away from being serious WS contenders. They may get into the postseason, but Santana can't pitch every game. Pelfrey needs to prove that last season wasn't a fluke. Perez is better suited to be a 4th or 5th starter. Sheets would be a nice fit.