Report: Jose Quintana will start Cactus League opener
Apr 29, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Jose Quintana follows through on a pitch against the Detroit Tigers in the first inning at U.S Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
ESPN Chicago has reported that Jose Quintana will be the Cactus League opener starter when the Chicago White Sox begin spring training play on Wednesday, March 4 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Quintana is a player on the White Sox who is poised to really break out this season, as he’s improved each year pitched with the organization.
Also in the ESPN Chicago article, Doug Padilla wrote:
"“Quintana is expected to open the regular season as the No. 3 starter in the rotation.”"
The 6-1, 220 pound left-hander was just 9-11 last season 32 starts, but he pitched much better than his overall record. Don’t believe me? Look at his ERA, it was 3.32 in 200.1 innings pitched.
He walked only 52 batters, which was an improvement from the previous 2013 season where he walked 56 batted in 200.0 IP.
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As for this upcoming 2015 season, Quintana is being projected by Baseball Prospectus for a 10-10 record with 3.69 ERA, which doesn’t make much sense for the pitcher since he’s improved his ERA each of his two full seasons with 30-plus starts. There is no reason for that number to drop.
Quintana is also being projected to have 141 strikeouts, less than the 178 he collected last season.
Having Quintana start the spring season against a team the caliber of the Dodgers will be interesting to watch, because hopefully he can face some of their big-time bats for the inning or two he’ll pitch.
In another recent article on Quintana, CBS Sports baseball writer Igor Mello wrote about how Quintana hopes to keep the success of last season. The article quoted White Sox manager Robin Ventura:
"“We’re counting on his consistency this year. You start taking a peek at his track record of what he’s done, the innings he’s put in, he’s up there with anybody in the league.”"
Quintana will be a very valuable pitcher for the White Sox in ’15, and with the aforementioned projections by Baseball Prospectus, I believe he’ll most certainly out-play those numbers projected this season.
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