Sabermetrics: Magnum Start Value, Cy Young Controversy and Combimetrics
By Brian Draus
August 2016
Rick Porcello
8/9 vs New York Yankees: 8 IP, 7 H, 1 BB, 2 ER: 4.75 (W, Red Sox win 5-3)
8/14 vs Arizona Diamondbacks: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 BB, 1 ER: 3.0 (W, Red Sox win 16-2)
8/19 @ Detroit Tigers: 7 IP, 4 H, 2 BB’s, 1 ER, 1 E: 3.0 (W, Red Sox win 10-2)
Justin Verlander
8/10 @ Seattle Mariners: 7 IP, 7 H, 2 BB’s, 1 ER: 2.5 (ND, Tigers lose 3-1)
8/26 vs Los Angles Angels: 7.2 IP, 4 H, 1 BB, 2 ER: 3.64 (W, Tigers win 4-2)
8/31 vs Chicago White Sox: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 BB, 2 ER: 3.0 (ND, Tigers win 3-2)
Corey Kluber
8/6 @ New York Yankees: 8 IP, 5 H, 1 BB, 1 ER: 4.75 (W, Indians win 5-2)
Looking at August, none of the pitchers in this study truly had an elite start. While both Porcello and Kluber went eight full innings, they did so only once and each of them allowed over five BB+H combined. Meanwhile Porcello and Verlander threw three Magnum Starts each, with the former producing the higher MMT score at 10.75 and a MMA total of 1.79.
August was the first month that Porcello led in either of these categories all season, which may have aided his cause considering writers remember the later months not the whole year in many instances.