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2012: On the Mound

Clayton Kershaw

Trivia question: How many pitchers in MLB have had a sub-3.00 ERA the last three years in a row? Answer: Two. Follow-up Question: How many of those two pitchers have had over 185 strikeouts in all three seasons? Answer: One.



Meet Clayton Kershaw, who while joined by Philadelphia’s Roy Halladay with impressive sub-3.00 ERAs, outshines him with the strikeout numbers.

The questions continue surrounding Chad Billingsley.

The model of consistency, Kershaw is coming off of one of the greatest seasons in Dodgers’ history (save Sandy Koufax), winning the pitching Triple Crown in the National League. He finished the season with a record of 21-5, an ERA of 2.28 and 248 strikeouts. For the stat guys out there – Kershaw finished second in WHIP (Walks and hits per innings pitched) at 0.98.

What makes this all even more impressive is Kershaw’s durability (knock on wood), as he has started 30 or more games in each of the last three seasons.

Moral of the story: Top of the rotation is taken care of.

Chad Billingsley

Following Kershaw throughout the season will be Chad Billingsley, who is entering his seventh season with the Dodgers.

While Kershaw has been consistent, Billingsley has been anything but. In his time with the Dodgers, Billingsley has shown flashes of brilliance that earned him a 2009 All-Star Game invitation, but that success has been accompanied by the occasional shellacking as well.

The 2009 season was the perfect illustration of the duality that Billingsley offers.

Chad came off of the 2008 season in which he posted a 16-10 record, an ERA of 3.14 and 201 strikeouts, the first few months of 2009 appeared to confirm that Billingsley had arrived as a viable ace. In his first 14 outings in 2009, he posted a 9-3 record and a 2.72, placing him among the top pitchers in the league. Then things fell apart.

Billingsley finished the season by losing eight of his final 11 decisions as his ERA ballooned to 4.03, pushing him out of the Dodgers’ 2009 playoff rotation throughout their run to the NLCS. Furthermore, it left Dodgers fans wondering which Chad to expect every five days.

Unfortunately, the two seasons since have done little to clarify things. In 2010, Billingsley rebounded to post an ERA of 3.57, only to follow it up with his worst season yet in 2011, when he had an ERA of 4.21. To make matters worse, Billingsley’s walk rate hit an all-time high (4.0 BB/9) and his strikeout rate reached an all-time low (7.3 K/9).

The one consistent aspect of Billingsley’s game (like Kershaw’s) is his ability to stay healthy (still knocking on wood), as he also has been able to start over 30 games for the past four seasons.

As I mentioned above, Billingsley will be one of the determining factors for this season’s success. In a division like the NL West, pitching is critical.

While Kershaw has shown he can outduel guys like Tim Lincecum and Ian Kennedy, the Dodgers need someone who can compete with the likes of Daniel Hudson and Matt Cain. While they have a guy with the talent and potential to do so, the question of whether he’ll show up still remains.

Next Page: The Supporting Cast

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Staff Writer

Staff Writer features content written by our site editors along with our staff of contributing writers. Thank you for your readership.

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