Tweet
Like Cliff Lee said last night, this rotation hasn't pitched together yet so they don't deserve the "best rotation ever" talk. If all four of these guys pitch their best next season, then we can start talking about where they rank, but now it's just all speculation.
-
-
The 2011 Phillies' rotation of Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels might have the stuff to rank with the best of all time. What will it take? Here are the standard bearers:
5. 1993 Braves » Atlanta's best four-man group? Hard to chose between the 1993 foursome of Tom Glavine (22-6), Cy Young winner Greg Maddux (20-10), Steve Avery (18-6) and John Smoltz (15-11) or the 1997 version -- Denny Neagle (20-5), Maddux (19-4), Smoltz (15-12) and Glavine (14-7).
4. 1920 White Sox » Here's how much baseball has changed. Red Faber (23-13), Lefty Williams (22-14), Eddie Cicotte (21-10) and Dickey Kerr (21-9) all won 20 games even though each allowed more hits than innings pitched.
3. 1998 Braves » There's not much doubt about the best five-man rotation in recent times. How about '98 Cy Young winner Glavine (20-6), Maddux (18-9), Kevin Millwood (17-8), Smoltz (17-3) and Neagle (16-11)?
2. 1954 Indians » His career was winding down at age 35, but how about Bob Feller (13-3) as a fifth starter to complement Bob Lemon (23-7), Early Wynn (23-11), Mike Garcia (19-8) and Art Houtteman (15-7)? Also stellar was the Indians' '51 foursome of Feller, Garcia, Wynn and Lemon, which won a combined 79 games.
1. 1971 Orioles » The only team since 1920 with four 20-game winners. Mike Cuellar (20-9), Jim Palmer (20-9), and Pat Dobson (20-8) were constants in the rotation, each starting at least 37 games. The key man was Dave McNally (21-5, 2.89), who won 20 despite starting just 30.
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/...#ixzz18FzmU9cRsigpicComment
Comment