If I can keep it up all month, 31 days of positive posts! There's going to be enough negativity going around with the Cardinals not in the post-season.
Day 7
When Jack Flaherty took the mound 28 times in 2018, here was his average game:
5.4 innings (just over 16 outs) 3.86 hits allowed
2.11 runs allowed
6.5 strikeouts
2.1 walks
Here is what the average hitter did at the plate when Jack Flaherty was on the mound:
.198/.290/.345/.635. Let's put that into perspective, in Brendan Ryan's 1,300+ PA in 4 seasons with St. Louis, he hit .259/.314/.344/.658. Yes, he turned the league into a weaker hitter than Brendan Ryan when he was in St. Louis. Unbelievable.
He did this despite only getting 12 (43%) of his 28 starts in St. Louis - a pitcher's haven. He did this despite facing playoff teams in 12 (43%) of his starts. Remember only 1/3 of the teams make the playoffs in MLB. He did all this despite throwing 19 times (68%) against teams that finished at or above .500.
Flaherty was also at his best when the team around him was at it's worst. In reverse order here, take a look at these splits.
When the Cardinals scored 6+ runs (4 starts), Flaherty's line against was .239/.349/.394/.744.
When the Cardinals scored 3-5 runs (16 starts), Flaherty's line against was .197/.285/.343/.627.
When the Cardinals scored 0-2 runs (8 starts), Flaherty's line against was 186/.274/.327/.601!
My favorite stat of Flaherty's 2018 that I unearthed this morning was that Flaherty faced 9 men with bases loaded this year. He struck out 6 of them, didn't allow a single hit, and only 2 men of 27 possible base runners in those situations scored.
Positive October Day 7, in the books!
In case you missed them: