The Nats pitching staff has started out very strong this year. They lead the majors in ERA with 1.91, the #2 team is Texas at 2.36. While their bullpen has been excellent, it is the starters that have really impressed. Their starters’ ERA is 1.69, and in that Texas is in a more distant second place at 2.43. As a testament to how well they’ve pitched, they are #2 in IP with 74 2/3 (Oakland’s in first with 75 1/3). But more importantly, they lead the majors in Ks with 70 as a starting staff, with several teams tied for the #2 slot at 64.
After 12 games, you don’t worry too much about the stats. This shouldn’t be thought of as a pattern that will hold up for the year, it still is a pretty remarkable start. So yes, that 1.69 ERA is nice to look at, but it will go away. However, this can be thought of as a very impressive two week run. Even if this occurred in July, while we might not notice the incredible ERA, it would still be thought of as a very impressive two week run. It’s something that could repeat itself, and it is a good indicator of how strong this staff can be.
Here’s a look at these twelve games, start by start, to see just how good they’ve been, with the only starts allowed more than 2 ER highlighted:
- 8/12 have been quality starts
- The ER allowed have been truly ridiculous
- 9/12 have yielded 0 or 1 ER
- 10/12 have 2 ER or fewer
- 11/12 have 3 ER or fewer, which is still enough to make a quality start
- 7/12 have had more than a K per inning, with a K/9 of 9.00 or higher
- 10/12 have allowed 2 walks or fewer
- 9/12 have yielded less than a hit per inning
While this may not be the trend for the entire season, it certainly is a great start for these starters. And regardless of when this happened, it’s been a great two week run.