NEWS
NEWS
MLB Murder! Top Pitchers Are Killing Their Backers
If you place a wager on a major league baseball game, you always want that quality pitcher toeing the rubber. But if you think betting on high profile veterans with impressive lifetime stats is the ticket to success, you better think again. Big name pitchers tend to be overpriced, so anything less than a near perfect record and you'll be lucky to break even. And if injuries, insufficient run support or just plain bad luck come into play, the losses can be staggering.
Pedro Martinez is still considered the finest righthander in the major leagues, and his 2.36 ERA shows he's still in top form. But the Red Sox have only won 9 of his first 16 starts this year. He's been heavily favored throughout, so the unfortunate player who bet $100 on each of his starts is down a hefty $850. He's often been matched up against other strong pitchers in tight duels, and the beleaguered Boston bullpen has let him down several times.
What's happened to Martinez this year is no anomaly. Just look at the net losses put up by some of the biggest names in the game, all staff aces and most of whom are still posting respectable ERA's:
Brad Radke (-$1015), Roger Clemens (-$935), Randy Johnson, (-$850), Jarrod Washburn (-$810), Bartolo Colon (-$700), Tom Glavine (-$605), Freddy Garcia (-$575), Roy Oswalt (-$500), Curt Schilling (-$420), Kevin Millwood (-$370), Barry Zito (-$370), Matt Morris (-$450), Greg Maddux (-$250).
It is often the unheralded newcomer playing for a second tier franchise that provides the greatest value. While expensive veterans have faltered, less well known players have picked up the slack. Few people would have recognized the names of some of this year's biggest moneymakers at the start of the 2003 campaign. Brandon Webb (+$935) has been a godsend for the Diamondbacks, with Arizona winning 11 of his 14 starts so far while Schilling & Johnson were sidelined. Colorado's Shawn Chacon (+$935), Florida phenom Dontrelle Willis (+$900), Montreal's Zach Day (+$595), Baltimore's Sidney Ponson (+$1065), KC's Miguel Asencio (+$810) and Tampa Bay's Victor Zambrano (+$800) are just a few of the bargains we've cashed tickets with during the first half. And who's the biggest money-maker of all this year? None other than Milwaukee's Wayne Franklin (huh?), who's rather hefty 4.92 ERA with a terrible team has nonetheless translated into a profit of +$1,275!.
