Sonny Gray, Cincinnati Reds
Career Strikeout Rate: 21.2%
2018 Strikeout Rate: 21.1%
2019 Strikeout Rate (so far): 31.3%
The Reds are 9-14 and already taking up residence in the National League Central basement. Unlike in recent years, though, the blame can’t be put on the rotation. They’re entering Thursday’s games tied for the league’s second-best cumulative fWAR (3.0) and the fourth-best ERA (3.30).
After a disastrous 2018 with the New York Yankees, Sonny Gray is looking more like his old self, with the added bonus of more strikeouts. It took the right-hander 130.1 innings to accumulate 1.6 fWAR last year, yet he’s already produced 1.0 in just 24.2 innings this season.
Gray is also allowing a ton of hard contact (42.6%), but his 54.1% ground-ball rate is much more in line with his career norms (53.3%). Interestingly enough, his pitch mix hasn’t changed much from last year — he threw his fastball at a career-low 35.1% clip in ’18, and that number is even lower to start 2019 (33.1%).
Gray’s slider has been straight-up nasty, though. After producing a 41.2% strikeout rate and 73 wRC+ with it last year, those numbers have increased to 66.7% and -73 (!) in the early going.
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