Anibal Sanchez, Washington Nationals
ERA through April 30th: 5.91
ERA since May 1st: 1.87
Sanchez contributed quite a bit to the Nationals’ sluggish start to 2019, but he’s also contributed quite a bit to them trying to get back into the playoff chase lately.
The veteran right-hander got his control in check, which has obviously led to huge benefits. His first 32 innings in D.C. produced an 11.8% walk rate, 1.72 WHIP, and 68.8% strand rate. Over his last 33.2 innings, those numbers have all improved to 7.3%, 1.01, and 93.1%, respectively.
While the 35-year-old kept his pitch mix virtually identical between these two time periods, the value has increased dramatically. Through the end of April, Sanchez’s pitch value per 100 pitches (via FanGraphs) was in the negative for four of his five offerings, with his slider being the worst (-8.75 value). Since the start of May, four of his five offerings own a positive value, with his slider making the most notable jump (4.85).
About Matt Musico
Matt Musico currently manages Chin Music Baseball and contributes to The Sports Daily. His past work has been featured at numberFire, Yahoo! Sports and Bleacher Report. He’s also written a book and created an online class about how to get started as a sports blogger. Check those out and more helpful tips on sports blogging at his website.
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