Chasing The Storm 2034-6 Looking at the Good Players

[njherdfan]

Some people say that every cloud has a silver lining. While I’m not sure if that’s scientifically accurate, it is always a good idea to try and find the bright side of things. With that in mind, let’s take a look and see if, even in the midst of an objectively poor season, Seattle’s fans had anything to cheer about.

On offense, Seattle’s most pleasant surprise would have to be Walter Finch. In the past, Seattle’s fans have said that if Finch could be a league-average hitter, he would be very valuable because of his speed and his defense. This year, Finch and his 97 wRC+ proved Seattle fans to be correct, as he stole 45 bases and played outstanding defense in center field. John Hickman continues to quietly emerge as a very valuable piece, and one of the top young outfielders in the league. This year he had an OPS of .887 and led Seattle’s hitters with 3.7 WAR.

On the mound, Seattle’s top performer was probably the 21 year old Ken Walter. While Walter’s stats don’t jump off the page, and in fact look quite bad, with an 8-13 record and a 5.04 ERA, those numbers don’t come close to telling the whole story. This year Walter has a FIP of exactly 3, and has accumulated 6.5 WAR. One reason for his high ERA is a very high BABIP, which seems destined to regress next year. Julio Alicea also lowered his FIP by over half a run, to 3.65, as he pitched quite well. Any hopes that Seattle has of competing next year will rest squarely on their pitching staff, and a rebound to form from Alfredo Contreras.

[RonCo]

Tough year for the Storm. But you have to like Finch and Walter a lot.