The BoSox Injection staff reflects on the 2016 season by grading each member of the Boston Red Sox based on expectations for them entering the season.
Now this is the pitcher that the Boston Red Sox thought they were getting when they traded for Rick Porcello last year and lavished him with a lucrative contract extension.
Fans were ready to run Porcello out of town after his dismal first season in Boston. The right-hander went 9-15 with a 4.92 ERA in 2015, numbers that personified the act of lighting a pile of money on fire.
Porcello was like a struggling student that couldn’t live up to the potential his teachers saw in him. He’d show flashes of brilliance, only to tank the big test and end up with a barely passing grade. After being scolded for his poor production (in his case, by fans and media), Porcello buckled down, hit the books and worked hard to get his grades up.
Or in pitching terms, Porcello put in the work to refine his delivery, improving his control and consistency. While he had always been known as a ground ball pitcher, Porcello’s altered approach led to a career-low 0.79 Ground Ball/Fly Ball ratio. While his sinking fastball remains a vital part of his arsenal, he pitched less to contact than he had in the past, striking out a career-high 189 batters and relying on Boston’s elite defensive outfield to track down those fly balls.
He still isn’t the power arm that his strikeout machine teammate David Price is, but one of the biggest factors in Porcello’s remarkable turnaround is his league-leading 5.91 K/BB ratio. Porcello was among the stingiest pitchers in baseball when it came to allowing free passes, walking a career-low 32 batters despite tossing more innings than he ever had before with 223.
Porcello set career bests in most categories, including a 3.15 ERA that ranked fifth in the league and a 1.01 WHIP that was second.
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The stat that stands out most to many fans is the win total, even if it is a bit superficial. We’ve come to learn that wins are an overrated way of measuring the quality of a pitcher, yet a major league-leading 22 wins remains an impressive accomplishment. Porcello is the first 20-game winner for the Red Sox since Josh Beckett in 2007, while his 22 wins are the most by a pitcher from this franchise since Pedro Martinez won 23 games in his epic 1999 season.
Porcello’s breakout year has been one of the best story lines of the season in Boston. He shred the dreaded bust label, transforming from dud to stud, while blossoming into a legitimate Cy Young candidate.
Grade: A
What’s Next?
2016 was only the first year of the 4-year, $82.5 million extension that shockingly now seems like a bargain given Porcello’s elevation to elite status and the rapidly rising market for pitchers of that caliber.
The debate will rage all winter – has Porcello supplanted Price as the ace of this Red Sox staff or does the latter’s superior track record give him the edge? You can make a strong case for either side, but does it really matter? The Red Sox essentially have a pair of aces leading their rotation. If anything, Porcello’s strong second season in Boston gives hope that Price can redeem himself with a similar turnaround now that he’s had a year to acclimate to this environment.
We’ve seen a number of “ace” pitchers struggle when they come to Boston, from Josh Beckett to John Lackey, only to bounce back with a strong season that puts them back among the elite. Porcello is the latest to join that list, with Price certain to follow next year, giving the Red Sox one of the league’s best rotations.
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