May 1, 2016

Players of the Month

The offensive player of the month turned out to be an extremely easy choice. I thought it would be tough, with Nolan Arenado, Bryce Harper, and Trevor Story bombing home runs. Dexter Fowler stepped up his game while Manny Machado and Eric Hosmer posted long hit streaks. Josh Donaldson and Yoenis Cespedes continued their outstanding play from 2016.

The surprise of the month, however, turned out to be a rookie playing due to an injury. Aledmys Diaz leads the majors in batting average at .423. He ranks fourth in OBP a .453, and first in slugging percentage at .732. The one negative against the Cuban is playing time, as he started just 16 games, although he appeared in 22 of the them. That means he’s on the edge of qualifying at 75 PA. His start makes for a great story, however, and Johnny Peralta may have a tough time getting his job back. Aledmys Diaz is the Baseball Musings Offensive Player of the Month for April 2016.

Jordan Zimmermann posted the best ERA of April. Joining the Tigers and pitching for an AL team for the first time, Zimmermann uses a low walk rate and a low home run rate to stymie hitters. He is also Mr. Decision, winning all five of his starts.

Zimmermann is not the only pitcher to win all five starts in April. Chris Sale, Jake Arrieta, and the surprising Rick Procello all went 5-0. Zimmermann ranked lowest of the four in strikeout rate, third in walk rate, but first in home runs allowed. Procello, not known for his strikeout rate during his career, stands at 9.92 per nine innings.

In terms of three-true outcomes, Noah Syndergaard leads the pack. He ranks second in strikeouts per 9 IP. Most of the pitchers at the top of that list own high walk rates, but Syndergaard comes in a low 1.35 BB per 9 IP. He has yet to allow a home run, with the second most innings in the majors without the ball leaving the park.

So for me, the pitcher of the month comes down to Jordan Zimmermann or Noah Syndergaard, the traditional statistics versus great fielding independent numbers. This month I’m going with Zimmermann. He did post great walk and home run numbers, and he accomplished that over six more innings than Syndergaard. Zimmermann had more time to fail, and continued to succeed. Jordan Zimmermann is the Baseball Musings pitcher of the month for April 2016.

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