In today’s Major League Baseball, young pitchers are hard to come by.
Gone are the days of pitchers throwing eight innings in consecutive games. Instead, pitchers are more likely to be stopped after six innings. However, there are a number of pitchers in the majors right now who are ready to make a difference.
These pitchers are especially valuable to teams, as they can put a team in position to win for years to come. All of the pitchers here are 25 or younger as of the beginning of the baseball season, and are prepped to start off what is hopefully a long and successful career.
Shelby Miller– SP, St. Louis Cardinals
Even though Miller has only appeared in nine games in his young career, the 22-year-old is ready to take on a starting role in St. Louis this year. He has already started three games this season, and has won two of them. He is the one of the top-ranked pitchers in Yahoo! leagues. He has only given up four earned runs in his three starts. What’s even more impressive is his strikeout ratio. He is averaging over eight K’s per nine innings this season, and in his six games last year he averaged over 10 per nine innings. Miller is on pace to have a great season, and he certainly has a number of seasons in front of him.
Patrick Corbin - SP/RP, Arizona Cardinals
After struggling last year, his first year in the majors, and finishing with a 4.54 ERA in 22 games, Corbin is off to a much better start this season. Through three games, Corbin is 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA. In 19 innings, Corbin has only given up 13 hits and three earned runs. His strikeout numbers are solid, as he has struck out 13 batters this season. He has walked seven batters, but it looks like Corbin is on pace to finish the season in a much better spot than last year.
Jhoulys Chacin - SP, Colorado Rockies
Chacin’s career has been nothing short of volatile, as he has yet to record a winning record in his four previous years with the Rockies. At 25, he still has time to make up for lost ground, and is off to a great start. Chacin is 2-0 through three games, and has only walked five batters in 18 innings. He had a career-high ERA last season, but so far is looking like he has turned things around. He just reached the 70-game mark for starts in the majors, and if he is going to make the turn, it has to be this season.
Matt Harvey - SP, New York Mets
Matt Harvey has arrived, and in a big way. Harvey is undefeated in three games, and currently sports a 0.82 ERA. What’s even more impressive is he has only given up two earned runs in 22 innings. He has also struck out 25 batters en route to his three wins, one of which was a shut-out. Even in just his first game this season, he gave up two hits and struck out six batters in eight innings. Harvey has only been in the league for two years now, but at 24 he seems to have a very bright future.
Matt Moore, Tampa Bay Rays
Moore has been a welcome addition to a Tampa Bay pitching rotation that has struggled in past years. After finishing the year 11-11 in 2012, Moore is off to a hot start this year, going undefeated in three starts. He is only giving up an average of one earned run per game, and has only given up eight hits in three games. He has also fanned 20 batters, averaging 10 per nine innings. His walks are pretty high, as he’s given 11 batters free passes thus far, but Moore looks like he is looking to give a huge boost to the Rays’ pitching staff.