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Is Jared Jones a Legitimate Rookie of the Year Candidate
By Baron Dionis
After nearly having a perfect start against the Rockies, Jared Jones has emerged as one of the top rookies in Major League Baseball. In just seven games on the mound, Jones is ranked inside the top five of stats like WHIP and strikeouts. He is emerging as one of the best young pitchers in the game, but will he be able to build upon his hot start and be in the running for a Rookie of the Year award?
Since 2013, there have only been three starting pitchers to win the Rookie of the Year award. Those pitchers are, Michael Fulmer in 2016, Jacob DeGrom in 2014, and Jose Fernandez in 2013. Let’s see how Jones's stats look compared to these former winners.
Due to his small sample size, individual stats like strikeouts will be irrelevant in the comparison. This season, Jones has an earned run average of 2.63 with a WHIP of 0.78 and an opponent batting average of .184. He also has a strikeouts per nine innings of 11.41 and a walks per nine innings of 1.10.
In Fulmers' rookie season, he posted an earned run average of 3.06 with a WHIP of 1.12 and an opponent batting average of .231. He also had a strikeouts per nine innings of 7.47 and a walks per nine innings of 2.38. The difference between Jones and Fulmer is the way they execute their pitches. Jones is more of a power pitcher where he throws with higher velocity and gets more strikeouts, but Fulmer pitched with more movement to get more ground balls and soft contact. With the small sample size, Jones has better stats than the most recent starting pitcher to win the Rookie of the Year.
Before dealing with many injuries, Jacob DeGrom was the best pitcher in Major League Baseball. Before becoming a four-time All-Star and a two-time Cy Young award winner, DeGrom won the Rookie of the Year award in 2014. In that season, DeGrom had an earned run average of 2.69 with a WHIP of 1.14 and an opponent batting average of .228. He also had a strikeouts per nine innings of 9.24 and a walks per nine innings of 2.76. Jones and DeGrom both throw the same kind of pitches. Hard fastball and a great slider. Jones is on pace to finish with a similar rookie season to DeGrom, who is an excellent player to be compared to.
Jose Fernandez was a terrific pitcher for the Miami Marlins but tragically passed away in a boating crash. In 2013, Fernandez won the Rookie of the Year after an outstanding season. In that season, he posted an earned run average of 2.19 with a WHIP of 0.98 and an opposing batting average of .224. He also had a strikeouts per nine innings of 9.75 and a walks per nine innings of 3.02. Jones and Fernandez pitch very similar. Their stats are very alike as well, which could lead to a Rookie of the Year award.
As you can see, if Jones can stay consistent, then he is on pace to be a candidate to win the National League Rookie of the Year award. Unfortunately for Jones, he is not the only rookie doing excellent to start the season. Other rookies like Shota Imanaga and Yoshinobu Yamamoto are also in the running for the award.
Shota Imanaga is a 30-year-old rookie from Japan on the Chicago Cubs. This season, Imanaga has an earned run average of 0.78 with a WHIP of 0.75 and an opposing batting average of .172. He also has a strikeouts per nine innings of 9.09 and a walks per nine innings of 1.04. Imanaga has been straight-up dominant this season, so it will be exciting to see these two battle it out this season.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto is another rookie from Japan on the Los Angeles Dodgers. This season, Yamamoto has an earned run average of 2.91 with a WHIP of 1.09 and an opposing batting average of .225. He also has a a strikeouts per nine innings of 11.12 and a walks per nine innings of 2.12. Jones and Yamamoto are very similar on the mound and in the stat books.
Jared Jones is definitely in the running for the National League Rookie of the Year, but it will be a challenge for the Pirates starter.
The three pitchers competing for the award are going to be an exciting battle for the rest of the season. Keep a close eye out for this battle between Jared Jones, Shota Imanaga, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.