All the all star games have been played and the season is now in the second half. The two Major League pitchers under the spotlight today are established and without worry of being shut down like some of the younger pitchers. They are Tom Gorzelanny and James Shields. The minor league player is Eric Surkamp.
Gorzelanny is in his first season with the Washington Nationals after previously pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs. While this lefty has struggled some this season he is still a good option for strikeouts with 72 strikeouts in 79.2 innings. He is averaging 8.1 stirikeouts per nine which is up from his 6.8 for his career. He has only walked 26 and allowed 76 hits which has his WHIP at 1.28. He has struggled on the road with a 1-5 record and 5.11 ERA vs 1-1 and 3.16 at home. He was originally drafted by the Pirates in the second round in 2003.
Shields is established in his sixth season in the Tampa Bay Rays rotation. While on this surface it appears his righthander is struggling with an 8-8 record he is having career bests at ERA with 2.60, WHIP at 1.00 and strikeout rate of 8.8/9. In 148.2 innings he has 145 strikeouts against only 37 walks. While he is currently on a four decision losing streak three of those games were lost by one run with only five runs of support total. There is speculation that other teams have their eye on him and may trade for him by the July 31st deadline. He was originally drafted by the rays in the 16th round in 2000.
Eric Surkamp is a talented lefty for the San Francisco Giants Double A team. This season he is 7-3 with a 2.05 ERA, 118 strikeouts, 1.15 WHIP and .227 average against. He has twice been the Eastern League pitcher of the week this season and claimed that award twice in 2010 in the California League in Single A. It will be interesting what adjustments are made in San Francisco to allow him eventually join their rotation filled with All Stars. He was originally drafted by the Giants in the sixth round in 2008.
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