After April 14th, if you take out one start in Fenway and two starts in The House They Built Next To The House That Ruth Built, Brandon Morrow posts a line of 9-4/2.97/1.21/146 in 121 1/3 IP. And if Tom Cruise were taller, he could see the top of Katie Holmes’ head. And if I were 14-years-old, I’d be gettin’ slizzard in a G6. Or at least a vague understanding of what the hell that means. The fact is Morrow’s final line was 10-7/4.49/1.38/178, but if you’re rolling with Blue Jay pitchers, don’t you bench them vs. Yankees and Sawx? I kinda do. His after-All-Star Break line was 5-1/3.69/1.21/67 with a .214 BAA. I know it probably feels like Morrow has been a touted prospect forever, but he’s only 26-years-old and, because the M’s were yanking his chain for a few years, he doesn’t have that many IP on his arm. So what can we expect of Brandon Morrow for 2011 fantasy baseball and what makes him a sleeper?
Lots of Ks, that’s for sure. He had the best K/9 (10.95) for SPs with at least 140 IP. Right behind him were Lincecum, Lester and Gallardo. Ever hear of them? Rhetorical! Morrow’s FIP was 3.16 compared to his 4.49 ERA. That’s the biggest discrepancy for any SP with at least 140 IP. You’re not looking at a sleeper here as much as you’re looking at a downright steal. You may have a top 15 starter if he can get Wins and rope in his walks a bit. If he doesn’t get Wins and the walks stay wild, you may simply have the AL version of Filthy Sanchez. On the positive side, in April and May his BB/9 was 5.14 and 5.59, respectively. Then in June, July and August it was 2.73, 3.52, 2.97, very respectively. Hello, marked improvement, nice to see you. I could see a line in 2011 of 12-9/3.80/1.38/195. There’s considerable upside on the ERA and WHIP. Sure, I’m not thrilled to be targeting an AL East starter, but with the stuff he has I’d be more than happy to grab him as my 4th or 5th fantasy starter in mixed leagues.
