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Interesting thing about the Tiggers is they finished #2 in both OPS+ and ERA+. (and runs scored and runs allowed).
The fact Boston outscored them isn't a surprise. The fact the ROYALS allowed the fewest runs in the AL ... *THAT* makes the head hurt. (Oakland allowed one run more than Detroit, just in case anyone is interested).
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But, since we're talking playoff teams ... my realization when skimming through stats recently is that Adam Wainwright is probably the most under-rated pitcher in baseball. So ... how many Ms fans are going to even think to include Wainwright in the discussion of best pitchers over the last 5-7 years? You know ... pitchers as good as Felix? Anyone? Bueller?
The usual names are Halladay (though he obviously hit a bump recently)... Verlander ... Cliff Lee maybe ... at the moment Kershaw would be an obvious choice.
And to be fair, I'm not suggesting Wainwright is in the running to LEAD the class. He's not. But, take a look at his resume:
Year - ERA+ - K/BB
2007 - 119 - 1.94
2008 - 132 - 2.68 (only 20 starts)
2009 - 155 - 3.21 (3rd in CY voting)
2010 - 160 - 3.80 - (2nd in CY voting)
2012 - 96 - 3.54 - (missed 2011 due to injury - pitched well, but had lousy ERA given his peripherals)
2013 - 123 - 6.26 -- (his 1.3 BB/9 this season is Cliff Lee territory!)
His career totals are: 99-57; 3.11; 129-ERA+; 0.6 / 2.3 / 7.7
Where does Felix stand?
110-86; 3.20; 127-ERA+; 0.7 / 2.6 / 8.4
Honestly, I think if he had not missed a season, he might be viewed as one of the current elite pitchers. But, because he did get hurt, and because his 2012 ERA was sub-par, (despite otherwise stellar numbers), he's kind of missing from the discussions of current greats.
This season, the NL CY talk was all about Harvey and Kershaw - (until Harvey got shut down). And Kershaw is really in a class by himself right now. But, Adam Wainwright has largely been the invisible pitcher. I doubt many Ms fans would have believed after adjusting for league and park Wainwright would actually have a BETTER career ERA+ than Felix. But, he does.
At the moment, Kershaw is on an island and there are lots of pitchers (the entire Detroit staff, Felx and Kuma, Darvish, Sale) that are all legitimate nominees for 2nd place ... and Wainwright should definitely be in that discussion. But, for whatever reasons, he has been largely ignored. He may need to actually best Kershaw in a head to head (good luck doing that, Adam). But, until then, I just thought it would be nice to give him some love, especially after his performance last night.