But what does a 1.0/2.8/.6.9 pitcher slashline say about a pitcher? It says he's a plus pitcher. Not quite an ace ... but a solid pitcher for almost any staff.
But, then again, Millwood hasn't managed a 6.9 K/9 since 2004 ...
K rates since 2003: 6.9, 8.0, 6.8, 6.6, 6.4, 6.7, 5.6, 6.2, 6.0 and this year's 6.6. I would be "satisfied" with 1.0 / 3.0 / 6.5 Millwood, no question, and if he hasn't hit 6.9 since 2004 he's also only been under 6.0 once in that timeframe.
We don't need him to be an ace, we just need him to be better than Beavan and Noesi.
Of course, to your point, there have been just 14 pitchers since 1980 who were 37 or older and managed Ks between 6 and 7 per, with walks under 3. Derek Lowe did it for Atlanta a couple of years ago - it's doable, but hard with that skillset and age.
Is it doable for Millwood? The groin injury is a nod to the idea that we should watch his innings and his rest days, but if he can be a league-average pitcher I'm absolutely thrilled. A 3.90 ERA? To start the season, if that was a betting line I'd have put Ben Franklin on the over.
4-ish ERA Millwood can stick around all year. 5.5 Beavan and 6 Noesi can regroup in the minors. Once Milwood is my #5 starter he's great even if his game slips a little. Felix / Vargas / Hultzen / Erasmo / Millwood til September works fine. Then Beavan and Noesi can come back once we shut the kids down for innings reasons and show what they've learned.
~G