There were plenty of pitchers I could have led with today, but I'm sure the question on everyone's mind is if they should be picking up Brandon Finnegan or not after going 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 Hits, 1 BBs, 9 Ks. It's a good question and no wrong answer, really. Finnegan was a pitcher we haven't seen yet yesterday in many ways: his Fastball velocity spiked over a tick, he threw more Changeups than Sliders after heavily favoring the breaking ball and barely touching his slow ball in 2016, but most importantly, he tossed his Fastball for a strike at a 67.9% rate. For a guy who held a 4.40 BB/9 last season, that is incredibly good. And there's more about that Fastball - He stopped throwing Sinkers (previously his favorite heater) to nearly exclusive Four-Seamers, which - get this - had a vertical break of 14.90 inches. Essentially, his Four-Seamer stayed five inches higher than the league average lefty Four-Seamer, which is unreal. Like the greatest rising Fastball you've ever heard of. This is a whole lot to take in and I'm not sure how to assess it. It's not like Finnegan went out there, got lucky and somehow landed on his feet to produce a stud outing. But it's also not like the Phillies aren't a terrible offense and he needed 25 pitches to get through the first inning (and then firing six straight perfect innings). Do I believe Finnegan will stay a stud? Not necessarily, but I do believe that he's a different pitcher now that is well worth a flier if he's still out there. I do worry the inconsistent Fastball command will return, but the added velocity + Movement mixed with a heavier reliance on his Changeup does seem like a positive step in the right direction.
Let's see how every other SP did yesterday:
