Toronto Blue Jays: 5 biggest surprises so far this season
By Paul Taylor
3) What is wrong with Stroman?
Marcus Stroman had arguably his best year yet in the Majors in 2017, as he set career-highs for starts and wins. He went over 200 innings for the second consecutive season, recorded a 3.09 ERA and threw 164 strikeouts.
As a result, Stroman impressed enough people to finish eighth in the Cy Young voting. With this type of success, it was no wonder he was upset after losing his arbitration hearing to the Blue Jays in February.
In theory, this should have fueled the 2017 Gold Glove winner to greater heights this year, to show his worth. Unfortunately for him — and by extension the team — this hasn’t been the case so far.
In fact, the start to this season couldn’t have gone much worse for Stroman. There is obviously still a long way to go in 2018, but so far, he’s well on course for a career-worst campaign.
Through seven starts, the 27-year-old has an unsightly 7.71 ERA, which is effectively double his career average. He has a 0-5 record and career-highs in FIP and WHIP.
As if to highlight how tough this year has been for Stroman so far, even when he pitches well, things still go wrong. Think back to his recent start on May 2, against the Minnesota Twins.
In that game, the 2017 World Baseball Classic MVP allowed just two earned runs in seven innings, as he threw a season-high 99 pitches and allowed just one walk. However, he had absolutely no run support, as the Blue Jays lost 4-0.
We know Stroman is capable of turning things around, just based on his overall production through the first four years of his Major League career. Whether he actually does, is another thing altogether.