This is a ranking of the best starting pitchers of the 2011 season, and it's based on the performance of last season alone.

1. Roy Halladay- His 2.20 FIP was awesome, his efficiency gets overlooked because of the hype surrounding the guy directly below him.

2. Justin Verlander- Deserved the Cy Young, but his season was a little overrated (.236 BABIP). Still, accomplishing a 2.40 ERA with 8.96 fans per nine is no easy feat.

3. Clayton Kershaw- Although Halladay should have won the award, it's tough to argue with a guy who had the pitching Triple Crown. But of course, the Triple Crown doesn't trump advanced statistics; even if it's still an incredible feat.

4. CC Sabathia- Lost among a season of elite pitching was Sabathia's 2011 campaign.

5. Cliff Lee- Had a 2.60 FIP and was in the thick of the "race", well, for those who paid attention to him.

6. Dan Haren- If you dig deeper, it becomes apparent that Haren was truly the best starter on the Angels last year.

7. Jered Weaver- But hey, Weaver did have a 2.41 ERA regardless of the luck involved.

8. Ian Kennedy- How could I not reward the former Yankees prospect?

9. Madison Bumgarner- This sophomore was no bum, as he garnered a 2.67 FIP.

10. Zack Greinke- A 10.54 K/9 and 2.56 xFIP? I think so.

11. C.J. Wilson- There's a reason why he's easily the top free agent starter on the market.

12. James Shields- Would have been in the top ten in most seasons; just not this one.

13. Matt Cain- The guy who somehow defies sabermetrical logic year in and year out, but he did have a 2.88 ERA that was in line with his 2.91 FIP this season.

14. Cole Hamels- Yeah, the Phillies offense really dragged the team down.

15. Doug Fister- And we thought this trade was meaningless when it first went down.

16. David Price- Wasn't all that much worse than his teammate, but he was still worse.

17. Matt Garza- Well, at least the Cubs got what they wanted in the trade; an over-performing pitcher. He won't always be this good, but that season alone might make that trade at least a solid one for the Cubbies.

18. Felix Hernandez- Yeah, I probably put him a little too low, but it really wasn't the best of years for Felix. But just you wait for 2012 Mariners fans, you'll have the Astros to beat up on.

19. Tim Lincecum- No top 20 is complete without Timmy's presence, even in a "down" year (he still had a 2.74 ERA).

20. Daniel Hudson- He and Kennedy are two young starters to build a rotation around.

21. Brandon McCarthy- Now who saw that coming?

22. Josh Beckett- He really carried the Red Sox sagging rotation this year with a 2.89 ERA.

23. Matt Harrison- Scouts love him when he doesn't nibble, and he had a solid year that he should be able to build on.

24. Chris Carpenter- A boss year in and year out, and to think that the Cards won it all without Wainwright.

25. Jaime Garcia- What better way to end a top 25 starter list than a World Champion?

What a rebound year

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Posted By: Joe Soriano - Category: MLB, MLB Rankings, SPs, Yankees, CC Sabathia, Red Sox, Josh Beckett, David Price, James Shields, Justin Verlander, Doug Fister, CJ Wilson, Matt Harrison, Angels, Dan Haren, Jered Weaver, Mariners, Felix Hernandez, Brandon McCarthy, Astros, Phillies, Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, St. Louis Cardinals, Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter, Jaime Garcia, Cubs, Matt Garza, Zack Greinke, Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, Madison Bumgarner, Clayton Kershaw, Daniel Hudson, Ian Kennedy

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8/2011 Team Scope: Oakland Athletics

August 2nd 2011 17:57

It is pretty much a known fact that the A's are one of the worst teams in the Majors, and that's due to their abysmal hitting. Their pitching is solid, and they do have some nice young talent on the roster as well as in the Minors. However, their hitting is more than sub-standard right now, and really only two players have been significantly helping the cause on offense.

Right now, Coco Crisp is the best non-pitcher on the team. He's still great on the basepaths, and he is the team's second best hitter behind Josh Willingham. Crisp leads all the "fielders" in WAR, and there is nobody else who is anywhere close. Willingham is the better hitter, but he is slow and a terrible fielder.

One of my problem's with WAR is that it values positions too differently. Of course it's tough to find a catcher who will hit like a first baseman, but Kurt Suzuki is not the second best player on the A's right now. He's been terrible offensively, and he's been average in the field and on the bases. Suzuki's a decent player, but he has a .289 OBP right now.

A lot of people talk about how good Cliff Pennington is as a fielder, but I just don't see what those guys are seeing. He's been their worst fielder, and their worst hitter of anybody with significant playing time. He hasn't been productive at all this season, and it might be time to assess his standing with the team. They have young infielders who have far more value and upside than him. If he doesn't provide value as a hitter or fielder, then I think it's time for the A's to cut their losses and ditch the Cliff. Everything that goes to him falls anyway.

Right now he's day-to-day with an injury though. Aside from 2010, Pennington has never had a good year in the field. He was excellent that year, so maybe that's where people are coming from, but he hasn't done anything of note recently. He's not a good hitter anyway, and the only thing that he is consistently good at is his baserunning.

I think I've criticized the A's offense too much and beating a dead horse isn't good. You have to knock the horse around for a bit, but then it just gets old. Anyway, it's time for me to focus on the A's pitching. Their rotation has three very good young pitchers in Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez, and Brett Anderson. Right now, Anderson's on the shelf for a while which definitely hurts. Their bullpen is led by electrifying young closer Andrew Bailey.

Brandon McCarthy has pitched very well this year, and it's mainly been due to his control. He's limited his free passes, and his ERA is a little higher than it should be thanks to a high BABIP. While he has lucked out on the amount of homers that have been hit off of him, he has also done his part by making sure the fly balls don't fly too much. McCarthy has pitched like a guy who's ERA should be closer to 3.00 than 3.50 (3.58 right now).

Trevor Cahill has only been average, and the strikeouts- for some reason- just haven't been there. He is walking too many batters, but the number of homers he has given up should be attributed to some bad luck. Maybe it's control issues, but I'm more inclined to think that it's out of his hands. Cahill's still been okay this year, but we all expected more out of him.

The peripherals don't match the total output of ERA for Gio Gonzalez, and the only way his ERA can go right now is up. A 2.84 ERA is certainly an accomplishment, but he's also allowed just over four walks per nine innings. He's getting the K's, but he's also getting very lucky. I don't see this continuing, and I think his ERA hits 3.20 by the time the season is over.

In the pen, Andrew Bailey has been doing some work. He's mowing down hitters, but I think the zero and five in his 2.05 ERA switch places by the end of the season. The amount of homers he's given up is too slim to maintain, and he's only thrown 22 innings this year. More innings means a higher ERA for relievers. Just take a look at Joaquin Benoit.

If you haven't noticed my categories yet, you should take a look at them. Just click through them, and every player I have written about recently is in there. You can also search in that search box on the upper part of the left bar. I have everything from the types of articles to players and teams. I am also thinking of putting player grades (like A, B minus and such) next to the players in the categories as an interesting little tweak. Let me know what you think of this idea in the comments section. Thanks for reading guys!