By metstradamus | April 24, 2021 9:20 pm
Well Marcus Stroman wasn’t going to dominate every game. The picket fence that the Nationals put up on him over four innings had a lot of factors that made it a reality.
First off, perhaps pitching his first game back at sea level after pitching so well in Colorado impacted him a bit. Now I know you’re going to respond with “IT DIDN’T AFFECT deGROM, BRUH!!!!!” Well, bruh, Jacob deGrom is the greatest pitcher walking the face of the earth right now, so let’s use a comp that’s a little more comparable: like Kenta Maeda, who is ranked 10th in best career comps for Stroman on baseball reference. and has pitched plenty in Coors Field, where he has a 5-2 record with a 3.82 ERA and a WHIP of 1.24 in 11 career games. In 10 career games which immediately followed those games, his WHIP was relatively the same at 1.25, but his ERA jumps up to 6.08.
Stroman’s first start at sea level after pitching in Colorado in ’19 was a four and 2/3’s inning outing against the Reds where he gave up three hits, three walks and two runs. Saturday’s start wasn’t even that good, as he gave up four earned in four innings, while giving up eight hits and two walks. When you’re a sinkerball pitcher, going from being excellent to just being okay is a fine line that often results in disaster. There were a lot of pitches that got too much plate, and even though he only gave up singles, the contact made by the other team was noticibly better than it had been (especially in the case of giving up a run scoring single to opposing pitcher Joe Ross in the second, which followed Stroman’s two walks.) Whether you want to believe that the after effects of pitching in Colorado is a thing or not, that’s up to you. But Stroman wasn’t good on Saturday.
The other two factors? Well Michael Conforto’s defense was one. The first two runs that Stroman gave up probably shouldn’t have scored. Josh Harrison singled to lead off the game, and Conforto let the ball go by him which sent Harrison to third,
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