Top five pitchers of the season - 2012 Major League Baseball - Part 3
We have already discussed why Justin Verlander, Stephen Strasburg and Clayton Kershaw deserve a place on the list of top five pitchers in Major League Baseball.
4. Los Angeles Angles, Jered Weaver
Jered Weaver is another dynamic right hander who should be placed on this list mainly due to the fact he is a nightmare for the American League hitters. His ability to create problems for the batters at Angels Stadium is quite remarkable.
On May 2, he tossed his first no hitter of the season against the Minnesota Twins. Striking-out nine with just one walk, he used his sliders, fastballs and the curveballs extremely efficiently.
Weaver has looked in stunning form this year. It will be fair to say that he has played a key role in fueling Los Angeles Angels’ run to the top of American League West Division standings after they made a poor start to the season.
At 15-1, his win-loss record is sensational. However, what makes him an asset for the Angels is his ability to strike-out the batters in crunch situations. So far, he has struck-out 101 with an incredible 0.92 WHIP. His ERA of 2.13 is also quite staggering.
Having pitched 131 innings already this season, Weaver is also an extremely reliable and durable pitcher.
After finishing only second to Verlander in last year’s Cy Young voting, Weaver has continued his excellent work in 2012. Weaver’s stats for this season (15-1, 2.13 ERA, 0.92 WHIP) are what most pitchers can only dream of. It will be interesting to see if
he can continue his marvelous form on the mound to finally lift the Cy Young Award and American League Most Valuable Player Award.
5. San Francisco Giants, Matt Cain
Matt Cain has also given some impressive performances over the last few seasons to win a place on our list of top five pitchers. Cain is a great learner as he seems to improve his skills with each passing game. What separates him from others is his desire
to look for room for development in his game almost all the time.
If he makes a mistake, he works hard to correct it and the results keep getting better and better. Over the last four seasons, Cain has remained the key pitcher for the Giants. 2010, in particular, was one of the finest seasons of his career, when he helped
San Francisco capture the World Series title. In his 21.1 innings during the post season that year, Cain did not allow even a single earned run, showing how well he can perform under pressure.
"A lot of the pressure that always happens I think is something people put on themselves. It's nothing these guys should do to put pressure on me. It's all up to me and what I do with it is my own decision. I'm going to go out there and try to keep competing
everyday and however it comes out is going to come out," he said in an interview.
The flamboyant right hander has not shown any signs of slowing down this season either. In June, he pitched a perfect game against the Houston Astros and then started the All Star Game for the National League. Cain is 10-5 so far this season with a decent
3.01 ERA. His 142 strike outs and 1.03 ERA are also quite impressive. He will be looking to end the season on a bright note to continue to show that he turning into the best pitcher in the game.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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