Saturday, September 19, 2009

Bob Gibson probably would not agree


I note that in the Braves 9-4 loss to the Phillies, Atlanta starter, Tim Hudson was credited with a "quality start" which is a newly popular statistic (though it has been around since 1985) designating a starting pitching performance of at least 6 innings where no more than 3 earned runs were given up.

Hudson pitched 7 innings and gave up 6 hits, 3 earned runs (of which 2 were home runs) with only 3 strikeouts and was pulled with his team losing. In addition to being credited with a "quality start", he also took the "loss".

I wonder what Bob Gibson would have said if you told him that he had a "quality start" with the above line in a game that he also took the loss?

I bet that you would hear language that would make Ozzie Guillen blush.

You also might need an ice pack.

3 comments:

Carl Crawford Cards said...

100% agree.

Captain Canuck said...

maybe they compared his pitching performance with the bullpen pitchers that pitched the 8th and 9th?
that would certainly make his performance "quality"

Hackenbush said...

I wonder how many "quality starts" Gibson had in addition to his 251 wins. A lot. Seems like a stat invented by agents whose pitchers aren't getting enough wins.