I have become a regular reader of Jeff Sullivan's Five Numbers article over on SB Nation, and yesterday he wrote about Cliff Lee's fantastic walk rate. His walk rate back on June 24th, according to the article, was 0.42. Today, it is 0.39!!!
Jeff goes on to write about the number of times Lee has gotten himself into a 3-ball count. This list says it all:
Pitcher
Rate
Justin Verlander
8.7%
Jon Lester
8.7%
Cliff Lee
8.9%
Tim Lincecum
9.0%
Ian Kennedy
9.1%
Clay Buchholz
9.2%
Yovani Gallardo
9.2%
Jaime Garcia
9.5%
Included in this table, you get some really good pitchers, and their corresponding rates. But there's a catch. For Cliff Lee, you're seeing his three-ball count rate. For everyone else, you're seeing their walk rates.
Yes, Lee is having one magical season, and his timing could not be better as he will be a free agent in the offseason, and many feel the Yankees will be the highest bidder for his services. Shocking, right?
Here are Lee's peripheral stats according to Fangraphs:
| Name | K/9 | BB/9 | K/BB | HR/9 | AVG | WHIP | BABIP | LOB% | ERA | FIP | E-F | xFIP |
| Cliff Lee | 7.64 | 0.50 | 15.22 | 0.50 | 0.237 | 0.93 | 0.293 | 72.30% | 2.57 | 2.32 | 0.25 | 3.27 |
His K/BB rate is beyond compare and is almost double that of the next closest pitcher-Roy Halladay. Crazy right? He only has 10 wins this season, but he should definitely be in the conversation for Cy Young. Would you take him over David Price?
Is he the best pitcher in baseball right now? Is he the first pitcher taken in 2011 drafts?