Cleveland Indians veteran starter Carlos”Cookie” Carrasco is back!
Carlos Carrasco is one of those players you cannot hate. Someone that has earned the respect of the entire MLB, sort of like a Derek Jeter.
Carrasco has had some really tough battles but he has competed every time, and he is back, pitching strong. He has battled through some injuries, including a line drive to his face, and the biggest headline of battling leukemia.
He did pitch in 2019 when he returned but he did not have the same stuff. He posted a 5.29 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, but did still maintain his high K/9 ratio.
Carrasco was one of the top pitchers during his prime. His best season was in 2017 where he finished fourth in AL Cy Young voting with a 3.29 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 10.2 K/9 ratio. And he pitched well from 2014 all the way to 2018.
2019 was a rough year for Carrasco in terms of pitching and health, but he is back in 2020 and is showing promise.
So far, he holds a 3.75 ERA, 2-3 record, 1.31 WHIP, and 11.3 K/9. He is walking quite a bit of batters and that is what is hurting his WHIP. But overall, from a rough 2019 season, he has bounced back nicely.
His stuff is good, represented by his high strikeout ratio much like Bieber. Although Carrasco could be considered the Indians’ #2 or #3 starter, in terms of performance I rank him at the back end.
When thinking about a #4 or #5 starting pitcher, Carrasco’s stats a great and what any team would dream of. Again, the Indians would have loved a 2018 Carrasco but you can’t get what you always asked for.
But if you are an Indians fan, you have to love the bounce back Carrasco has made and being a key contributor for the team especially with the loss of Clevinger. I tip my hat to Carrasco.