It takes some talent to lose 20 games in a season.

Mike Maroth is the last guy to breach the big two-oh, doing so for the Tigers in 2003, but he subsequently posted adequate seasons with WHIPs in the 1.3s and ERAs in the fours. Brian Kingman of the A's lost 20 in 1980, but he did it with a 3.83 ERA. In the 1970s, such luminaries as Phil Niekro, Wilbur Wood, Jerry Koosman, Mickey Lolich, Steve Rogers, Denny McLain and, yes, Steve Carlton lost 20 or more in a single season.

It probably won't happen in 2008, but oh, we have some candidates. I'm looking at you, Barry Zito.


Barry Zito tied a career-worst 13 losses last season. He could eclipse that mark by the All-Star break.

Zito is 0-5 for the Giants with a 5.61 ERA, and while he hasn't been atrocious every time out, he's got the right (or, depending on your perspective, wrong) combination of a bad offensive team, a bad defensive team and a reputation as an ace who takes the ball every five days no matter what. He's not entirely without fantasy value in NL-only leagues (Tristan Cockcroft reports to me that Zito recently went for $41 worth of FAAB money in the NL version of LABR, and Tristan also gleefully mentions it was not he who made that astronomical bid) because while Zito's strikeouts have declined every season since 2004, he's still a good bet to give you in the 130 to 150 range.
Matt Morris also makes an intriguing lose-a-thon candidate. He's 0-3 through four starts with a 9.15 ERA and a 1.98 WHIP, and he's not owned in any ESPN.com leagues (Zito is owned in 13.3 percent) because he's, well, awful. In fact, Morris is probably too terrible to approach 20 losses; he'd probably get released before he got close.

Joe Blanton is 1-4 but has actually pitched rather well: 4.32 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, just seven walks in 41 2/3 innings -- although the league is hitting .292 against him. He lost 12 in both '05 and '06, and despite their current record the A's do look like a stinker of a team, but Blanton will probably turn it around soon. (He's owned in 70.2 percent of ESPN leagues.)

Then there's Matt Chico, who's 0-4 for the abysmal Nationals. The 25-year-old lefty (who, for some reason, is owned in 0.4 percent of ESPN leagues) dropped nine games in his 31 starts last year, and has carried over his brutal control numbers from 2007: 17 K's and 10 BBs in 28 1/3 innings. Whether or not Chico can eclipse the magic Ray Allen line (20 is Allen's uniform number with the Celtics) probably depends on whether the Nats like him enough to stick with him through the horror of a summer without wins.

No, in the end, our best shot for 20 is still probably Zito. His huge contract means the Giants will keep him in the rotation, and often as not he'll be matched up against an opponent's ace. Like I said, it probably won't happen. But who says the Giants are through with their Barry problems?
-Christopher Harris ESPN.com

sfsfsfgiants wrote:I would not be surprised to see Zito be forced into the bullpen one of these games. Just scratched as a starter... for good. They have to have somebody better than this, even though Zito is making the big bucks.

Rehren1296 wrote:

sfsfsfgiants wrote:I would not be surprised to see Zito be forced into the bullpen one of these games. Just scratched as a starter... for good. They have to have somebody better than this, even though Zito is making the big bucks.

Doesn't look like thats going to happen. They're already spinning May as a new month, and a fresh start.

StuckInSoCal wrote:That's the great thing about baseball... no one survives being horrible.