Zach Geinke is not going to set a major league record by going undefeated this season. He suffered his first loss of the season at the hands of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Outdueled by opposing pitcher Joe Saunders, Greinke pitched beautifully allowing only 1 run, a sacrifice fly to left, on the weight of 4 hits no walks and 5 strikeouts. Both pitchers hurled complete games the only difference being that Joe Saunders did not give up any runs. Credit where credit is due. Joe Saunders pitched a great game and deserved the win. However the Royals are not a great offensive team. As a team they rank 11th out of 14 in the AL in runs scored and hits, 12th in average, and 9th in on base percentage. Overall they rank in the bottom half of the AL in total offense. Unfortunately this means that Zach Greinke may not get the run support he needs. Thus is the downfall of being mired in a market such as Kansas City.
I fear that the May 9th game against the Angels will be a microcosm for Greinke's season. If Greinke continues his dominance on the mound, it is very likely he will be a Cy Young contender, even the front runner. However he may be overshadowed by a pitcher, like Joe Saunders who is 5-1 with a 2.66 E.R.A., who has more wins or a better winning percentage due to the team around them. If this sounds familiar to you that's because it already happened. Flashback to the year 2004. Roger Clemens of the Houston Astros wins the NL Cy Young over Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks. But the stats tell a different tale. Roger Clemens' team ranked in the top half in total offense, whereas Randy Johnson's team ranked in the lower half in total offense. This is no more evident than in each pitcher's record for the season. With a distinct advantage in offense, Clemens won 18 games while only losing 4. On the other hand Johnson won 16 games and lost 14 games. Normally losing 14 games is indicative of poor performance. However Johnson's E.R.A. was 2.60, a very respectable E.R.A. especially in comparison to Clemens' 2.98 E.R.A. On top of the season Johnson had, he threw a perfect game against the Braves. Due in large part to his team producing runs for him, Clemens won the Cy Young over the clearly more deserving Randy Johnson.
It is sad but it appears that Zach Greinke will suffer a similar fate to that of Randy Johnson. Although Greinke has matured into one of the game's upper tier pitchers, it appears that the team around him will ultimately seal his fate as a pitcher. After overcoming a social anxiety disorder it is tragic that a pitcher of Zach Greinke's quality has to overcome not only the other team but his own team's offense.
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