Look, I know this one isn't going to be the popular choice, and in fact I was
the only dissenter in the entire office who did not vote for Dustin Nippert as
the Pitcher of the Year. Call me crazy, call me uninformed, call me late
for dinner if you want, but as good as Nippert was, he was exactly as good as he
was supposed to be.
One pitcher was far better than expected.
In fact, matching Nippert and my selection, South Bend Silverhawks closer
Matt Elliott, side by side show some real similarities. While Nippert is
regularly referred to as a 'steal' because the Diamondbacks were able to grab
him in the 15th round of the 2002 draft, Matt Elliott was selected in that draft
as well. Mind you, he wasn't selected by the Diamondbacks, rather the
Cardinals in the 27th round, and he never signed, instead electing to head to
Dixie State College in Utah. The Diamondbacks were able to sign Elliott in
2004 as a non-drafted free agent, and after a solid stint in the rookie level
Pioneer League that year he was bumped immediately to the Lo-A Midwest League to
start the '05 campaign.
|
2005 |
W-L-S |
ERA |
IP |
BB/K |
Opp. Batting Avg. |
|
Matt Elliott |
3-4-32 |
2.14 |
54.2 |
22/71 |
.183 |
Nerves, the advancement, a sophomore slump. All of these things could
have set Elliott up for a fall, but none of them did. Elliott came out of
the box hot, saving four games in seven April appearances and allowing just one
earned run. It looked as if the shine might be rubbing off in May, when
Elliott allowed opponents to hit .366, but it proved the month, and not the
career, was an aberration.
Elliott came back to allow just six earned runs in 36.2 innings pitched over
the last three months of the season, posting opponent's batting averages of .093
in June, .086 is July, and .163 in August. He finished second in the
Midwest League in saves and led the Silverhawks to the Midwest League
Championship, logging three saves and holding opponents to a .063 batting
average in the postseason. That's the difference in my mind.
Nippert was brilliant, but the object of this game is to eventually win the
World Series, and Matt Elliott pitched in meaningful games all season. By
the time Nippert came back to the Double-A Tennessee Smokies they were
completely out of contention in the Southern League. By the time he moved
up to the Diamondbacks, they were essentially out of the NL West. Nippert
will be a very good Major League starting pitcher, but until he shows me that
he's ready for pressure situations, I go with the guy who has already shown it.