Cardinal advent calendar, Day 12: Joel Pineiro
| B-Ref name | joe pine |
| Contract Status | Free agent (offered and declined arbitration) |
| 2009 stat | Led majors in fewest walks per game (1.1) http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/bases_on_balls_per_nine_leagues.shtml |
| Career stat | Since coming to the Cardinals in August of 2007, Pineiro is third behind Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee in Walks/9 with 1.56 (min. 400 IP). |
| 2010 Projection | 4.22 FIP (Bill James) |
| Quote | "I was very disappointed, very heartbroken. I felt disrespected. Everybody knows that there have been only two pitchers in Puerto Rico the past 8-10 years who have been consistent starters, Javier Vazquez and myself. To hear that from [Oquendo], it was such a setback. I’m very disappointed." — on not making the three-man rotation for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic |
After an inauspicious start to the season, in which he bellyached over a perceived slight of not being named to the Puerto Rican WBC team, Pineiro rediscovered his sinker, which allowed him to be the hero of a prototypical Dave Duncan renaissance story. By trading speed on his sinking fastball for increased break, he induced the highest rate of groundballs in baseball, with a "scorched-earth" 60.5% — four percentage points better than the next-best, groundball guru Derek Lowe. His penchant for providing infield practice culminated in his start against the Mets on June 23, when he got the the second-most groundball outs in a game since 2003 … Faced second-most batters on staff with 865 (behind only Adam Wainwright)… Ninth most-similar pitcher through age 30 is Chris Carpenter … 10th is Brad Penny … Was third on team in pitching runs created, with 78 … Upon hearing of Pineiro’s withdrawal from the WBC, Oquendo said, "I hope he just moves on. I hope he uses this as a chip on his shoulder and wins us 20 games." … Pineiro posted a career-high 4.8 WAR in 2009 … Provided an $8.5-million surplus value on the $13-million contract extension he signed with the Cardinals at the end of the 2007 season … Was a rookie on the 2000 Mariners, the same team for whom former Cardinal John Mabry had his pitching debut.
