6 years agoColorado Rockies starting pitcher Kyle Freeland had an amazing year in 2018, posting the best season in club history with a 17-7 record and 2.85 ERA (8th among qualified pitchers). He also had a 1.25 WHIP, 3.67 FIP (20th), 46% ground ball rate (18th), and a 31.6% hard hit percentage (16th). Though he walked too many batters at 3.11 BB/9 (17th highest), his 0.76 HR/9 (7th lowest) and 82.8% strand rate (4th highest) kept those runners from scoring more often than not. He also doesn’t rack up strikeouts, notching just 173 strikeouts in 202 1/3 innings pitched. Freeland averages just 91.6 MPH on his fastball and sported a non-elite 9% swinging strike rate (44th) in 2018. However, his sparkling record, low ERA, and extremely low HR/9 look even more impressive when you remember that half of his starts were pitched in the most run-friendly environment in all of baseball, Coors Field. In fact, Freeland pitched much better at home in 2018 (10-2 with 2.40 ERA at home, 7-5 with 3.23 ERA on road). Make no mistake, the 25-year-old rising star was absolutely dominant in 2018 in just his second MLB season - a lot of people would be surprised to learn he finished fourth in the NL Cy Young voting. He is being drafted with the 120th pick on average, while RotoBaller has him at 143rd and 36th ranked starter. Though he hasn’t displayed the strikeout upside yet, last year’s gem of a season deserves more attention than it received and you can draft him with confidence anytime after the 85th pick.--Kyle Ringstad - RotoBaller
Source: Pro Baseball Reference