Though granted, Kaz has put up the sexier numbers and he’s a couple years younger than Shields. I dunno…I do agree that my argument in favor of Shields is mostly an emotional one. I really don’t have the stats to back it up minus the fact that he’s much better at going late in games (at least this season it’s seemed that way) and he can be really efficient. Plus, Shields has a much better career WHIP, which can be a better indicator on the quality of the pitcher than ERA.

I do think Shields has at least proven that he has the potential to develop into a staff ace. If Kaz puts together a season this year similar to his second half last year, though, I don’t think there will be much moving him from the number one slot. So I hope this doesn’t start another flame war…oh gosh, not another of those.

Maybe I’m wrong, but I’ll try and re-find the article.

I still find it absolutely fantastic that we have this ability to have this discussion. I look forward to the day in the coming years when we can have discussions about our pitching staff and whether it is the best in MLB. I think its in the not-so-distant future.

How do we know what Shields’ ceiling is? Wasn’t he a relatively no-name prospect until he all of a sudden appeared on the scene and started making a name for himself? In that regard, I don’t think many people would ever projected him to end up being this good. So what’s the say he doesn’t keep improving? He’s already proven many of the experts wrong, at least from what I’ve gathered.

In looking at their numbers it is clear that Kaz is the Ace of the staff. Shields is a great second pitcher, but Kaz is more likely to win the CY than Shields even this year. An ace is unhittable, a power-pitcher, a shut-down pitcher. These qualities in my mind describe Kaz more than Shields. Shields would be the ace of a number of staffs in the game. Kaz posted a better ERA last year and was the AL strike out king. He is more likely to be more effective in big games and playoff series because he is a power pitcher whose stuff will be hard to hit even if you see him twice in a week.

I like Shields more because of his makeup and desire to lead the team, while Kaz has always seemed kind of aloof. Now that Kaz has the new deal I may switch allegiences, but there is something I love and admire about that horse that you can pencil in for 6-8 innings of 2-3 run ball. In my mind, Shields is like a Halladay clone, consistent and will be one of the best (and most underrated pitchers in the game), but never get quite his due because he’s not a power-pitcher.

Mostly because he’s had such dominant stuff but just hasn’t been able to harness it. I do think this season could be the beginnings of a turn-around for him and if that’s so, the Os could have the makings of a nice ace on their hands.

However, his peripherals aren’t the prettiest thing in the world. They’re not bad, but also not particularly inspiring so far this season. If you don’t believe in sabermetrics or get worked up whenever RJ says the same thing about Jackson, ignore this. But Cabrera’s K:BB ratio is 1.54 right now, which is only slightly improved upon his career average (1.45). And his BABIP is currently .237, which seems low, but actually makes sense when you look at his 12.8 LD%. Is that LD% and BABIP sustainable, though? Will he continue to improve upon his K:BB ratio? Tough questions and really, only time will tell. I’m rooting for him (except against the Rays), though, just like I hope Jackson can continue to pull it together.

I had a tough time trying to decide who to list as the Blue Jays’ number 2 starter. Burnett is definitely penciled in their by his team, but I feel like Marcum and/or McGowan have a lot of potential. I nearly put Marcum in their number two slot just because of how well he’s done this year, but I figured I should stick by just who the teams had slotted in their number two slots.

But, I do think that Marcum and McGowan are going to be really important for the Blue Jays going forward. Both have only limited major league experience so far, so I am very curious to see how both of them fair over 32 starts this season. Going into next year, though, it is quite possible that one of them will supplant Burnett as number two. And if we were looking at overall staff depth, I think their staff would rank right up there.

The reason why he gets hurt so much is because he’s getting burned up on that Toronto staff. I mean, 35 complete games in his career, and 33 of those since 2001 to today. He’s doing nearly 5 a year; that’s unheard of this day and age. I’m surprised his arm really hasn’t fallen off by now.

I might take Marcum over Shields… I’d at least think about it.

Get past the errors on the errant pickoff throws, and the Orioles’ range was very impressive in the field. Adam Jones was spectacular. It’s easy to see why Baltimore leads the majors in Defensive Efficiency.