Fansided

MLB awards watch: NL Cy Young races

By William Schneiderhan

DENVER, COLORADO - APRIL 09: Starting pitcher German Marquez #48 of the Colorado Rockies throws in the fifth inning against the Atlanta Braves at Coors Field on April 09, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, COLORADO - APRIL 09: Starting pitcher German Marquez #48 of the Colorado Rockies throws in the fifth inning against the Atlanta Braves at Coors Field on April 09, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /
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DETROIT, MI – APRIL 16: Joe Musgrove #59 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning at Comerica Park on April 16, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI – APRIL 16: Joe Musgrove #59 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning at Comerica Park on April 16, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images) /

4. Jose Musgrove, RHP Pittsburgh Pirates

1-1, 26 strikeouts (T-27th), 0.85 WHIP (T-1st),1.0 WAR (T-8th) and 1.59 ERA (3rd).

Joe Musgrove may be one of those players who fades as the season progresses. Or, maybe the 26-year-old has turned a corner in his career. He has led the charge for the upstart, suddenly lights-out Pirates rotation with Trevor Williams, Chris Archer and Jameson Taillon.

Interestingly enough, Musrgrove‘s numbers appear to be conflicting. Both his walk-percentage (5.6 percent) and his walks per-nine innings pitched (1.91) are higher than they were last year. However, as seen in his stellar WHIP, he has been stingy when it comes to hits allowed.

In 28.1 innings pitched, Musgrove has allowed 18 hits and six walks. He has prevented base hits with a batting average against of .180, and he hasn’t been tagged when he has pitched to contact either, with a batting average on balls-in-play of .233.

Like Corbin, Musgrove has shown a different trend in pitch usage. In five games pitched, he has used his fastball less often, down nearly five percent from last year. He has also drastically dropped his cutter usage. In 2018, he threw his cutter 15.4 percent of the time. This year that number has dropped down to six percent.

Musgrove has gone away from his hard stuff and he has relied much more on his secondary pitches. His slider percentage has jumped from 18 percent last year to 28 percent this year, and his changeup usage is up from 13.9 percent to 15.1.

Trends often times suggest long-term success or failure, so maybe Musgrove has put it all together and has positioned himself for a huge 2019.

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