Diamondbacks All-Time Top 10. #5: Brandon Webb

by Jim McLennan on Jan 18, 2006 10:34 PM EST in Diamondbacks News

Brandon Webb

Acquired: 6/5/2000. Drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 8th round of the 2000 amateur draft.
Career with AZ: 617.2 IP, 31-37, 3.35 ERA
Best year 2003: 180.2 IP, 10-9, 2.84 ERA
Records: 1st in wild pitches (40). Season highs for walks, wild pitches and losses (119, 17 and 16, all in 2004)
Other facts: 2nd in walks, 3rd in ERA (3.35), losses (37) and K's (508), 4th in starts (96) and wins (31).
Biggest moment: Winning the 2003 Rookie of the Ye... Oh, hang on: that should have been his biggest moment. Ok, then - his first major-league start. April 27, 2003: seven shutout innings, allowing only three hits. Oh, plus 10 strikeouts. And a win. In Shea Stadium. Against Tom Glavine.
Departed: still here. And looking likely to be around for a while, since he's now signed through 2009.

How does a pitcher with a 4.89 ERA in college, picked at #249 in the draft, end up taking down a future Hall of Famer in his debut start? Webb's translation into one of the most promising young arms around began at Lancaster, where he start working on his trademark pitch: the devastating sinker. It took a while to master, but as his phenomenal arrival showed, the results more than justified the effort.

Ironically, after his stunning debut, he was sent straight back to Tucson, as the Big Unit was coming off the DL. But his return to the minors was brief, and he ended up with the third-best ERA (2.84) of any pitcher - not just rookies - in the National League, a figure also beaten only by Johnson in team history. Braves manager Bobby Cox said it was the best sinker he'd seen in years, and Webb should have won Rookie of the Year, but the writers couldn't see past the 14-6 record of Dontrelle Willis, even though Webb was clearly superior in every other way.

2004 was a difficult year for the Diamondbacks, and Webb was no exception: a sinkerball pitcher, with Scott Hairston and Alex Cintron behind him as defense, must feel like he has died and gone to hell. A franchise-record number of defeats followed, both for the team and Webb personally, though Webb's 3.59 ERA was still the lowest of any 16-gamer loser since Melido Perez went 13-16 with a 2.87 ERA in 1992.

Webb had another very solid season in 2005, posting an ERA+ of 124 once again, and with a better team, went 14-12. Of particular note was his improved control: he halved his total of walks, even though he pitched 21 more innings. Also, his groundball/flyball ratio also continues to increase, from 3.44 in 2003 to 3.55 in 2004, and then an amazing 4.34 last season. With Gold Glove defense now behind him in Orlando Hudson, this year could be Webb's best yet.

Three years into his career and at the age of only 27, he has an ERA of 3.35 and the most similar pitcher through age 26, according to BaseballReference.com, is Hall of Famer Bob Gibson. Long may that trend continue: here's to Webb posting a 1.12 ERA for Arizona in 2011. :-)

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I like this...

...perhaps this is a little high considering Webb's real stinker of a year in 2004, but I have no question that he will eventually end up in the #4 or #5 slot. Wish I would have had the guts to stick him so high on mine.

by johngordonma on Jan 19, 2006 7:37 AM EST reply actions

#5 is an interesting place

I can't disagre with it, but your statements on his struggles are why I had him lower. This kid should be awesome for many years.

Even if we don't get Bob Gibson, I'd take Sam Jones or Ed Whitson (though Whitson had some rough years).

by nihil67 on Jan 19, 2006 1:53 PM EST reply actions

Why he's #5

I've largely discounted W/L records, otherwise Webb would be behind Miguel Batista (debatable) and...ah, Andy Benes. They're the only Diamondbacks past Randy and Curt with more than 15 victories and a winning record here.

The 6-16 season wasn't particularly Webb's fault: he got awful run support, even for a 51-win team. From May 29-Sept 23, we scored two runs or less in 13 of his 23 starts. There's not much any starter can do there - that year, Webb had a much better ERA than Mark Mulder (4.43), who went 17-8 for Oakland.

Just on the basis of three seasons, he deserves inclusion in the top 10 - don't forget, that represents almost 40% of franchise history, though I can see debate over how high. Perhaps the more intriguing question is, how high will he go? IMHO, it's certainly conceivable he might be right up there with Gonzo and the Big Unit by the end of his time here.

by Jim McLennan on Jan 19, 2006 4:11 PM EST reply actions

yup

[The 6-16 season wasn't particularly Webb's fault: he got awful run support, even for a 51-win team.]

While his record may not have been all his fault, almost all of the 119 people he walked were. In fact, I'm amazed his '04 ERA was so low... really a testament to how few fly balls he allows.

[Just on the basis of three seasons, he deserves inclusion in the top 10 - don't forget, that represents almost 40% of franchise history, though I can see debate over how high.]

I absolutely agree.

[Perhaps the more intriguing question is, how high will he go?]

That's a hard one to answer. Given longevity, he may even pass Gonzo. I hope he does. Now, the question will be if he can ever pass Randy. I'd like to have him go ahead and try.

by nihil67 on Jan 19, 2006 4:29 PM EST up reply actions