Orioles left-hander Brian Matusz was one of the most dominant young pitchers at the end of the 2010 season. But that didn’t exactly carry over to 2011. The 24-year-old completed one of the worst seasons in baseball history this year, finishing with the highest ERA (10.69) ever for a pitcher with at least 10 starts.
So what happened?
Last year, Matusz won his last six decisions, including victories over the four highest scoring offenses in the AL — the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays and Rangers — and he had a 1.80 ERA in September and October.
He finished off this year with a September ERA of 19.13 after allowing 17 earned runs in eight innings. And Matusz didn’t record a single quality start all season.
How many more opportunities can Baltimore give Matusz after this historically awful season?
If there’s any hope for Matusz it’s this: The pitcher he passed for the highest ERA in a season was a guy named Roy Halladay, a two-time Cy Young winner who had a 10.64 ERA in 2000.
– Jeffrey Tomik
