Although the Toronto Blue Jays have suffered through a dismal season in 2017, it has not been the fault of their ace–and Long Island native–Marcus Stroman.
Last night, he defeated the Kansas City Royals, 5-2, to notch his 12th win of the season. He fired seven innings, allowing just one ER with five strikeouts. The victory surpassed his 2014 win total of 11 during his rookie season. Additionally, he lowered his ERA to 3.01 and is closing in on his career-high in strikeouts of 166 set last season.
Stroman is closing in on another milestone. He has thrown 191.1 IP. He set a career-high last season with 204.0 IP. This is critical in his arbitration case, because pitchers are deemed to be more durable and valuable when they can routinely eclipse 200.0 IP.
He dodged a major bullet last month when Mark Trumbo drilled his right elbow with a line drive that was 107 MPH off the bat. It was a disturbing moment as Stroman was writhing in pain on the ground, but in typical fashion he jumped up and was pleading his case to remain in the game.
He did not remain in the game, but he did avoid the disabled list. By doing so and returning to the mound, he undoubtedly earned himself millions of dollars in his upcoming arbitration case. He is earning $3.4 million this season and that figure will jump up significantly with his performance this season. His ERA+ (weighted ERA adjusted for offensive numbers and ballpark) of 153 is 14th in the Majors ahead of pitcher like Sonny Gray, Masahiro Tanaka, Jon Lester, Yu Darvish and Carlos Martinez.
It has been a terrific season for the Pat-Med grad, who is quietly becoming one of the more reliable and durable starting pitchers in the Major Leagues. It has been a banner year for Stroman, who also led Team USA to their first World Baseball Classic title in March and he also has appeared in a few music videos with his close friend and artist Mike Stud.
