Tom Gorzelanny pitches as a starter for the Chicago Cubs. Tom showed a lot of promise in 2007, going 14-10 with the Pirates and posting a 3.88 ERA over 201 2/3 innings. If fact, his first three seasons with the Pirates were not bad. His strikeout rate was low but okay, his walk rate fine and his home run rate good. In 2008, however, his home run and walk rates about doubled, and his ERA shot up to an evil 6.66. The only real difference I see is that in 2008 he used his slider less and his change-up more. In 2009, he went back to his old slider percentages. His walks and home runs came back down, but his ERA remained high.

So I’m cautiously optimistic about Gorzelanny for 2010. He only face a little over 200 batters in 2009, so his ERA could be a result of a small sample size. If he puts those numbers up for 200 innings, I suspect the Cubs will have a very solid fourth or fifth starter.