Preface: I’m basically bogarting all the data for this piece from MLB.com. Basically I’m taking it for myself, and by extension, you. Of course I have morals and standards, expect when at bars and there are pretty ladies corrupting my mind, so I can’t steal the information without attribution.

Here is what you should know about starting pitchers.

1 - Since the majors went to 162 games a season only two teams have been able to use just five starting pitchers over an entire season: the 1966 Dodgers and the 2003 Mariners.

 2 – Every team in baseball used at least eight starters in 2015.

3 – The Dodgers used 16 starters last season, the most in baseball. The Astros were second with 13 pitchers making a start.

4 – Major league clubs averaged 10.9 starting pitchers last season.

5 – Since 1998, when the big leagues expanded to 30 teams, an average season for a team has been 10.3 starting pitchers.

Teams simply can’t count on five guys all year long. Can’t.

Some further data.

6 – There are 30 teams. Only 28 men threw 200-innings in 2015. Duh, but that’s less than one per club.

7 – There were 56 men who threw 180-innings in ‘15. There is a doubling from the 200-inning club, but still less than two men per club.

8 – There were 78 men who threw at least 162 innings. That’s still way less than three men per club.

9 – There were 89 men who threw 150-innings last season. That’s less than three guys per team.

Let’s spin things to the fantasy game. Remember the milestone markers.

Innings

Qualifiers

200

28

180

56

162

78

150

89

 

If you’re in a 10-team mixed league

Innings

SPs per Team

200

2.8

180

5.6

162

7.8

150

8.9

 

Every club in a 10-team league could have about three starting pitchers with 200 innings.

If you’re in a 12-team mixed league

Innings

SPs per Team

200

2.3

180

4.7

162

6.5

150

7.4

 

I’d be comfortable if I could roster five men who threw 180 solid innings for me in this format.

If you’re in a 15-team mixed league

Innings

SPs per Team

200

1.9

180

3.7

162

5.2

150

5.9


Just under two 200-inning men per club means that you’re going to have to do some digging to find your innings. 

 

Don’t forget to pick up your copy of the 2016 MLB Draft Guide which includes more than 600 Players ranked, auction values, rookie reports, hitting and pitching targets as well 30 proven strategies from the experts to help you win in the coming season. 

CONCLUSION

The fact is, no matter what size league you are in that you’re not going to be able to roll out five guys for 30+ starts this year. It just doesn’t happen in this day and age. You’re going to have to dig deeper into the player pool than the elite level arms allow you to.

At this point it’s not as much about the draft as it is how you handle the injuries when they happen? Can you effectively work the trade market? Are you capable of identifying the breakout options on the bump that are on the waiver-wire? Have you rostered a solid overall staff and not just a top heavy unit with a couple of elite arms and then a bunch of league average fluff? Those are the questions you should be asking yourself since it is a certainty that one, two, maybe more of the starting pitchers that you select on draft day will end up on the disabled list, perhaps for a significant period of time, in 2016.