With designated hitters rounding out our look at the league's top position players, the B/R MLB 300 now moves to the mound for our list of starting pitchers.
There are quite a few talented starting pitchers out there these days, so our countdown will contain 80 of our 300 overall players. Like position players, we rated them using a scoring system that adds up to 100 possible points.
First, there are 30 points for control. The basic idea is to look at how well pitchers throw strikes and by extension avoid walks. But we'll also dive into how well pitchers hit their spots and whether there's any rhyme or reason to their location patterns.
Next, there are 25 points for whiffability. This is where we'll look at how well pitchers miss bats and rack up strikeouts, and that's pretty much all there is to it.
After that, there are 25 points for hittability. This is where we'll look at how well pitchers manipulate contact. Ground balls and pop-ups are preferred, and we'll look at how well (or not) they keep the ball in the yard and how well they stifle hard contact.
Lastly, there are 20 points for what we call the "workhorse" factor. This is where we'll get into how well pitchers eat innings, which is a matter of how many pitches they tend to throw and whether they have any durability question marks.
A score in the middle is meant to denote average, not failing. For example, having 15 out of 30 control points means the player has merely average control, whereas 10 out of 30 is clearly below-average and 20 out of 30 is above-average. It's also important to note that if two or more players ended up with the same final score, the edge went to our preference.
Before we begin, here's an important reminder that while we used what's happened in 2015 as a foundation for the scores, this list projects performances for the 2016 season. Players were evaluated based on the staying power of each of their skills with progression, decline and past luck in mind—which created different rankings than simply judging where each player stands today would have.
You may now start the show.
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