Jorge De La Rosa: 2014 Player Grade

Jorge De La Rosa was one of the few consistent performers for the Colorado Rockies‘ pitching staff in 2014.

When we talk about player grades, we have to isolate a player’s performance from what the rest of the team did. That’s how grades work, unless you’re grading on a curve. And with the disaster that was Rockies pitching in 2014, it’s impossible not to give Jorge De La Rosa some extra credit.

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He was a workhorse, pitching 184 innings. (The second-most innings pitched was Franklin Morales‘s 142, which is all you need to know about how this season went down.) He induced groundballs over 50% of the time, and only about 12% of his flyballs went for home runs (his HR/9 rate is 1.03, not great, but it’s among the best on the team). He finished with a slightly higher FIP than ERA, meaning his defense served him well, but both numbers are solidly average. Most importantly, DLR was our best pitcher from a WAR perspective, collecting 2.1 over the course of 2014.

Jhoulys Chacin is supposed to be this team’s ace, and most people are in agreement that DLR is not worthy of that mantle. He’s not, from an objective standpoint. Chacin is, or will be, a better pitcher. But after recovering from Tommy John surgery in 2011, DLR has come back strong, healthy, and consistent. Chacin, on the other hand, has battled a handful of injuries that ultimately cost him his 2014 season. DLR was there when the Rockies needed him.

National writers like Dave Cameron persist in seeing DLR as nothing more than an “expensive role player,” and I understand where they’re coming from in that. But the value that DLR brings to this team in terms of innings pitched, ability to keep the team in the game, and wins at Coors Field is incalculable. For that reason, and the fact that he stepped into a role he’s not exactly talented enough for, I give him a B.

Jorge De La Rosa: 2014 Player Grade

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