Cleveland Indians: Could Josh Tomlin Start The ASG?
By Ryan Rosko
This season has been very impressive for Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Josh Tomlin. Could it eventually lead to him leading the American League in the middle of July?
There is still some time until the 2016 MLB All-Star game is here, which will take place in San Diego, California on July 12th. However, the voting for rosters is now heating up and teams are taking notice of players, including pitchers who are showing that they deserve to be an all-star.
One of those players is Josh Tomlin. Yesterday, Tomlin led the Cleveland Indians to another win which improved his record to 7-0 on the season. He is the first Tribe pitcher to have earned such a record since 1995 when Dennis Martinez went 9-0.
Given his success which has helped the Cleveland Indians greatly, could we see Tomlin be the American League’s starting pitcher during the all-star game? First of all, Tomlin needs to be selected but unless he loses his remaining starts prior to the break, that should be no issue.
Right now, Tomlin is the only Cleveland Indians pitcher worthy of playing in the 2016 MLB All-Star game. Not only is Tomlin undefeated, but he is also tied for second in wins in the A.L.. In addition, Tomlin has the second best WHIP in the A.L. (0.98) and the lowest A.L. BB/9 average at 1.06.
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Tomlin has the resume to not only be an all-star but possibly the A.L. starter too. Still, the latter is far from a certainty given the amount of competition he will be up against.
Chicago White Sox ace Chris Sale is 9-1 with a 2.26 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP. Then there is the Boston Red Sox duo of Rick Porcello and David Price.
Those two pitchers are the leaders of a division-leading ball club. Porcello is 7-2 with a 3.47 ERA and has a 1.09 WHIP. Price meanwhile has a record of 7-1, but with an ERA of 5.34! However, he does own a 11.97 K/9 ratio.
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The three pitchers listed above are the main competition for Tomlin. There are others, but given where their teams are in the standings, they will not factor in the decision.
In regards to this season’s all-star game, plenty is to be determined. There is a lot of baseball still to be played prior to the American League coaching staff decides which pitchers gets to be on the roster.
If Tomlin can remain on the roll he is on for the Cleveland Indians, then the Tribe remains a contender. Tomlin then remains a very viable candidate to start the ASG.
If the decision had to be made today, as much as I would like to see Tomlin get the nod, I cannot say he definitely gets that honor. That is mainly because it is unknown who would be on the coaching staff.
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Should the Cleveland Indians get into first place before the all-star break (even if they do not remain atop the A.L. Central) and Tomlin gets at least nine wins, then it should not matter who is coaching the American League. Tomlin deserves the opportunity, but it is up to him to maintain the progress to make the possibility become a reality.