I believe Ted Lilly has become the Cubs greatest asset.
Over the past two seasons as a Cub, the lefty has gone 32-17 and moved into contention as the Cubs "go to guy" on the mound. In Lilly's last two starts, he has not given up an earned run in 13 2/3 innings, and has 10 strikeouts. Against the Reds in his last start, he did not walk a batter over seven innings, giving up five hits. The Reds' only score off him was set up by a throwing error he made fielding a bunt.
His greatest quality may be the fact that he is durable and stays off of the Disabled List. As a Cub, Lilly has surpassed the 200 inning mark in both seasons, which is considered the highest mark for a starting pitcher. In 2007 and 2008, he started 34 games in each season, which was 2nd and 1st in the National League, respectively.
He may not be as electrifying as the likes of Rich Harden or Carlos Zambrano, but the guy is a fierce competitor who knows how to get the job done. Without Lilly, the Cubs starting rotation would be missing a key piece to their success.
I like Ted Lilly a lot, too. I agree that reliability is one of the great things about him. He has stayed healthy for the Cubs and he rarely has several bad starts in a row. It's amazing how much better he's become since the Cubs signed him. His contract looked pretty questionable at first.
ReplyDeleteNow, Jim Hendry looks very smart for making the deal. While Rich Harden easily has the best stuff of anyone on the staff, Lilly seems to be the safest, most dependable component of the starting rotation. I even have him on my fantasy team. So, hopefully Ted continues his success tonight in Arizona.