ESPN.com picks Patrick Corbin as a breakout pitcher for 2016
Jan 5, 2016, 11:00 AM
Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Patrick Corbin throws to the San Francisco Giants during the first inning of a baseball game on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2015, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Patrick Corbin’s career with the Arizona Diamondbacks has been a roller coaster of ups and downs.
Corbin, who came to the organization in the 2010 Dan Haren trade with the Los Angeles Angels, is the pitcher D-backs fans have been buzzing about since his 2013 season. His memorable 11-1 start to the season with a 2.35 ERA earned him a spot on the National League All-Star team.
That appearance in the All-Star Game was nearly 30 months ago and it’s been a dramatically different time pitching in the majors for Corbin since. After the All-Star break in 2013, Corbin was 3-7 with a 5.19 ERA. Things got much worse in 2014, when Corbin missed the entire 2014 season after Tommy John surgery.
He returned in July of 2015 and made 16 starts, finishing with a 3.60 ERA and a 6-5 record.
Now in 2016, perhaps this is the best spot of Corbin’s career, just in time for him to get back to that form before the All-Star Break in 2013 and two great pitchers with him in the rotation.
ESPN.com’s Christina Kahrl’s picked Corbin as one of the 10 breakout pitchers for the 2016 season and noted the significance of the way his return was handled last season.
You’ve already heard all about the Snakes’ new headline duo atop the rotation after they signed Zack Greinke and traded for Shelby Miller, but what didn’t get as much attention is that they’re rounding out what should be an excellent front three because Corbin’s comeback from Tommy John surgery appears complete. Handled carefully in a half-season, he averaged little more than five innings per start while notching 4.6 strikeouts for every walk. Skip referring to him as the third man because working on a longer rein now that he has healed up, he’s a good bet to be the second-best starter behind Greinke, and a big part of the reason why Arizona will be back in the postseason picture.
As it turns out, former D-backs pitcher Tyler Skaggs is also on the list. Skaggs was a key piece of the same Haren deal that brought Corbin to the D-backs. The D-backs sent Skaggs back to the Angels after in the 2013 Mark Trumbo trade. Like Corbin, he had Tommy John surgery in 2014.
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