Jake Westbrook has been a hot commodity on the wire over the past week but the time to sell is now.
Analysis: Westbrook is sporting a 1.62 ERA this year which is good for seventh best in baseball. This is where the positives end.
Now it’s time to list off the negatives rapid fire style. Westbrook’s WHIP is 1.46, which is tied with Roy Halladay for 85th in baseball. Westbrook only has 19 strikeouts in 39.0 innings pitched, that doesn’t cut it in the fantasy baseball world. His walk rate is the highest since his rookie year in 2000 when he only logged 6.2 innings of work. His 89.6% strand rate is 20% above his career average. His HR/FB rate is 0.0% this year, his career average is 11.5%. Westbrook has not recorded a sub 3.90 ERA season since 2008 when he only pitched in 34.2 innings.
Do you see where I’m going with this… it is time to sell now. He’s still available in a few leagues but take advantage of the hype and his low ERA, sell now and sell high. As soon as he gets beat up in a start his value will go back in the trash can… it’s time to capitalize on nearsighted owners.