Why won’t Cardinals supporters declare Sonny Gray to be an ace?
For some time now, Sonny Gray has been pitching like an ace; why are some Cardinals fans unwilling to accept that?
Many St. Louis Cardinals supporters experienced emotional turmoil following the 2023 season. It’s strange to me that so many people in Cardinals Nation still refuse to accept that Sonny Gray is an ace—or, as some could say, a front-line starter, number one starter, or whatever—instead of risking another setback at the hands of this squad.
Perhaps the way that people define a “ace” contributes to the issue. Sonny Gray is without a doubt a number one starter or front-line starter—by which I mean someone who can throw Game 1 of a playoff series and match up with the best players on the opposing team—but it’s also something I think he can do fairly easily.
Perhaps the way that people define a “ace” contributes to the issue. I think it’s pretty easy to see why Sonny Gray should be considered among the best in all of baseball, but there is also no doubt that he is a number one starter or front-line starter—someone who can pitch Game 1 of a playoff series and match up with the best players on the other club.
Allow me to present you with several statistics spanning several historical periods…
Twenty24, Sonny Gray…
Sonny Gray has been one of the finest starters in baseball this season, if you want to define players by “what have you done for me lately”.
With three starts under his belt, Gray’s 1.04 ERA is good for fifth place among players with at least three starts and tenth place among pitchers who have started a game this year.
Gray is currently rated fourth in pitcher fWAR despite only having made three starts thus far. The pitchers placed ahead of him have all thrown at least 10–16 more innings than him.
Do you prefer swing-and-miss starters? Gray is eighth among all starting pitchers with a strikeout percentage of 35.9%.
Although the sample size is tiny, I am aware that some individuals place the most importance on the current statistics.
Let’s now examine his 2023 statistics, which further demonstrate Gray’s domination.