Now that the MLB Postseason is in full swing, we take a look back at who disappointed the most for each club.
The 2016 season has come to a close, leaving some fans looking on to October, while others are still wondering what could have been.This season was full of many surprises, whether it was Tim Tebow entering the game, the tragic death of star pitcher Jose Fernandez, or the emergence of Daniel Murphy, among other events.
Whether you were the Chicago Cubs or the Atlanta Braves, not everything went as the team had planned.
Looking back at the year we begin to look at all the guys who were supposed to be studs, but did not quite live up to the hype.
Whether it was Matt Harvey, or Shelby Miller, there was someone on your favorite team who did not contribute what they should have.
If you do not think anyone one of the guys from your favorite team deserves to be on this list, please lay off Josh Gordon’s favorite substance.
AL EAST
Boston Red Sox- Pablo Sandoval
“Panda”was all set to redeem himself for a poor 2015, in the second year of his gigantic, 5 year, $95 million contract. Sandoval’s quest for redemption didn’t go quite as planned, as he went down with a shoulder injury after 3 games and never returned.
Baltimore Orioles- Yovanni Gallardo
Gallardo was supposed to hold together a shaky Baltimore staff, After going 13-11 with a 3.42 ERA in 33 starts last year, Gallardo completely fell off with a 5.42 ERA in only 23 starts. FanGraph’s Steamer projected Gallardo to have a 1.5 WAR. He finishes the year with a WAR of .6.
Toronto Blue Jays- Marcus Stroman
The Long Island Native looked like he was budding into the team’s ace at the end of last season. While Stroman was not awful, he didn’t live up to the hype. He finished the season with a 4.37 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, and a .264 average against.
New York Yankees- Alex Rodriguez
Alex Rodriguez‘s season could not have gone any worse. At the beginning of the year, Rodriguez talked about how he would like to finish out his contract before retiring, but AROD did not even wind up making it out of August. Rodriguez went from playing in 151 games with 33 home runs and a .842 OPS to playing in 64 games with nine home runs and a .598 OPS.
Tampa Bay Rays- Corey Dickerson
Dickerson still managed to hit 24 home runs, but his other stats took a mighty dip. His averaged dropped from his last full season in 2014 from .312 to .245 and his OPS plummeted from .931 to .761. If you ever want to show someone how Coors inflation works, show them Dickerson’s stat line.
AL Central
Chicago White Sox- David Robertson
Robertson is just one of many Sox players who contributed to an underwhelming year. For the second straight season after signing his huge four-year, 46 million dollar deal, Robertson proceeded to blow 7 saves.
Cleveland Indians- Yan Gomes
A once-promising catcher, Gomes has turned into a huge bust in Cleveland. The 29-year-old catcher hit a pathetic .167 in just 74 games. The Indians basically told everyone they gave up on Gomes at the deadline, when they were set to acquire Jonathan Lucroy from the Brewers. When Lucroy vetoed the deal, the Indians were stuck with futility behind the plate for the rest of the year.
Detroit Tigers- Jordan Zimmermann
Zimmermann came into Detriot on a huge five-year deal, worth 110 million. If the Tigers knew they’d be getting 4.87 ERA in only 105 innings, maybe they wouldn’t have chosen Zimmermann in a class heavy in starting pitchers. To make it worse, the Tigers can’t even say they made the postseason, losing a series to the last-place Braves to cap off an underwhelming year.
Kansas City Royals- Edinson Volquez
After a strong pair of starts versus the Mets in the World Series, Volquez looked like he was reinventing himself in the Royals rotation. His success did not carry over into the 2016 campaign, where he pitched to a 5.37 ERA, with a 1.55 WHIP. Volquez’s decline was made worse by the loss of Johnny Cueto and defiantly was a big key in the defending champs missing out on October.
Minnesota Twins- The Entire Team
The Twins finished last season with a respectable 83 wins, just missing the postseason. The promising young team completely collapsed this season, losing 103 games — a number the club thought could be their win total heading into the season.
AL West
Houston Astros- Dallas Keuchel
Nobody was expecting this kind of year from the reigning AL Cy-Young. Keuchel was limited to 168 innings and had a high 4.55 ERA and .259 BAA. Keuchel’s decline could be attributed to his huge workload last season, 232 regular season innings, plus 14 over 3 games in October.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim- Jered Weaver
Any Angels’ fans hoping their team’s former ace would return to form was mightily disappointed. The 33-year-old had a 5.06 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP, in just 178 innings. The end appears near for the 3 -time All-Star.
Oakland Athletics- Sonny Gray
Sonny Gray was supposed to lead Oakland back to the promise land, or at least be a big trade chip for the forever rebuilding Billy Beane. Gray had such a bad season he couldn’t even deliver that. Sonny had a 5.69 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP in 117 innings. Beane could look to move him again this offseason when teams will be desperate for a potential ace in the thin market.
Seatle Mariners- Ketel Marte
The young shortstop showed promise in his cup of tea with the big league club last year, with a .283 AVG and .351 OBP. Marte disappointed many this season with his showing, a .287 OBP and a .610 OPS. Besides a poor bat, he made 21 errors at shortstop, giving him a .956 fielding percentage.
Texas Rangers- Yu Darvish
When healthy, Darvish is one of the most dominant pitchers in the game. While on the field, Darvish was great with a 3.41 ERA and .212 BAA. Staying on the field was the big problem. Darvish only threw 100.1 innings over 17 starts during the 2016 campaign. The Rangers don’t have much to complain about, with their 95 wins leading the American League, but they definitely wish they could have seen more of Darvish this year.
NL East
Atlanta Braves- Aaron Blair
Braves fans and management alike were not expecting much out of 2016. The one thing everyone wanted to see was growth from top prospects, like Blair. Blair was supposed to develop into the Braves’ own Matt Harvey or Jacob deGrom, after being a focal point in the Shelby Miller trade. Blair disappointed, with a 7.59 ERA in just 15 starts in the majors. He’s still young, but things did not look good for the top prospect in 2016.
Miami Marlins- Wei-Yin Chen
Chen was signed to be the Marlins #2 behind the late Jose Fernandez. Chen was on the disabled list for a lengthy stint (7/21-9/19) but wasn’t very effective even when he was on the field. Chen had a 4.96 ERA in 123.1 innings. While his numbers were not completely awful, it’s not what the Marlins signed up for when they gave the left a 5 year, 80 million dollar contract.
New York Mets- Michael Conforto
Conforto was supposed to be the future of the Mets offense. When he hit 2 home runs in game 4 of the World Series, people were sold that could be true. And when he tore up the show in April, he started to garner comparisons to Bryce Harper and Mike Trout. The hype didn’t last, and Conforto ultimately was sent down to Vegas twice and replaced by Reds’ slugger, Jay Bruce. He finished the year with an underwhelming .220 BA and only 304 at-bats. There is a good chance Conforto won’t be a part of the Mets roster in October, where he thrived as a rookie.
Philadelphia Phillies- Vince Velasquez
Velasquez had an interesting season, to say the least. He dominated in May and June, with sub 2.00 earned run average, but an ERA over 5 in May and August.Velasquez was shut down on September 3rd, as the Phillies and his agent felt it was best to limit his workload, especially considering the Phillies had no shot at October.Velasquez most concerning stat was he only averaged 5.5 innings per start. If the Phillies want their young pitcher, a focal point of the Ken Giles trade, to take the next step, he must last longer into games.
Washington Nationals- Michael A. Taylor
The Nats had high hopes for Taylor, yet he hasn’t been able to fulfill them at the Major League level. In 231 major league games over the past 3 seasons, he has managed a minute .644 OPS. Taylor’s struggles were a big reason the Nats acquired Ben Revere from the Blue Jays this winter. Revere and Trea Turner took a majority of Taylor’s playing time in center this season, with the Nats growing impatient with his lack of development.
NL Central
Chicago Cubs- Jason Heyward
After signing a gigantic 8 year, 184 million dollar contract with the Cubs, Heyward proceeded to have the worst season of his career. He struggled in every aspect of his offense game, with a career-low nine home runs, .631 OPS, and 11 stolen bases. Heyward may have been a disappointment, but the Cubs wouldn’t go back to change anything that led to their 103 win season, even if it meant saving big money on a bust.
Cincinnati Reds- Billy Hamilton
When Hamilton gets on base, he can fly. With at least 56 stolen bases over the past 3 seasons, there is no disputing that. The problem for Hamilton has been getting on base. He improved upon his numbers from last year, but still only had a .260 AVG and .321 OBP. Those are respectable numbers for a major league hitter, but you definitely would like to see your lead off hitter of the future getting on at a higher clip.
Milwaukee Brewers- Taylor Jungmann
The 26-year-old showed great promise for the rebuilding Brewers last year, pitching to a 3.77 ERA with 107 strikeouts in 119.1 innings over 21 starts. Jungmann could not replicate his success and wound up spending most of the year in the minors. In only 8 games in the majors, Jungmann had a 7.76 ERA with a 1.76 WHIP. He couldn’t find success in AAA Colorado Springs either, with a 9.87 ERA in 8 starts before being sent to AA.
Pittsburgh Pirates- Jon Niese
The Pirates thought they were getting a quality starter when they dealt fan favorite Neil Walker for Niese. Niese was removed from the rotation and ultimately traded back to the Mets, for struggling reliever Antonio Bastardo. Niese fared even worse on the Mets, with an 11.45 ERA in 6 games before being shut down with a knee injury.
St. Louis Cardinals- Adam Wainwright
The Cardinals were excited to get their ace back after he only threw 28 innings for them last season. Wainwright had an up and down year with an ERA over 4.50 in April (7.16), May (4.62), August (6.10), and September (5.46). Wainwright’s numbers were saved from being an eyesore by a dominant July where he had a 1.77 ERA in 5 starts. He’s still a quality Major League Arm, but no longer the perennial Cy Young candidate he was just 2 years ago.
NL West
Arizona Diamondbacks- Shelby Miller
There were so many disappointments for Free Agency’s “winner”. Miller’s struggles may have been the worst, not just based on his unsightly numbers (6.12 ERA, .310 BAA, 1.67 WHIP), but what they had to give up for him. I’m sure that Chip Hale would have loved to have Ender Inciarte when he lost AJ Pollock in spring training. They won’t feel the full pain of this deal until next year when they see Dansby Swanson continue to blossom into a star.
Colorado Rockies- Jake McGee
The Rockies acquired McGee to solidify the ever shaky Colorado bullpen. McGee could not adjust to Coors awful pitching conditions, with a 6.38 ERA, .306 BAA, and 1.58 WHIP. Away from home, McGee was better with a 2.91 ERA, but still had an unsightly .295 BAA and a 1.57 WHIP.
Los Angeles Dodgers- Yasiel Puig
Puig continues to put up subpar numbers after busting on to the scene in 2013. Puig batted .263 with 11 home runs in 334 at-bats. Numbers that are not terrible, but disappointing for a once budding superstar. The Dodgers grew so frustrated with Puig that he was sent to AAA Oklahoma City on Aug. 2nd, and was not recalled until September.
San Diego Padres- Alexei Ramirez
The Padres thought they were finally going to fill their hole at shortstop when they signed veteran Alexei Ramirez. Ramirez was a complete disappointment for San Diego, with a .605 OPS in 128 games. San Diego decided they would rather give young kids a shot at the spot, and released the declining veteran on September 4.
San Francisco Giants- Denard Span
The Giants signed Span to catalyze the top of their lineup. Span had an extremely underwhelming season with a .266 AVG and .712 OPS in 572 at-bats. With runners in scoring position, Span batted .248 with a .673 OPS. The only thing that made up for his lack of offense was that he only made 1 error in the outfield, and played 143 games, avoiding the DL coming off major hip surgery.