Detroit Tigers: April Winners and Losers

Loser: Anibal Sanchez

If Jordan Zimmermann had the best month of any Detroit Tigers starting pitcher, Anibal Sanchez may have had the worst month.

Sure, Shane Greene and Mike Pelfrey also had off months, but both turned in encouraging displays at one point or another. Greene looked sharp against the Pirates, while Pelfrey showed a bizarre ability to consistently work out of some major (self-induced) jams with little to no damage.

Sanchez looked solid out of the gate, he went 2-0 with a 3.38 ERA in his first two starts. However, he wasn’t able to reach the sixth inning in either outing, and he had just seven strikeouts compared to six walks.

He was tagged for eight hits, five runs and a pair of walks in his third start, which lasted only five innings. Following that, Sanchez only retired seven batters against Cleveland before being lifted from the game. All told in that start he surrendered nine hits, seven runs and a walk. He only struck out two batters.

In starts three and four, the former Marlin’s ERA ballooned to 12.27.

The starter’s last start of the month came in a win versus Oakland. Sanchez pitched 5.2 innings, allowing only three hits and two runs. That was extremely encouraging, as were his nine strikeouts. However, he gave away seven free passes. That kind of a number isn’t going to fly in the future.

On the season, Anibal Sanchez’ ERA sits at an uninspiring 6.08. His FIP is slightly better at 5.81, but it still leaves much to be desired. The 32-year-old also has the unfortunate distinction of leading the league in walks with sixteen. He’s also been taken deep five times in his last four starts.