by KingLouie » Sun Jan 01, 2006 10:38 pm
I have had Bert on three of my five teams.
He was 19-13 with a 3.08 ERA on an Oakland team that went to the finals.
The second go-round, he gave up HRs like crazy in Commisky and I dropped him right before the 42 game limit. Can't recall his numbers but they weren't good.
I've got him again in Oakland. Sixty games in he is 8-4 with a 3.10 ERA.
Am I happy with that performance over 2+ seasons? You bet.
I still feel like a relative noob but my own two cents is that it's pretty rare (though not impossible) to see a pitcher--even a really fine, high-priced pitcher--dominate in this league. All of the great hitters available in a 12-team league and the salary cap doesn't make life easy on any starter.
So, to answer your question (at last)--I'd keep him and give him a real fair chance before dropping him.