Francisco Liriano was terrible for the Twins and White Sox last season and then made headlines for all the wrong reasons this winter when his two-year deal with the Pirates had to be reworked due to an at-home injury.
That delayed Liriano’s season debut until mid-May, but he’s been one of the best pitchers in baseball since then and finished the first half on a high note last night by shutting out the A’s for seven innings. Liriano heads into the All-Star break at 9-3 with a 2.00 ERA in 12 starts, posting an 80/28 K/BB ratio and .221 opponents’ batting average in 77 innings.
He’s not quite the overpowering force of nature he was for Minnesota before undergoing Tommy John elbow surgery, but Liriano is close enough to slice through the National League while looking like one of the best free agent signings of the offseason.
