Baltimore Orioles: Mike Leake – Lots to Like
Aug 28, 2015; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants starting pitcher starting pitcher Mike Leake (13) throws to the St. Louis Cardinals in the fifth inning of their MLB baseball game at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Lance Iversen-USA TODAY Sports
The Baltimore Orioles could certainly find a lot to like in signing free agent Mike Leake to help plug the leaks in the O’s rotation.
Our column here on The Baltimore Wire yesterday featured a suggested 2016 lineup that included affordable free agents Denard Span and Justin Morneau. Working on the premise that Chris Davis is not re-signed, the dollars saved could procure those players along with a pitching upgrade such as Mike Leake. (This is also working on the premise that Darren O’Day is not re-signed, even as there are rumors at the moment this article is posting that the Orioles have made a good offer that is in the running for him.)
Drafted by the Reds as the #8 overall pick in 2009, Leake has been in the majors since 2010. Having just turned age 28 three weeks ago, he could also be signed without forfeiting a draft pick. This is because Leake was traded to the Giants this past season.
In six years, Leake has a career record of 64-52 with a 3.88 ERA. His career WHIP is 1.271 and has been well lower than that the past two years. He does not strike out a high percentage of batters (6.1 per 9 innings pitched), but neither does he walk many (2.3 per 9). This gives him a good strikeout-to-walks ratio of 2.67.
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Comparing some of his numbers to the current four presumptive parts of the rotation for 2016 (Chris Tillman, Ubaldo Jimenez, Miguel Gonzalez, Kevin Gausman), it looks like the following graph. The final category that I call “IP-S” is something I worked up to calculate the “innings pitched per start” over his career. The Orioles need some innings eaten …
| Name | GS | ERA | WHIP | SO/BB | IP-S |
| Leake | 192 | 3.82 | 1.259 | 2.67 | 6.27 |
| Tillman | 149 | 4.20 | 1.315 | 2.09 | 5.73 |
| Jimenez | 265 | 4.01 | 1.359 | 2.03 | 6.19 |
| Gonzalez | 95 | 3.85 | 1.284 | 2.20 | 5.95 |
| Gausman | 42 | 4.27 | 1.305 | 2.91 | 5.67 |
Regarding that final category, it is evident that Leake — though not a fellow with an innings-eater reputation — is clearly better than anything the Orioles have at the present moment. His numbers are generally better in every category, though at the cost he would command they should be!
It is probably too much to speak of Leake as an “ace.” He is more of a dependable mid-rotation piece who can be counted upon for generally very strong starts that keep his team in the ballgame over most outings.
Leake is a definitive ground ball pitcher at over 50% — a skill that plays well in Camden Yards and with the Orioles plus defense. That’s not exactly Zach Britton numbers, but it is extraordinarily good for a starter.
At 5’10” and 190, Leake is not the prototypical big starter, but he is effective. And he is relatively affordable (if there is such a thing with pitchers these days).
Next: A Denard Span / Justin Morneau O's lineup
He was projected on the MLBTradeRumors.com site to garner about $16 million a year over four to five years. That same site had a featured profile article on Leake with more details than we have included today.