"allowing one run or fewer in seven of his past eight starts."

this stat gets dumber by the year. why? because innings.

Vargas's IP in those 1 R starts:
4
4.6
5.3
(then a 3 R, 4 IP)
7
9

also "one or fewer" is cute - but always 1, until this shutout.

(also it's six out of seven, not seven out of eight)

so he has not been nearly as bad of late as people think, and he has been utterly stellar in his last two outings. it is what is is, and it isn't what it isn't.

Ryne Stanek is leading the all-important Starts With One Or Fewer Runs Allowed stat this year, with 16. He's averaging about 1.2 innings in those starts. Justin Verlander is second with 9 SWOOFRAs. He's averaging over 7 innings in those starts.

Ryne Stanek has also vaulted up the career no-hitter leaderboard—he’s passed Sandy Koufax and is now in second place, behind only Nolan Ryan.

1. Nolan Ryan, 15 no-hitters
2. Ryne Stanek, 12
3. Sandy Koufax, 7
4. Chris Young, 5


Course Stanek’s stupid manager has pulled him early all 12 times—and all 12 times the bullpen blew it!

SWOOFRAs

This is my new favorite stat.

But it should just be 9 SWOOFRA, not SWOOFRAs, because "Starts" in the acronym is already plural.

Vargas has been serviceable as a 5th starter this year, so far. He doesn't pitch that deep in games but no one does anymore. He has not been as big a problem as we thought he might be.

youneverknow when someone is gonna pitch like an ace

mike leake just threw a 1 run 4 hit CG against the astros and and whatshisname soft tosser guy couoldn't hit 90 shut them out for 8 innings a couple games previously and the astros wouda been shut out if the mariners hadn't started with that useless starter guy who gave up the runs in the 1 innings

some days, guys who are usually hittable are for some unknown reason, unhittable

Ryne Stanek has also vaulted up the career no-hitter leaderboard—he’s passed Sandy Koufax and is now in second place, behind only Nolan Ryan.

1. Nolan Ryan, 15 no-hitters

Ryan actually had as many Ryne Stanek no-hitters as he had Nolan Ryan no-hitters. Seven of his were 2.1 innings or less, to go with his seven CG no-hitters. He also had a five-inning one when he was pulled after 91 pitches in the first start of his age 43 season.

Third place in Stanek No-Hitters (I'm calling it 3 innings or less, even though Stanek's longest is 2 IP) is... you guessed it- Harry Harper, who played 100 years ago. Harper had five of them, with a total of 17 walks in those five games. Stanek and Ryan have/had no decisions and a 0.00 ERA in their SNH. Harper was 0-2 with a 24.30 ERA.

ah, Hackensack Harry! pride of Bergen County, NJ

helluva businessman

Stanek just pitched another no-hitter today. His 13th!

If Runs Batted In can be called RBIs, then SWOOFRAs is OK with me too.