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I wonder if any of Snell's 21 wins came about as a result of Tampa Bay's experiment of having an "opening" pitcher. Snell pitched just 180 innings, but won 21 games. When pitchers don't go deep into games, they lose some opportunities to win by being behind when they leave, being ahead but having the bullpen blow the lead, or even being tied. The MLB rules for giving a starting pitcher a win require that they go at least 5 innings and be the "pitcher of record" when they leave, and the teams hangs onto the lead. If Snell were to come into the game in the second inning, as many TB pitchers did this season, he could become the pitcher of record much easier - maybe his six innings pitched gets him into the 7th or 8th inning rather than just the 6th.
I don't know if this makes sense or not. His ERA was incredible and maybe he benefited from a lot of run support. I didn't follow TB close enough to know how he got his wins.
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They don't think it be like it is, but it do. ~O.Gamble
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