Top Eight Rotations You Want To Avoid In The Playoffs

By Matt Eddy

How strong is the link between rotation quality and team success in a 20-team Strat league? In the case of the MMDA: pretty strong.

Prior to the 2015 season, I ranked the top eight MMDA rotations in terms of the quality of each club's top four starters—the quartet most likely to appear in a playoff series. As it turned out, four of the top six teams on that ranking advanced to the league semifinals in 2015. The No. 2 Miami Manatees met the No. 3 Northwest Stars in one bracket, while in the other, the No. 4 Mohawk Valley Lions combated the No. 6 Spokane Hooded Crows.

So let's give it another go. Just like last year, I will rank in this space the eight most fearsome rotations in the MMDA, at least according to the on-base and total-base units for the top four starter cards on each team.

The methodology is slightly changed this year. I used the SOM World starting pitcher rankings to remove my subjectivity and personal bias from the exercise. I also weighted the starter cards on a simple 4-3-2-1 scale to reward clubs with top-heavy rotations. After all, a club's top two starters likely will compile the most playoff innings.

Each club's top four starters—again, according to SOM World—are included here, along with their overall rank among starters. An asterisk (*) denotes that a pitcher may come back on short rest in the playoffs.

1. Spokane Hooded Crows (Pacific)
RHP Zack Greinke (2*), LHP Clayton Kershaw (3*), RHP Jesse Hahn (15), LHP Cole Hamels (16*)

Four of the top 20 starters in the 2016 set can be found in the Crows' rotation, so this is the matchup that opposing teams will want to put off as long as possible in the playoffs. Greinke (1.66 ERA) and Kershaw (301 strikeouts) form the best righty-lefty one-two punch in the game, and both of them can pitch on short rest in the playoffs. Gulp.

2. St. Louis Maulers (Central) 
RHP Jacob deGrom (4), LHP Jaime Garcia (7), LHP Chris Sale (9*), LHP Madison Bumgarner (22*)

Don't bother packing your lefthanded hitters if you travel to St. Louis in October. Sale and Bumgarner are two of baseball's best southpaws, while Garcia (1.05 WHIP) turned in an excellent season. Not pictured: veteran lefty C.J. Wilson and top lefty prospect Steven Matz.

3. Rochester Pilots (Atlantic)
RHP Jake Arrieta (1*), RHP Matt Harvey (8), LHP Jon Lester (19*), RHP Carlos Carrasco (36)

The Pilots return three-quarters of their stout 2015 rotation, only this time they swap Harvey for Matt Garza. That's a trade that pleases Rochester fans.

4. Mohawk Valley Lions (Atlantic)
LHP David Price (13*), LHP Francisco Liriano (20), RHP Garrett Richards (24*), RHP Stephen Strasburg (43)

Yu Darvish's date with Dr. Andrews shook up the Lions' 2016 rotation, necessitating a trade for Liriano. Like the Crows and Maulers, Mohawk Valley features a southpaw-heavy playoff rotation.

5. Lake County Nighthawks (Central)
RHP Sonny Gray (6*), RHP Noah Syndergaard (17), RHP Hisashi Iwakuma (41), LHP Jose Quintana (51*)

The Nighthawks selected Gray (2014) and Syndergaard (2016) as first-round picks, and the duo leads a quality rotation that could make noise in 2016.

6. Death Valley Drivers (Atlantic)
RHP Gerrit Cole (10*), RHP Tyson Ross (18*), RHP Clay Buchholz (37), RHP Lance Lynn (80)

The Drivers will have to make do without ace Alex Cobb in 2016, perhaps by compensating with No. 1 starter-caliber cards from Cole and Ross.

7. Elysian Fields Dutchmen (Pacific)
RHP Chris Young (23), LHP Travis Wood (25), RHP Danny Salazar (38), RHP Carlos Martinez (46)

You know about the Dutchmen lineup that features Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Kris Bryant and Jose Abreu, but the rotation looks like it can hold serve in a playoff series.

8. Fighting Irish (Northeast)
RHP Max Scherzer (12*), RHP Michael Wacha (31), RHP Yovani Gallardo (50), RHP Colin McHugh (71*)

A top-heavy Irish rotation can cover five of seven games in a playoff series—at least when given proper rest.