Clearly, Webb worthy of top rookie consideration, too

08/03/2003




Go ahead and mail it in. Everyone else has, especially ESPN.
Give the National League Rookie of the Year award to Florida pitcher
Dontrelle Willis. It's simple, right?

Well, it shouldn't be.

Guess which pitcher has put up even more impressive stats? You don't
have to look far to find him.

Down the hill at Bank One Ballpark, Brandon Webb has put up numbers
as solid as anyone in the National League -- including Willis.

Yet nobody was crying when Webb was left off the National League All-
Star team, which is exactly what happened when Willis was initially
snubbed by Cubs manager Dusty Baker. (Let's remember, though, that
Willis was "snubbed" in favor of Atlanta pitcher Russ Ortiz, who at
the time led the National League in victories.)

Of course, Webb doesn't have the full-time publicity machine revving
in his favor.

Willis has a number of nicknames, thanks to the unsavory ESPN crew,
everything from D-Train to D-Licious. Ugh.

Webb? Well, Bob Brenly has taken to calling him Webby.


But that's not very exciting, is it?

Willis has a high leg kick, an unorthodox delivery and plays the game
with a high level of enthusiasm.

Webb just gets the job done. In 16 starts, Webb has allowed more than
three earned runs just once. And that was against San Francisco at
home, when he allowed four Giants runs in the first inning and shut
them down for the next five.

Here are the two pitchers' pertinent stats, through Wednesday:

* Webb: 7-4, 2.48 ERA; 18 G, 17 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 116 IP, 92 H, 32 ER,
31 BB, 102 Ks.

* Willis: 10-2, 2.50 ERA; 16 G, 16 GS, 2 CG, 2 SHO, 97.1 IP, 85 H, 27
ER, 32 BB, 93 Ks.

OK. You make the choice? Webb or Willis for ROY?

Hmmm. Not easy, is it?

Now, I ask you, how is this award just being mailed to Willis?

This is not a clear-cut choice.

Willis is a hard-thrower who deceives people with his unorthodox
delivery. Webb is not a strikeout pitcher. He's a sinkerballer who
tries to induce batters into ground balls. Still, Webb has been just
as filthy as Willis at times. On July 24, against San Francisco, Webb
struck out five consecutive Giants -- including Barry Bonds -- in the
seventh and eighth innings.

If the fans had the vote in this matter, then Webb wouldn't have a
shot at the award. It would turn into a popularity contest, and
Willis would win that for sure.

But the fans don't vote for rookie of the year. Select members of the
Baseball Writers Association of America do, and trust me, these
voters take much more than popularity into consideration. I voted for
this award in 1998, and I took the responsibility very seriously.

So who would I vote for? I couldn't tell you right now. Let's allow
August to play out and see who keeps his team in the NL wild-card
race.

But one thing is for certain: Willis should not be the only candidate
for ROY honors.


Readers can reach Chris at 556-2259 or by e-mail at
clang@...