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Atlanta Braves: The Pros and Cons of Cole Hamels Signing

By Seth Carter

ST. LOUIS, MO - APRIL 27: (EDITORS NOTE: Multiple exposures were combined in camera to produce this image.) Starter Cole Hamels #35 of the Philadelphia Phillies pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals in the seventh inning at Busch Stadium on April 27, 2015 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
ST. LOUIS, MO - APRIL 27: (EDITORS NOTE: Multiple exposures were combined in camera to produce this image.) Starter Cole Hamels #35 of the Philadelphia Phillies pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals in the seventh inning at Busch Stadium on April 27, 2015 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /
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Hamels is a good fit for the Braves because he also appears to hate Yadier Molina. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
Hamels is a good fit for the Braves because he also appears to hate Yadier Molina. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /

The Cons

Hamels is entering his 15th Major League season and will be 36-years-old during the 2020 season. Fans who weren’t happy with Dallas Keuchel‘s performance last season are probably looking at this signing like my dog looks at a tofu turkey.

Keuchel had a better ERA, a better WHIP, a better BB/9, more quality starts, and he cost significantly less money than we paid Cole Hamels.

Hamels’ $18 million is coming on the heels of a down season for the veteran lefty.

Cole Hamels 2019 Stats

ERA: 3.81
WHIP: 1.39
BB/9: 3.6
Innings per Start: 5.2
Quality Starts Percentage: .44
Innings Pitched: 141.2
Strikeouts: 143
Walks: 56

Dallas Keuchel 2019 Stats

ERA: 3.75
WHIP: 1.37
BB/9: 3.1
Innings per Start: 5.9
Quality Starts Percentage: .63
Innings Pitched: 112.2
Strikeouts: 91
Walks: 39

You can see that Hamels’ numbers were inferior in each category. So if you didn’t like Keuchel last season, you probably aren’t very happy about the Hamels signing.

Maybe you were happy and now that you’ve read those numbers, you are now unhappy. Either way, $18 million is a huge chunk of our payroll to go to a guy who set career worsts in walks per nine and WHIP last season.

Many people believe the large investment in a 36-year-old means the Braves will be out of contention to sign Josh Donaldson. The $18 million investment brings the Braves’ Opening Day payroll close to where it ended last year. For many, this means the end of the spending this off-season for the Braves.

Related Story. After Hamels is Josh Donaldson still an option?. light

Did they just blow the budget on a washed-up Hamels? This signing would have been a lot easier to handle at half the price. I know we needed a left-handed starter but is Hamels a better deal than Keuchel? What about Alex Wood and his career 3.40 ERA. He’s projected to sign for $8 million.

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