Unfortunately, ERA doesn’t mean everything around Major League Baseball, although there’s an argument to be made that it’s still one of the more important stats for a pitcher.
For some, however, especially those who love ERA, that unfortunately isn’t the case any longer. There are many underlying metrics suggesting pitchers are much better than their ERA suggests.
For New York Yankees closer Devin Williams, who posted an ERA above 4.00, that was likely part of the factor in some not wanting him back. However, that obviously wasn’t a problem for the New York Mets, who decided to give Williams a deal for over $50 million.
According to The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner, while only 11 players had a worse ERA than Williams a year ago out of the bullpen, the days of a pitcher’s ERA meaning everything are gone. He also factored in Dylan Cease, who had an ERA above 4.50, and Ryan Helsley, who struggled mightily with the New York Mets.
“Only 11 qualified relievers had a worse ERA than Williams. But fans will need to rewire their brains when it comes to pitchers’ contracts. Gone are the days when a pitcher’s ERA is the most important indicator of their worth. The Toronto Blue Jays signed Dylan Cease to a $210 million contract after a 4.55 ERA last season with the San Diego Padres. The Baltimore Orioles signed Ryan Helsley to a $28 million contract after an epically disastrous stint, and a 7.20 ERA, with the Mets,” he wrote.
As Kirschner touched on, there are a lot of obvious situations around Major League Baseball over the past few years suggesting that ERA really doesn’t mean a lot to these organizations.
They look at what Williams' stuff is on the mound, and it still suggests that he’s one of the better closers in baseball.
It’ll be interesting to see if that changes at all in the near future, but with all the advanced metrics out there, it wouldn’t make sense if it did.
Teams now have the capability of really seeing everything that players do on the mound, and for Williams, his stuff was still above average.