Chicago Cubs Rumors: Former Cubs hurler Jeff Samardzija clears waivers

Lots of strikeouts, but shaky results

Jeff Samardzija has always been good at two things: racking up strikeouts and innings. In each of the last four campaigns, he eclipsed the 200-inning mark. And, barring a late injury, he’ll surpass that plateau again in 2017.

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Entering Monday, the former fifth-rounder is averaging 9.1 strikeouts per nine. That mark, if he maintains it for the last month, represents his best single-season mark since 2013 with the Cubs. He’s walking just 1.4 batters per nine innings pitched as well, the best mark in the league – and the  best of his career.

But, for whatever reason, that has not translated into success in San Francisco.

He has allowed more than one hit per inning in 2017, which likely plays into his unsightly 4.67 earned run average across 26 starts. But, if you look more closely, his FIP (fielding independent pitching) mark is a much more manageable 3.52.

A quick glance at the numbers doesn’t yield much in terms of answers. Let’s take a deeper look into his performance this season.