Chicago Cubs: Making predictions for the 2019 starting rotation

(Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
(Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
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Chicago Cubs
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Chicago Cubs: Quintana find that consistency he had with the White Sox?

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Let’s use “weird” one more time, shall we? Jose Quintana battled something he really never has before, inconsistency.

He was known for being one of the most consistent pitchers in baseball when he pitched on the South Side. Last season he was honestly more good than bad, but the bad was SO bad it ballooned his numbers a bit. Take away two or three really bad starts and the numbers look a lot better.

The command was not like it typically was for him. His BB/9 overall was 3.5; 4.2 in the first half. In the second half, it dropped down to 2.7 with his xFIP dropping from 4.40 to 3.90. Like Lester, he finished 2018 strong and hopes to build on that.

It is hard for me to say if he will regain his White Sox form, but he is definitely better than his overall 2018 numbers. The way he finished last year was promising as the command got better and he stopped nibbling so much. He can put up some very solid numbers even if he is not what he once was, but returning to his prime form is not 100 percent out of the question.

Prediction: 190 IP / 3.70 ERA / 1.25 WHIP / 3.90 FIP / 55 BB / 170 K 

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