This worksheet provides an in-depth view of pitcher efficiency and run prevention by plotting WHIP, which stands for walks plus hits per inning pitched, on the x-axis against ERA, or earned run average, on the y-axis for the 2024 St. Louis Cardinals pitching staff. Each data point represents an individual pitcher, with the size of the circle corresponding to the number of innings they have pitched. The color gradient represents ERA+, a normalized statistic where a value of 100 is considered league average. Pitchers with ERA+ above 100 are performing better than average after accounting for league and park factors, while those below 100 are underperforming.
The chart is divided into four interpretive quadrants that offer insight into how each pitcher balances base runner control and run prevention. The top right quadrant includes pitchers who struggle with both efficiency and run prevention, typically marked by higher WHIP and higher ERA. The bottom right quadrant reflects pitchers who allow more base runners but manage to prevent those runners from scoring, suggesting they are effective at working out of high-pressure situations. The top left quadrant includes pitchers who limit base runners but still allow more runs than expected, which could indicate poor timing, bad luck, or susceptibility to home runs. The bottom left quadrant is the ideal zone, representing pitchers who both limit traffic on the bases and suppress run scoring effectively.
Diagonal reference lines help visualize expected ERA based on WHIP and make it easier to identify overperformance or underperformance. Pitchers positioned below the diagonal line are exceeding expectations relative to their WHIP, while those above may be giving up more runs than expected based on their base runner rates. Ryan Helsley, for instance, lands well below the diagonal, highlighting his dominance in run prevention. In contrast, a pitcher like Giovanny Gallegos, who appears above the diagonal, struggled to translate efficiency into actual run suppression.
The dashboard includes filters for position, innings pitched, and age, allowing users to refine the view based on role and workload. This flexibility makes the worksheet useful for evaluating pitchers in different bullpen or rotation roles and for highlighting young prospects versus veteran arms. By incorporating both raw and adjusted statistics, this visualization offers a well-rounded analysis of pitcher performance, efficiency, and value.
