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| Zack Greinke/AP Images |
After a successful first year with the Milwaukee Brewers, Zack Greinke looks to improve his performance and prepare for what is sure to be a bank-breaking offseason in November.
By Andrew Muckell
For most starting pitchers in the major leagues, a 3.83 ERA over 28 games is more than respectable. For some, like P Zack Greinke of the Milwaukee Brewers, it is a disappointment.
Greinke, a AL Cy Young Award winner back in 2009, finally left the desperate Kansas City Royals after the 2010 season, marking the end of a seven year stint with the disappointing franchise. His impressive performances over the years showed that he deserved to play on a winning team, so he signed a two-year contract with the Brew Crew. For the first time in half a decade, Greinke did not solely bask in his team’s spotlight, residing in a strong pitching rotation containing P Yovani Gallardo and P Shaun Marcum.
Sporting that 3.83 ERA, 16 wins, a strikeout total of 201, and a WHIP of 1.20, Greinke surely was no push over in the regular season. In the playoffs his statistics faltered considerably, but, in his support, it was his first time on the big stage.
In fact, the season marked a number of other “firsts” for the 28-year-old right-hander. It was his first year without the Royals, first time in the playoffs, first time pitching (and hitting) for a National League club, and first time not being his team’s most promising starter. All-things-considered, Greinke was very successful.
Competitive players like Zack do not like to admit this, though. Greinke wants more. He has talent, he has a Cy Young, he has some playoff experience, he has the Brewers, but he still wants more.
This season the Brewers and fans should expect to see a great change in #13’s performance. His unfaltering confidence as a pitcher and as his own agent is going to translate into more wins for the Crew and hopefully lift Milwaukee’s spirits in the wake of the Prince Fielder trade and Ryan Braun allegations. One would think that with the opportunity of free agency waiting beyond the 2012 season, Greinke is going to impress many potential suitors, including the Brewers. If all goes as planned, 2012 will look a lot like 2009.
