Part 3/9:
Dominating Minor League Hitters
Throughout the minor leagues, Rocker garnered a striking 39.6% strikeout rate over 36 and two-thirds innings, yielding 55 strikeouts compared to just five walks. Such numbers paint a picture of a pitcher primed for a starting role in a major league rotation, provided he can maintain a workload of 140 innings.
This renewed effectiveness begs the question: how does a pitcher with such a recent injury history manage to perform at this level? Rocker's success can be attributed to his pitch execution—especially with his slider, which, despite analytics indicating an average performance (with a Stuff Plus rating suggesting otherwise), remains an elite weapon against hitters.