Welcome to the first week of November! While we wait with bated breath to hear what MLB might claim next (specifically in regards to summer wood bat leagues), let’s vote on a matchup between two of the best starting pitchers between the years of 2010-2019!

  • The summer of 2012 was the season of the juiced ball, and you can definitely see that in the stats of the league’s top pitcher, Winchester’s Janson Carr. A rising sophomore from Southern Arkansas, Carr went 6-2, 3.00 for the Royals, with a 0.983 WHIP, 1.2 BB/9, and 10.4 K/9 in 60 innings pitched. He finished fourth in the league in ERA, tied for second in wins, third in innings pitched, second in WHIP, first in BB/9 (eight walks in those 60 innings), and second in K/9. Carr had Tommy John surgery in 2013, but recovered to go 5-2, 2.23 in 2014 for the Muleriders. He only threw in five games in 2015, however, and appears to not have pitched again after that season.
  • Jacob Ferris defeated Luray’s Cody Weiss in the first round, 54.5% to 45.5% (11 votes). His writeup: “Jacob Ferris pitched for Harrisonburg in the VBL’s most recent season- 2019. Coming off his freshman year at Eastern Kentucky, Ferris was lights out for the Turks, going 3-1, 1.98, with a 0.946 WHIP, 1.7 BB/9, and 9.1 K/9 in 31 2/3 innings. He finished first in the league in WHIP, second in BB/9, and third in ERA. ATVL named him the 2nd best starter in the league. He got to start four NCAA games before COVID stopped the season; he went 2-1, 3.04, with a 0.94 WHIP, 2.7 BB/9, and 10.1 K/9 in 26 2/3 innings. It looked like he was on his way to an excellent year. (Ferris has transferred to Louisville.)”

Vote by going to twitter.com/JohnATVL.

And by the way, if you want to read a ton about either the 2015 or 2019 VBL season, be sure to check out this post on the 2019 Valley League Annual.

Also, please check out and subscribe to the Valley Baseball League youtube channel!

  • Carr
    Carr
  • Ferris