Boras: Arrieta still elite despite drop in velocity

Jake Arrieta may not be lighting up the radar gun the same way he did when he was named the 2015 National League Cy Young award winner, but that doesn't mean he isn't one of the game's elite pitchers, according to agent Scott Boras.

"The question becomes what's (Clayton) Kershaw averaging?" Boras said Saturday, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers. "He's throwing 92.5 mph. (Zack) Greinke is throwing 91.8 mph. (Max) Scherzer, when he was a free agent, was throwing 92 mph.

"We're going to sit here and evaluate a player on a 60-day moment or a 10-start moment when he has three years of history. Don't do it. That's not fair. That's not an evaluation."

Arrieta's fastball velocity has dropped from 94.6 mph in 2015 to 92.1 mph this season, according to Fangraphs, while his ERA has risen to 4.92, his highest since 2012 when he was still with the Baltimore Orioles.

The dip in velocity and increased ERA is over a small sample size and proves nothing, according to Boras, who used two-time Cy Young winner Scherzer as an example of an elite pitcher who once faced his own struggles but still managed to secure a seven-year, $210-million contract with the Washington Nationals in 2015.

"I wanted to bring this up because when you guys (reporters) talk about what an elite pitcher is, I want you to know Scherzer (in 2014) gave up seven runs, five runs, four runs, four runs, and 10 runs, all before June struck," Boras explained. "My point is he's an elite pitcher. He did all that in his platform year. Jake is throwing at better levels than what Scherzer did."

Upon closer inspection, Boras may be onto something, but will the numbers be convincing enough to secure his client, Arrieta, a lengthy and financially prosperous deal similar to or greater than Scherzer, Kershaw, or Greinke when he becomes a free agent at season's end?

Since 2015

"All these guys are still doing well and all their velocities dropped," Boras said. "The key thing is they were able to do what they did three years running.

"What does Jake have an advantage over all of them? He wins big games."