Milwaukee Brewers Grades: Matt Garza

When the Milwaukee Brewers signed Matt Garza last March, they took a big risk. While he helped to solidify last year’s staff, making him the highest paid pitcher in franchise was a risky decision. After a strong season last year in which Garza went eight and eight with a 3.64 ERA, he scuffled all year long in 2015. Here is a look at his troubling season that ended early.

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Though there were times that he did pitch well, he was constantly hampered by big innings. Taking a look at his monthly splits, Garza only had one month that his ERA was below four. His worst month came in August when went one and three with 6.75 ERA.

Perhaps his best outing of the year was in relief as he held the Arizona Diamondbacks scoreless through five innings in a walk-off victory on May 31st.

His season ended with a 6-14 record and 5.63 ERA. Though he didn’t have enough innings, his ERA numbers would have finished worse than any qualifying starter. In 148.2 innings of work he surrendered 23 home runs and he allowed 93 earned runs while having one of the worst walk rates of his career.

Garza ended the season on a sour note after being removed from the rotation, he refused his demotion to the bullpen and shut himself down. Instead of being a counted on and trusted arm, he rarely got the job done and finished with the worst season of his career. With young arms all around the system who have shined in this final month, his status on the team and in the rotation are now in question heading into next season.

Final Grade: F

Next: Braun's End of Season Grade