Down years happen. For as good as any player can be, he’s bound to have a year where his numbers fall and he fails to live up to lofty expectations. It’s part of the game, and usually fans are accepting of them to a point.
But some down years are definitely worse than others, like when a team has high hopes of contending for a championship and needs its superstars to perform like they’re capable of performing. When down years happen then, they’re a little harder to take. And there were plenty of those this year.
With that in mind, here’s a look at ten of the most disappointing players of 2015:
Jeff Samardzija
The White Sox added the big right-hander hoping to slot him behind Chris Sale and form the AL’s version of Kershaw and Greinke. Instead, Samardzija has been fairly terrible: he boasts an ERA over 5, leads the league in hits allowed and earned runs allowed, and is posting his lowest K/9 rate since he became a full time starter. Not the year he wanted heading into free agency, and certainly not the year the White Sox were expecting.
Doug Fister
Fister was heading into his walk year with the expectation that he’d be one of the first pitchers teams called with multi-year offers after the high-priced arms came off the board. After the season he had, he’ll likely be settling for a short, make-good deal instead. Fister struggled for the Nats before losing his rotation spot in late summer, and has been used sparingly as a reliever ever since. It was a disastrous season for a guy who was a top 10 finisher in the Cy Young award voting just a year earlier.
To continue reading this article by Dave Tobener at Bloguin, click here.
