Phil Humber
Is there anything wrong with Mets prospect Phil Humber? His stats aren't that hot so far at St. Lucie: 1-5, 5.61 ERA, 44/15 K/BB in 51 innings, but 61 hits allowed. The K/BB and K/IP are just fine, but he's given up too many hits which is why his ERA is so high.
However, in his last start he pitched 7 strong innings, allowing 1 unearned run on 4 hits, with 5 strikeouts and no walks. In his previous start, he was killed, giving up 8 hits and 8 runs in 1.2 innings on June 6th. He also had a bad game on May 25th, allowing 8 hits and 7 runs in 3 innings. Take those two games out, and Humber would have a 3.28 ERA.
So basically, it looks like two bad starts out of 11 have hurt his ERA and made him look less effective than he actually has been. As long as the trend doesn't continue, I don't think there is a lot to worry about provided he stays healthy. I always have to put the injury disclaimer in when talking about pitchers. So my message to paranoid Mets fans is this: don't panic. Concentrate on his K/IP and K/BB. And hope that the Devil Rays don't make a trade offer.
