| If Pedro is fourth and justified because he played in the steroid era, Randy Johnson should be in the top ten for the same reason. He's won 84 more games, has 1700 more strikeouts (second all-time), 2 more All-Star selections and 2 more Cy Young awards, has thrown 2 no-hitters including a perfect game, is a 300 game winner, has a World Series MVP, and has pitched 100 complete games--44 more than the next active pitcher and 54 more than Pedro. Randy led the league in ERA and winning percentage 4 times, has 20 more shutouts and is the all-time leader in K/9 innings. Considering that Pedro's career is in decline, I say Randy is more deserving.
From 1997-2003 Pedro averaged 17 wins and 5 losses per season. From 1995-2002 (considering that he played in just 5 games in 1996), Randy Johnson averaged 18 wins and 6 losses per season. In basically an equivalent span, Randy struck out 700 more batters and pitched 300 more innings, averaging over 12 K per game. Randy's WHIP was 1.06, Pedro's was 0.94, but Randy threw 20 more complete games and 11 more shutouts. Both ERAs were under 2.65. Randy's span could easily be stretched back to 1993 and 94, when he went 32-14 with 512 K. Randy never gets the love, but he's one of the best, no doubt. |