Still quite a relief to have good starters

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Forget about Major League Baseball’s bullpen obsession for a moment. Believe it or not, plenty of teams at the top level of the game are still anchored by well-armed rotations.

In this age of openers and closers, with relievers starting games and starters rarely finishing them, it might seem starting pitchers have been devalued by executives all over baseball.

Dallas Keuchel, the 2015 AL Cy Young Award winner, is a 31-year-old free agent still looking for a job. The same is true for fellow left-hander Gio Gonzalez, a two-time All-Star who is one season removed from going 15-9 with a 2.96 ERA in 201 innings.

Meanwhile, short relievers such as Zack Britton ($39 million), Jeurys Familia ($30 million), Kelvin Herrera ($18 million) and Joakim Soria ($15 million) had no trouble getting multiyear deals this winter.

Doesn’t anyone remember what Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale did for the Dodgers? Or, closer to the present day, what Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz were like with the Braves?

“At the end of the day, your starting staff is the backbone of your team,” Washington Nationals ace Max Scherzer said. “Being a reliable starting staff, that’s something that is underappreciated in the game.”

But not by some organizations, including Scherzer’s, who have built their foundations with starting pitching.

Some say that’s not cost-effective, partly due to the rate of injury. And it’s true that having a top-notch rotation can be expensive. That’s certainly a big reason why small-market, low-payroll teams such as the Milwaukee Brewers, the Oakland Athletics and the Tampa Bay Rays relied so heavily on their bullpens last year, often successfully using relievers as one- or two-inning starters.

“We’ll see where it takes us. The game is evolving,” New York Mets pitching coach Dave Eiland said. “To each his own. I mean, every club has to do what they feel is best to win baseball games.”

But bear this in mind: The teams with the four best ERAs among starting pitchers all won their divisions last season. Among the seven worst teams in that category, five of those clubs finished in last place — and none of the bottom eight won more than 73 games.

Said St. Louis Cardinals infielder Matt Carpenter: “It’s hard to survive a whole season with just the bullpen, even if it is great.”

With pitchers in all roles limbering up at spring training, here’s a quick look at MLB’s best rotations going into the 2019 season:

› Cleveland Indians: Their starters threw 993 2/3 innings last season, the most in the majors, and ranked third with a 3.39 ERA. Two-time Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber is a well-established ace, Carlos Carrasco has been remarkably consistent and quirky All-Star Trevor Bauer had a 2.21 ERA and 221 strikeouts in 175 1/3 innings a year ago. But does anyone outside Ohio realize No. 4 starter Mike Clevinger posted a 3.02 ERA and 207 strikeouts in 200 innings?

› Boston Red Sox: Seven-time All-Star Chris Sale is as nasty as it gets from the left side, David Price finally enjoyed postseason success last year and fellow Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello is an awfully nice piece in the middle. The reigning World Series champions brought back October hero Nathan Eovaldi on a $68 million contract, and with 13-game winner Eduardo Rodriguez at the back end, Boston easily goes five deep.

› Washington Nationals: Like the Red Sox, the Nationals have paid handsomely for their pricey rotation. Scherzer has won three Cy Young Awards and finished second in National League balloting for the honor last year. He’s joined in the starting group by hard-throwing Stephen Strasburg, and the Nationals spent $140 million this offseason to replace Gonzalez with left-hander Patrick Corbin. Washington also signed veteran Anibal Sanchez to a $19 million contract.

› Houston Astros: Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole form an imposing 1-2 punch that helped Houston starters lead the majors with a 3.16 ERA and 1,101 strikeouts last season. There is depth and young talent behind them, but the loss of Keuchel and Charlie Morton in free agency could take a toll. Collin McHugh and Wade Miley step in.

› Los Angeles Dodgers: The winners of the past two NL pennants have done it with depth behind three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw. Walker Buehler lived up to the hype as a rookie last season, and left-handers Rich Hill and Hyun-Jin Ryu are usually effective when healthy. Los Angeles starters were second in the majors with a 3.19 ERA last year.

› New York Mets: Jacob deGrom won the NL Cy Young Award last and, with a 1.70 ERA, was the best pitcher in baseball. He’s followed by 2016 All-Star Noah Syndergaard and talented righty Zack Wheeler, who finally fulfilled his ample promise with a dominant second half last year. Injuries are always a concern, but the Mets could also get more from Steven Matz and Jason Vargas in 2019.