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Dodgers: The top 3 free agent starting pitchers after Gerrit Cole

By Michael Wittman

WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 06: Hyun-Jin Ryu #99 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches in the first inning against the Washington Nationals in Game 3 of the NLDS at Nationals Park on October 6, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 06: Hyun-Jin Ryu #99 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches in the first inning against the Washington Nationals in Game 3 of the NLDS at Nationals Park on October 6, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 10: Zack Wheeler #45 of the New York Mets pitches in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citi Field on September 10, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

2. Zack Wheeler (3.96 ERA, 3.48 FIP in 2019)

Outside of Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg, the next big fastball on the free-agent market belongs to Zack Wheeler.  Wheeler was the sixth overall pick of the San Francisco Giants in the 2009 draft but has been overshadowed a bit in the New York Mets’ rotation that features Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard.

Wheeler’s fastball averages over 96 miles per hour and he would give the Dodgers a pair of fireballers at the top of their rotation if the blue signed Wheeler instead of bringing Ryu back.  After undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2015 and struggling in 2017, Zack has been healthy and very effective in the last two seasons.

From a pure stuff standpoint, Wheeler has the best stuff of any free agent starter on the market after Cole and Strasburg.  He also enters free agency on the right side of age thirty.

Projected contract: 4 years $64 million

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