You are probably familiar with Hiroki Kuroda, in that you know that he exists. You know that he's a starting pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and you presumably have some understanding that he's at the very least all right. But what you may not realize is just how good he's actually been.
Trade Bait: Hiroki Kuroda
Since coming to North America in 2008, Kuroda has thrown 618 innings over 102 appearances. His ERA over that span is 3.51, good for a 111 ERA+. The worst ERA+ he’s ever posted is 106, in 2009. But perhaps you prefer to look at things another way. Perhaps you like comparisons and rankings. Since 2008, 103 pitchers have thrown at least 400 innings. Here’s where Kuroda ranks in a few categories:
ERA: 23
FIP: 19
xFIP: 21
Kuroda's never collected a ton of strikeouts. He's never had Brad Radke's pinpoint command, and he's never been an extreme ground-baller. But he's good at everything, and when you put it all together, you get a pitcher who, over the past three-and-a-half seasons, has posted a lower ERA than Chad Billingsley and Justin Verlander.
That’s an excellent pitcher. And it’s not like Kuroda’s especially fragile. He’s 36 and he’s been on the DL three times, but he hasn’t been on the DL since 2009, and two of those stints were due to a strained oblique and a line-drive comebacker. There aren’t any real questions about his health.
So with the Dodgers are out of the race in the middle of July, this should come as little surprise:
Dodgers getting a lot of play on Kuroda. less than a minute ago via web 
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Tim Brown
TBrownYahoo
This is the time of year that general managers of contending teams like to say, “You can never have enough pitching,” and good pitchers are always being pursued. Hiroki Kuroda is a good pitcher on a bad team, so he’s drawing a lot of interest.
But here’s the problem: While Kuroda is a talented starter who could center a pretty big trade, he may not have much interest in being traded. Kuroda’s contract includes a full no-trade clause, and it’s been reported that he may not accept a deal to an eastern team. In the past he’s expressed a desire to remain in Los Angeles, which in part explains why he re-signed with the organization last winter as a free agent. There’s no guarantee that, if trade terms were agreed to, Kuroda would accept.
But the possibility exists, so talks and trade offers will continue. Kuroda is a free agent again after the year and could return to L.A. after playing just a few months elsewhere. We can’t get inside his head, and we can’t know what he will or won’t do ahead of time.
So Kuroda is a name to monitor as the trade deadline approaches. All things considered, there aren't a ton of quality starters out there on the market. Jeremy Guthrie is decent, but worse. Erik Bedard is good, but fragile. Ubaldo Jimenez is good, but won't come easy. Derek Lowe is decent, but worse. And so on. Kuroda's an appealing guy, and though we can't be sure whether he will accept a trade, we can be sure that a ton of contenders would like to find out.
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