The Piazzas: Amazin' Avenue 2014 Mets Awards, Worst Starting Pitcher

The Piazza for the Mets' worst starting pitcher of 2014 goes to...

Here is a recap of The Piazzas so far:

• Best Rookie: Jacob deGrom
  
• Worst Relief Pitcher:Jose Valverde
  
• Best Relief Pitcher:Jeurys Familia
  

Today, we hand out the hardware for Worst Starting Pitcher. The category is a bit problematic, in that the candidates either weren't that terrible or didn't start enough games to truly deserve the award. Nevertheless, we carry on, and someone will take home the Piazza.

The nominees for Worst Starting Pitcher are:

Dillon Gee: Gee was certainly the worst of the five Mets pitchers who made at least 20 starts this season. He was the Mets' Opening Day starter, and actually pitched well through his first eight starts of the season. His 2.73 ERA on May 10 was shiny, even if his peripherals suggested some regression was in order. However, he hit the DL in mid-May with a strained lat, and ended up missing two months. He struggled after his return, pitching to an ugly 4.78 ERA in 14 starts over the last three months of the season. If he wants to crack the Mets' 2015 rotation, he'll probably have to do better than a 4.00 ERA/4.52 FIP.

Daisuke Matsuzaka: Given his reputation, it's no surprise that Dice-K had the highest walk rate of any Mets starter. He made nine starts, and although his overall 4.24 ERA did not impress, he did enjoy three quality starts (at least six innings pitched, allowing three runs or less). The seven shutout innings he tossed against the Braves in an early-July game were a highlight. We acknowledge the 122 innings he ate these last two seasons, and hope that he doesn't make any starts for the 2015 Mets.

Jenrry Mejia: Mejia was brilliant in the five starts he made in 2013, and looked like a potential bright spot for the Mets headed into 2014. He indeed turned out to be a bright spot, just not as a starter. He pitched to a 5.06 ERA in 37.1 innings while in the rotation, struggling mightily with his control while piling up strikeouts. Fortunately, he excelled as a reliever after being moved to the bullpen in mid-May. His days as a starting pitcher are likely over.

Rafael Montero: Montero actually had the best ERA as a starter (3.98) among the four nominees listed here. He's also just 23 years old and made only eight starts. His inclusion is "by default," as Matthew Callan put it when filling out his ballot. Montero posted some nice strikeout numbers, but struggled with both his control and the longball. He averaged about 5.1 innings per start, racking up high pitch counts en route to a 5.16 FIP as a starter. He should contend for a spot in the 2015 rotation.

And the Piazza for Worst Starting Pitcher goes to...

Dillon Gee! Don't be so sad, Dillon, you weren't that bad.

Here is how everyone voted:

And here is the final vote tally, using a 3-2-1 points system:

Now it's your turn to vote. We'll summarize the community awards in a post at the conclusion of The Piazzas.