How about Marquis 3.48 FIP in September (and that was before tonight)? Whoops, that supports the continued improvement since he returned from injury. How about my mentioning the turnaround of Lannan, and his two months spike well above his career norms, as a great thing and something that has earned him a spot in next year's rotation. Don't let the facts punch you in the face on your way out.
Here are some monthly FIPs for your perusal:
Livan Hernandez - 2.21 FIP (July)
Scott Olsen - 3.23 FIP (May)
Jason Marquis - 3.48 FIP (September)
Craig Stammen - 3.62 FIP (June)
Luis Atilano - 3.69 FIP (June)
Isn't it interesting how none of these pitchers came even close to duplicating that performance in other months? Pitchers have great fluky months. It happens. It doesn't mean that you should throw an entire career's worth of statistics out the window if there isn't an extremely obvious change to support it (e.g. learning a new pitch, dramatically increased velocity).
