Who was this weekend’s biggest story? Ubaldo Jimenez! Being a pitcher in Colorado does wonders to take your name out of the public’s memory. For years they have had nothing but home run inducing pop up pitchers. Sure they have had some ground ball pitchers that have been semi successful in regards to win-loss record. However none have been as dominating as a Rockie as Jimenez over the past 2 and a half seasons.
Ubaldo pitched the first no-hitter in Colorado’s franchise history over the weekend. One of the stats that I have been enamored with over the years is pitchers who throw a no-hitter or perfect game. Ubaldo may never end up in the Hall of Fame, but he will forever be etched in my mind as putting together a great pitching performance (minus the six walks of course). With the no-hitter, he moves to 3-0/1.29/1.19. He is averaging 8.6 strikeouts per 9 innings which is just what a potential ace in Colorado needs.
He was already in the upper echelon of fantasy pitchers, now he has to be regarded as a top 5 if not higher. Last year he put up a 15-12/3.47/1.23 with 198 strikeouts in 219 innings. Big things were expected out of him this season and so far he has not disappointed. Of course after spinning 128 pitches he might be a bit tired in his next outing but don’t let that fool you he is one of the top pitchers in the NL.
As far as his cards go on eBay they exploded yesterday. Before the no-no you could have had his autograph for between $2 – $10. However after the no-no, forget about it. You can’t even get a sniff of his autographed card for less than $25 and that’s from his 2010 regular Topps release. Of course his card value will decrease as the season progresses, and I do think it’s a must buy when the price drops. The card below is an example of what pre-no-no was like money-wise, it didn’t even get a bid when it was up for auction (starting price 99 cents).
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