Originally Posted by
zitothebrave
No, their stats aren't similar at all. I'll pick on James's first 3 years vs Minor's career even if there's some sampling issues.
James's first 3 years he compiled a fine ERA 4.00, good for a 110 ERA+ but the Cracks had shown before that, 6.7 K/9 3.4 BB/9 1.6 HR/9. Good for a 5.28 FIP. Minor's ERA isn't as good, his career ERA 4.10 and his ERA+ is 93, but Minor has much stronger peripherals. 7.8 K/9 2.6 BB/9 1.1 HR/9 which is why his FIP is 3.90. Minor is a much stronger pitcher than James. He doesn't have the ERA James had, but his peripherals are so much better which is why he goes deeper into games. Call it a hunch, but I think James's ERA was boosted because of Bobby knowing when to pull him out of games before he imploded.