There was a time when Derek Holland was one of the better pitchers in all of baseball. Back in 2013, he fired an anagramic 213.0 IP of 120 ERA+ ball, an effort that was valued at 4.3 fWAR and 3.2 bWAR. That was part of a four year stretch that saw him pitch to a 112 combined ERA+ across 623.1 IP from 2011-2014, his 3.83 ERA in that time helping to anchor what was then a rather formidable Texas Rangers staff.
The lefty’s fastball was good, but never overbearing at 93-95 mph. His slider was good, his other off-speed pitches were merely average, but he had something going for him that was nearly impossible for any other pitcher in baseball to replicate.