Jacob Faria had to be one of the biggest surprises for the Tampa Bay Rays in the first half. Initially brought up to the majors to make a spot start during Matt Andriese‘s absence, Faria performed quite admirably. When Andriese landed on the disabled list once more, Faria again received the call, and continued to outperform expectations.
In his six starts prior to the All Star break, Faria was a revelation. He produced a 4-0 record with a 2.11 ERA and a 0.965 WHiP. The concerns about his command did not appear during that time, as he issued just nine walks while striking out 37 batters in 38.