Guys Id Prefer over Barry Zito (Not Gay I swear)

I had an interesting conversation with some friends this past weekend. With Barry Zito signing for a small island, a discussion brewed about what pitchers we would rather have over Barry Zito. It can be argued that Zito is remarkably consistent, durable and always gives you a chance to win. Sure, this may be the case, but look further and you will see a steady decline in his stats over the years. I for one am far too lazy to look them up, so Ill give you the short and sweet version: Strikeouts are down ERA is up . Call me old fashioned but to me those are pretty important. Anyway, to the point let me give you the guys I would take over Barry Zito.

The No-Brainers: When I was posed with the question of naming 3 guys Id rather have over Zito I thought oh jeez this is easy, but the days of good pitching is gone and it was surprising harder than I thought to make a good solid case for taking someone over Zito. These guys however are guys I would take without thinking twice.

1)Johan Santana-Duh
2)Roy Oswalt- Ridiculous numbers, and with any run support this guy would be an annual 25 game winner.
3) Chris Carpenter- Now Ive always been a Carp hater but damn he just keeps putting up the numbers.
4)Roy Halladay- This guy rounds out my list. The only guy who can even challenge Santana for the AL Cy Young crown.

Here's where some debate comes in. This next list are guys right around that grey area where it's tough to decide who the better choice is.
The High-End Potentials:

1) Carlos Zambrano- Scarily close to making into the no-brainer section and he hasnt had his career year yet.
2)Jake Peavy- Forget about the record, his stats are unbelievable the past coulpe of years.
3) Brandon Webb- Last year was not a fluke, take a look at his ERA since entering the league. With a decent team around him he wins 20 games easily.

This is where it really gets tough for me to pick.
The Lower-End Potentials:

1) Dontrelle Willis- From here forward you can make a case for Willis over Zito
2)Chris Young- Got out of Texas and in only his 2nd full season as a starter put up some very nice numbers in SD. Product of the park? Maybe.
3)CC Sabathia- I know the numbers are great but I have a hard time putting him above Zito. Others might be higher on him which is why I put him here.
4) Justin Verlander- Man he looked impressive last year didn't he? Show me again and he will only move up.

There's 11 guys I would take over Zito and there's plenty more who are debateable. The Matt Cain's, Dan Haren's, and John Lackey's of the world, for example, but, I simply don't think they are there yet.

-Larry Anderson, The Lefty Specialist.