Ervin Santana: The Anti-Rally Monkey

Forget the ERA, forget the win/loss record, forget the hits and walks and strikeouts. Forget the speed gun. Ervin Santana is never going to get better than he is now, for one simple reason. He doesn’t think he needs to. Listen to John Lackey after a loss. He growls like a bear without food. You get the feeling he’d scratch the other team’s eyes out to get a win. You want quotes? Lackey’s are usually concise: “I stunk.” That’s why he’s so good. Lackey never accepts being average. He beats himself up more than any batter could, because he strives for perfection. All elite pitchers do. The first person they point the finger at is themselves. Now let’s listen to what Ervin Santana says after getting pounded: “The ball was coming out of my hand well.” This is his favorite, and has been used over and over. Then his last one after getting sent to the showers in the fourth inning and burying his team in a 6-0 hole: “I m...