MLB Starter Signal
Some games feel completely different depending on who starts. Starter Signal makes that measurable — tracking how each team's record, win pace, and run differential shift when specific pitchers take the mound.
What is MLB Starter Signal?
Starter Signal shows how an MLB team performs in games started by each of their pitchers. Instead of measuring a pitcher's individual ERA, strikeout rate, or WHIP, it measures the team's record, projected win pace, runs scored per game, and runs allowed per game when that pitcher starts.
This framing captures the full picture — including run support, defensive performance, and bullpen reliability — that ERA alone misses. A pitcher can have a mediocre ERA but still give their team a .700 win rate if the lineup consistently scores behind them.
How does Track The Season calculate Starter Signal?
For each starting pitcher with 3 or more starts in the current season:
- Team record — wins and losses in that pitcher's starts
- Win percentage — wins divided by total starts
- 162-game pace — win percentage projected over a full season
- Runs scored per game — team offense in those starts
- Runs allowed per game — total runs allowed (pitcher + bullpen)
- Run differential — total runs scored minus runs allowed
The top two starters combined show the team's best-case rotation scenario. Everyone else shows the rest-of-rotation performance. The gap between these is the rotation cliff.
What is the Phillies record when Wheeler starts?
Track The Season's Starter Signal calculates the Phillies' exact team record in Zack Wheeler's starts — including win pace, runs scored, and runs allowed. Visit tracktheseason.com/phillies and tap the Starter Signal section to see current season data.
Which teams rely most on their top starters?
The Pitching Board answers this league-wide. It ranks all 30 teams by the gap between their top-two-starters pace and their everyone-else pace — identifying which teams have real rotation depth versus which teams are heavily dependent on their ace and number two.
Which MLB teams have the biggest gap between their top starters and the rest of the rotation?
This is the "rotation cliff" metric on the Pitching Board. A gap of 40+ projected wins means a team is essentially two different teams depending on the day's starter. Track The Season updates this every night with the latest boxscore data.