What is a quality start in baseball? Explaining the statistic in detail

A quality start is a term commonly used for starting pitchers in baseball. Baseball defines a quality start as a term in which a starting pitcher pitches six or more innings and allows three runs or fewer.

The statistic was invented by John Lowe when he was working for the Philadelphia Inquirer in 1985. Lowe coined QSs, in which a pitcher was tagged for a loss "tough losses." He also called non-quality starts in which a pitcher earned the win "cheap wins."

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What qualifies as a quality start?

A starting pitcher who pitches at least six innings and allows three or fewer runs is credited with a quality start. This term is commonly used in Major League Baseball and is part of its basis for classifying the top pitchers for the season.

A pitcher who ended his starting duty, pitching seven innings and allowing three runs, is credited for a quality start.

On the flip side, a starter who earned a win for pitching 5 2/3 innings and allowing one run before getting subbed out won't gain a QS due to that requirement.

Unlike the traditional wins and losses metric wherein great pitchers suffer a loss due to low run support in offense, quality starts concentrate only on the things hurlers can control.

So no matter how one team loses the game due to low run support, the pitcher gets a quality start in his resume if he allows only three or fewer in at least six innings.

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NCAA players with high QSs this season

East Carolina's Trey Yesavage has 10 quality starts this season for the Pirates.

The NCAA doesn't include quality starts in their statistical records yet but some college baseball players excelled in this stat this season.

Arkansas Razorbacks starting pitcher Hagen Smith, who leads the nation in earned run average, has 11 quality starts this season. This includes an eight-game streak in which he pitched at least six innings and allowed no more than two runs per game.

East Carolina's Trey Yesavage, who has won 11 games this season, has 10 quality starts, including six straight in the second half of the season. Wins leader Michael Ross of Samford, who holds a 13-0 record this season, has nine QSs tucked under his belt.

Strikeouts leader Chase Burns of Wake Forest has 11 QSs along with his 10-1 record and 184 strikeouts. Right-handed pitcher Mason Martinez of Grambling State has 10 QSs in 12 wins this season.

However, some players have over 10 wins this season but recorded less than eight QSs. One of the best examples is UC Santa Barbara ace Tyler Bremner who has tallied only five quality starts despite recording an 11-0 mark.

Quality starts define a starting pitchers' performance nowadays as it tells how good hurlers are for the season. It also shows how durable they are in longer innings of play and how big their contributions are for the teams they play for.