The Cubs SP1 was shut down in early-August due to a pitching-elbow injury. The good news was Dr. James Andrews was not paged. The 18 starts were the fewest since Garza’s 2007 season with Minnesota. The good news is he’s been cleared to resume throwing and is expected to be ready for Opening Day. Garza’s K/9 rate the last two seasons has hovered around 8.60. Keep tabs on if the Cubbies move him prior to April. – Ryan Fowler

The big guy was 3-5 after the All-Star break, but posted a 2.58 ERA with 80 K’s in 73 1/3 innings pitched. He finished 14th in all of baseball with 180 strikeouts in his first season as a starter. The Cubs are counting on a repeat effort in 2013 as the team’s number two starter behind Matt Garza. Speaking of … - Ryan Fowler

At the age of 35, fantasy owners may shy away from adding Vogelsong to their 2013 rosters. It’s hard to grasp how his ERA in August and September would inflate to well over 6.00, but then fall to 1.09 in four postseason starts (24 2/3 innings pitched). He struck out 19 more batters and tossed 10 more innings in 2012 compared to 2011. - Ryan Fowler

Due to Boston’s rotation issues in 2012, Doubront screamed by previous innings pitched plateaus (29 starts and 161 IP) and, to some extent, skewed his overall contributions to the team, fantasy-wise and real world. He finished 11-10 with a 4.86 ERA and 1.45 WHIP, but the 9.89 K/9 rate is awfully tempting in later rounds when filling out your roster. - Ryan Fowler

In his final eight starts, Estrada averaged seven stirkeouts per outing (5-2 record). His 9.07 second-half K/9 rate is just ahead of David Price and Cole Hamels. As of press time, Estrada was penciled in as the Brew Crew’s SP2. - Ryan Fowler

By signing with the Cubbies this offseason, EJax has now played for seven different clubs since 2008. At times maddening from an earned run standpoint, Jackson remains one of the more consistent strikeout pitchers in the bigs. He’s averaged 165 K’s the last three seasons, splitting time between the American and National Leagues. - Ryan Fowler

Do you think Fiers’ arm was ready to fall off by season’s end? His ERA by month:

June: 2.51
July : 1.01
August: 4.89
September: 7.09

Still, his 9.44 K/9 rate in the second half was right behind Justin Verlander (9.45). Also, his K/9 rate is in line with what he averaged in the minors during the 2010 and 2011 seasons. - Ryan Fowler

With an ERA of 3.01 and 9.15 K/9 rate in the second half of last season, the 23-year-old Moore is somebody to pay close attention to heading into draft season. The well-groomed prospect has been teasing fantasy owners for a few seasons now and I expect that 11-11 record and 3.81 ERA to improve year-over-year. - Ryan Fowler

The Mets called up Harvey at the end of July last season.  He lasted at least five innings in each of his 10 starts before the team shut him down in September. Harvey struck out 70 in 59 1/3 innings pitched. He struck out 112 in 110 innings pitched at Triple-A Buffalo prior to the call-up. Harvey is currently listed at the team’s SP4 heading into spring training. - Ryan Fowler

When it comes to quality starting pitching, too much of a good thing is never an issue. The Tampa Bay Rays dealt James Shields to the Royals and still have an imposing rotation of Price, Hellickson, Moore, Niemann, and Cobb. This leaves Chris Archer on the outside looking in until somebody gets hurt or struggles (ahem, Niemann/Cobb) to start the season. In six games last season, the 24-year-old pitcher struck out 36 hitters in 29 1/3 innings pitched. At Triple-A Durham, he struck out 139 in 128 innings pitched and carried a 3.66 ERA. - Ryan Fowler

Note: all K/9 rates are from after the 2012 All-Star break. The goal is to illustrate which pitchers finished with a strong kick and/or were consistent the entire season.