The rise and fall of Kerry Wood is one of those things that makes sports so fascinating and heartbreaking. You roll it back to 2003 when the Cubs missed the World Series by a game (Bartman) and look at the top 3 in their pitching staff.
22-year-old Carlos Zambrano
22-year-old Mark Prior
26-year-old Kerry Wood.
Those three combined to win 45 games that year. Wood had 266 strikeouts, Prior had 245, Zambrano had 168.
Next year, Wood starts 22 times, Prior 21. Zambrano still great.
Year after that, Prior starts 27 times, Wood falls off the planet and ends up in the bullpen. Pitches 21 times, only starts 10, goes 3-4.
By 2006, Zambrano is the ace, Prior goes 1-6 with a 7.21 ERA in 9 games and Wood only throws 19.2 innings for the year.
Wood pitched to 2012, but never started another game after 2006. Prior was forced to retire in 2006.