Jerad Eickhoff takes on Gio Gonzalez as the Phillies and Nationals continue to battle in the hotly contested NL East. Effectively wild describes Eickhoff’s season so far, as he walked five batters in his first 13 2/3 innings, but struck out 13. That led to just eight hits allowed and a 1.98 ERA. Two of the four runs he allowed, however, came on solo homers. Gonzalez also struck out 13 in 13 innings, but with just two walks and one home run allowed, his ERA stands at 0.69.
Sophomore James Taillon faces veteran Jon Lester as the Pirates battle the Cubs. Taillon made two starts against Chicago in his rookie year. He was hammered for three home runs his first time out, just his third start in the majors. He pitched much better the second time, his last start of 2016, holding the Cubs to one run in six innings. Lester, at seasonal age 33, still dazzles with strikeouts. He fanned 14 batters in 11 innings so far in 2017.
James Shields and the White Sox play the surprising Twins and Hector Santiago. The Twins are tied with the Dodgers with the highest run differential in the majors, +25. Shields recovered his high strikeout rate this season leading to just four hits in 10 2/3 innings. Two of those were home runs, but keeping the bases empty lowers the impact of the long balls. Santiago induces a very low BABIP, .266 for his career and .182 this season. That’s why his ERA looks much lower than one would expect given his three-true outcomes. This season it stands at 2.38 versus a FIP of 4.53 and an xFIP of 5.92.
Finally, the struggling Rangers and Mariners send Cole Hamels and Hisashi Iwakuma to the mound. Hamels looks like he should have a higher ERA than his 2.77 mark. So far, opponents are just 1 for 9 against him with runners in scoring position. Iwakuma owns a 2.25 ERA coming into the game but his six walks and four strikeouts in 12 innings spells trouble for the starter down the road.
Enjoy!
from baseballmusings.com http://ift.tt/2ojJxa6
No comments:
Post a Comment