Games of the Day

The Yankees travel to Wrigley Field to face the Cubs as Michael Pineda takes on Kyle Hendricks. Pineda pitches well in terms of walks and strikeouts, with 37 K and 4 BB in 28 2/3 innings. He allowed five home runs, however. All of those came with the bases empty, however, and he has yet to allow an extra base hit with men on base. Hendricks owns an ERA two runs higher than his 2.13 mark from last season. Both his walk and home run rates are way up. He allowed 15 home runs in 190 innings in 2016, five so far in 28 innings this season.

Two surprisingly good teams clash in Baltimore as the White Sox send Miguel Gonzlaez against his former team, the Orioles, and Wade Miley. Gonzalez had some problems on the road this season, opponents batting .338/.381/.481 against him. Miley bends but doesn’t break, as he walked 19 in 31 innings, but only allowed 20 hits.

Lance Lynn leads the Cardinals into Atlanta to check out the new stadium there. Mike Foltynewicz stands in their way. Lynn’s low ERA comes from a combination of a low overall OBP, .286, and a low BA allowed with runners in scoring position, .176. It’s not immediately obvious why Foltynewicz’s ERA is so much lower this season than in the past. His FIP is much higher than his ERA, and the only change in his pitching is a slightly elevated use of the slider. Foltynewicz is doing something different, as batters have a hard time squaring up the ball this season.

Finally, Michael Fulmer faces Andrew Triggs as the Tigers play in Oakland. Fulmer is tough to hit, with a .198 BA allowed this season. That makes his 3.19 ERA seem high, but that BA rises to .250 with runners in scoring position, and he allowed four home runs. Triggs cut down on his home runs allowed compared to his first season in 2016. He allowed five homers in 56 1/3 innings last season, 1 in 29 1/3 innings this year.

While not a great pitching match-up, the Diamondbacks visit the Rockies as those two team battle for the NL West title.

Enjoy!

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