The most obviously great outing from last night came from the hands of Kevin Gausman who went 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks against the Indians. I’ve been getting lot of flack for my rankings of Gausman this year and I’m not sure why since I’ve been labeling him as a decent floor guy with room to grow. He has a 8.52 K/9 and a 2.06 BB/9, solid stuff that will allow him to give you a decent WHIP + strikeout numbers in any given start, even if he allows an extra ER than you’d like. He’s also been studly in his last five with a 2.51 ERA, 9.19 K/9 and just a 1.39 BB/9, and I like where the kid is headed. Sure, the AL Beast isn’t too friendly to him, but it’s not enough to kick him out of the 50s if not 40s. He’s not as exciting as some other youngins, but he’ll get the job done.
Let’s see what every other SP did yesterday:
Max Scherzer – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 10 Ks. Aces gonna ace. There’s our #1 SP in the land.
Johnny Cueto – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 9 Ks. Aces also gonna ace. Hmmm, maybe Cueto jumps deGrom this week. Not sure. Probably not, but at least I’m thinking about it more.
Jose Fernandez – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks. Oh yeah, aces gonna ace some more because that’s what aces do.
Ivan Nova – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks. Has it clicked again for Nova? That’s two straight 1 ER games against two tough offenses – O’s and now Giants. There’s still a sizeable floor involved and this could be part of the whole “don’t let the Yankees lose so they don’t trade for a better future” conspiracy, but I’m starting to grow a liking to the kid. His placement in the AL Beast would normally dictate a tougher schedule ROS, but he generally avoids the tough matchups in favor of Twins/Angels/Royals/Mets, which is pretty solid. I’m on board for his next start against the Rays and let’s go from there.
Zach Davies – 6.1 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. Color me impressed with Davies. His last 10 starts have a 7.86 K/9 and just a 1.57 BB/9 as his FIP/xFIP are 3.46 and 3.63 (identical 3.63 SIERA). Sure, he hasn’t played the toughest teams, but last night’s was against the Cubs and I’m starting to believe in the kid despite a sub 90 mph heater – that Changeup is simply too good and he’s commanding his Two-Seamer/Cutter combo well. All aboard!
Kendall Graveman – 9.0 IP, 3 ER, 9 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. Nick! That’s a 2.70 ERA over his last eight starts now! And a 4.73 K/9 and a 4.43 SIERA. Oh lord is this a TEEs.
Collin McHugh – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. I’ll definitely take this from McHugh. Don’t get too used to it though – even though his last 7 starts have rendered a 2.49 ERA, it’s back with a 4.09 xFIP and 4.01 SIERA. He’s getting out of jams like whoa, with a 86.% LOB rate despite his .327 BABIP. He’s also played the Angels thrice in that span, including the ChiSox and A’s as well. I wouldn’t be buying low here.
Cole Hamels – 5.1 IP, 0 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 4 Ks. It’s pretty meh despite the goose egg in the ER department. WHIP hurts, and the Ks aren’t gonna properly feed this fella.
Drew Smyly – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks. I called Smyly a bit of a buy in this week’s Podcast, and it’s good to see him not falter against the A’s, which would have been a death sentence for the southpaw. He gets the Yanks + Royals next, which I’m on board for, but sadly he needs to face the Jays before getting some time off with the Padres.
Keyvius Sampson – 4.1 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. Oh lord, Keyvius is back? Jeeeeeeeez. You don’t want none of this Dewy Cox.
Kenta Maeda – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks. Ehhhh it’s not terrible, but you’d really want Maeda to go through the sixth and with a touch more Ks.
Matt Albers – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 Hits, 0 BBs, 1 Ks. Albers had to start because of Chris Sale’s fit, which is one of the more entertaining stories of the season. Love it.
Hisashi Iwakuma – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. Pretty boring, but I guess that 3.00 ERA and okay WHIP are enough? Meh.
John Lackey – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks. It’s better than his blowups, but still not the Lackey we signed up for. He’ll get there.
Josh Tomlin – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks. Whoa, 8 Ks from Tomlin?! That ERA is catching up to him, though.
Edwin Jackson – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 1 Ks. Trust me, you want to spray some AJax over this EJax.
Yordano Ventura – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 5 Ks. The leader of the PEAS showing kids all around the world how to properly disappoint.
Matt Boyd – 4.1 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks. He got pulled after just 78 pitches since there was a rain delay and he got himself into a jam in the 5th. Another outing that doesn’t hurt owners – his third straight after a pair of starts totalling 13 ER. Am I sold that this is a big value guy slumbering on your wire? Not really. There is some upside here, but he’s more of a Young Gun still and I don’t trust him not to express his floor often through the end of the year.
Tyler Anderson – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. Anderson has limited upside, pitches his home games at Coors Field, and doesn’t deserve a spot on your team. This should be the blurb for every Colorado starter not named Gray and maybe even Gray.
Robbie Ray – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks. Just look at that upside. LOOK AT IT. I call Ray a Young Gun and I wouldn’t be shocked if a lot of writers look to Ray as a deep sleeper come February next year, but then again they all missed out on Vincent Velasquez and Aaron Nola so who knows what will happen. Anyway, Ray is ultra good at earning strikeouts for you, problem is that he gets hit hard a ton as well, i.e. sink or swim. I will hand it to him for lowering his walk rate a bit through the season – just a 2.25 BB/9 across his last eight starts.
Aaron Nola – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks. Well maybe they missed out on Nola for a good reason…Nah just playing but this is really disappointing. He only threw 46 of 80 pitches for strikes, and while it all collapsed in the fifth inning with singles, he allowed a pair of walks to lead off the inning, which is just so not Nola. It’s possible getting hit in the shoulder last time + getting hit in the hand during an at-bat this game, and I’m slightly conflicted. We saw such a good performance from Nola last time out, and this is certainly a relapse. Now, he does get the Braves next – awww yeah – which should tell us one way or another if he’s truly back or not. I’m a major believer and I’m still sold that he’ll be very productive in the second half.
Tyler Glasnow – 3.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks. Glasnow was removed mid at-bat with right-shoulder discomfort and has promptly been placed on the DL. I think the correct injury is horrible command, but potato-schmotato.
Matt Wisler – 5.1 IP, 6 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. That’s 17 ER in his last three starts now. Yikes.
David Price – 5.2 IP, 5 ER, 11 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. I talked last time about Price’s super high hard contact this year and how it makes me question if he can avoid clunkers consistently, and BOOM, Price goes and pulls a Price again. That upside pulls him out of the depths of the mid 20s, but it’s really tough to endorse him in a big way.
Mike Leake – 6.0 IP, 6 ER, 12 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks. Oh come Leake, I just had this whole exposé on why I think you’re a super sleeper and you have to be all dumb against the Dodgers. At least his xFIP was just 3.20 for the start…? He did get Singled Out quite a bit with a .478 BABIP, and this could be a blessing in disguise. Why? Because if you didn’t own Leake, now you can for a much cheaper price. He also gets Miami/Reds/Reds next which should make any owner happy.
Jacob DeGrom – 3.2 IP, 5 ER, 10 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks. What is it today with great pitchers falling on their face? Look, I still love deGrom and he’ll still be Top 10 tomorrow, just laugh at this and move on with life.
R.A. Dickey – 3.0 IP, 6 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. Dickey told me that he had a cool tattoo on his leg. I looked down and saw him making a circle with his thumb and index finger. Don’t trust a knuckleballer.
Jered Weaver – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 1 Ks. Ah yes, there’s the Weaver we know and hate.
Ricky Nolasco – 2.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks. FINALLY. I’ll have one order of Crunch Berrios please.
Today’s Streamers
Blake Snell vs. Oakland Athletics – Didn’t think I could call him a streamer, but he’s seemed to have been dropped a ton as he gets the A’s in massive O.Co. Sign me up! I’d also consider Lucas Giolito as he gets the Padres, though Snell is a much safer matchup, and to round off the prospect pitchers there’s Jameson Taillon against the Phils, which is an obvious start and he’s not really a streamer but I love talking about PPs. Which sounds bad if you read it aloud but please trust that it stands for Prospect Pitchers. Please.
Tomorrow’s Streamer
Jake Peavy vs. Cincinnati Reds – There is pretty much no one I want to start on Monday, so we’re going with Peavy since he gets the Reds and has had some success that could be repeated. Congrats Jake, hope you feel special.
Day After Tomorrow’s Streamer
Bud Norris vs. Tampa Bay Rays – I imagine many are giving up on Norris – wrongly so – which means you can jump on board for what looks to be a solid day at the park.
Game of the Day
Jameson Taillon vs. Vincent Velasquez – Two solid young arms going at it is always a fun time.