Rodón Bleu

Welcome to the SP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every starting pitcher’s performance from every Sunday game. I apologize for the jokes written in my delirium in advance. Have questions? Ask me during my office hours on Twitch weekday mornings from 9 am-11 am ET.  

Carlos Rodón @ STL (L) – 3.2 IP, 8 ER, 10 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 70 pitches.

There really isn’t much to say about Carlos Rodón’s disaster tonight against the Cardinals – 3.2 IP, 8 ER, 10 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 70 pitches. Was his velocity down? Nah. Did he fail with sliders? A little, but not this much. Is he washed up now? Absolutely not. This was a case of things going the wrong way for Carlos and it’s not going to repeat itself. The dude hit 98.2 mph tonight. He’s fine and had a bad day.

This was the worst week for pitching the entire year and it’s incredibly fitting for it to end on this note with one of the most dominant pitchers of the season falling flat on his face when so many were relying on him in their weekly leagues to come through. It’s a massive reminder that we’re only in the middle of May and there are five months left to go. It was a rough time, Rodón and Friends are still good pitchers, and better days are coming. Except for that random Toby on your squad. Sorry, it ain’t gonna last.

 

Let’s see how every other SP did Sunday:

 

José Quintana vs CIN (ND) – 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 89 pitches.

Okay okay okay, this was the Reds! The Cardinals are next and this can’t be a proper Vargas Rule…right? Yeah, that’s absurd. I’m not buying into this and I’m happy for everyone who took a chance on this on a desperate Sunday. Don’t get attached…even if he is featuring some excellent pitch separation…NO. I can’t. I just can’t.

Tarik Skubal vs BAL (W) – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 11 Ks – 21 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 100 pitches.

Hot dang, look at you! Skubal took full advantage of a date with the Orioles as his slider and changeup reached earned at least five whiffs here. The curve is still a rare “show-me” pitch, but as long as just one of those secondaries — let alone both! — are working, his fastball can do the rest against a middling squad. You love to see it.

Daniel Lynch @ COL (ND) – 5.1 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 4 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 96 pitches.

Hey, he survived Coors! With a slider that earned 8/40 whiffs and 38% CSW! Now he gets the Twins and I’m wondering if this is the time to finally buy into Lynch. Ehhh let’s wait one more.

Justin Verlander @ WSH (W) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks – 17 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 107 pitches.

Aces gonna ace. While it does help to have Angel behind the plate, Verlander earned 9/35 whiffs on sliders and had excellent pitch separation as he kept the breaker down. It’s getting hard to deny the man of the family who knew how to safely set Vers on solid ground. I’m sorry what. You know, they were Ver landers, where else did you think it came from? Don’t google it.

Jeffrey Springs vs TOR (ND) – 4.2 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 18% CSW, 76 pitches.

We got another extended look at Springs and while it isn’t bad, it isn’t good. He may be Springs, but by Summer, he’ll be Falls.

Michael Grove vs PHI (ND) – 3.2 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 70 pitches.

I know what you’re thinking. Should I sign a Grove? In short, now. In longer, I now have the Doobie Brothers stuck in my head and I’m not complaining. Anyway, he throws a 95 mph heater that is the foundation of everything as his slider and curveball failed to be consistent strike pitches. I think if Grove can dominate the zone with those breakers, there’s some legit upside here. But until then, it’s a lower chance it all comes together for a legit fantasy outing. It’s unclear if he gets another start (i.e. unlikely but it could be in nine days against the Nationals) and I’d leave him on the wire to reconsider when he gets another opportunity down the road.

Austin Davis @ TEX (ND) – 2.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 35 pitches.

It was a bullpen day for the Sawx + some Tanner Houck and there’s nothing to talk about here. Should I still have Houck rostered? Ummm no, why is he still there? He went 37 pitches here and I don’t know when he’ll see more.

Nestor Cortes Jr. @ CWS (W) – 8.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 99 pitches.

The dude is simply unreal right now. These were the White Sox — a team known for their demolition of southpaws. Cortes’ command is fantastic, avoiding the heart of the plate and whipping around fastballs, cutters, and sliders, the latter of which benefiting from Trivino behind the plate & some lovely calls his way. If I believed he’d keep this up through the year, Cortes becomes a Top 20 play, but I can’t do that. I just can’t. He’ll get a decent bump tomorrow, though. That’s the best I can do.

Hunter Greene @ PIT (L) – 7.1 IP, 1 ER, 0 Hits, 5 BBs, 9 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 118 pitches.

Leave it to the Reds to throw a no-hitter and still find a way to lose. I was incredibly relieved to see Greene get pulled from this game as a rookie arm should not be pushed this hard so early in their careers. As for the final line, I still believe his fastball gets hit too hard, but seeing 55% sliders with 37% CSW & 66% strikes on the pitch is pretty cool. What isn’t pretty cool is a date with the Jays next, especially after this exhausting outing. No thank you.

Patrick Sandoval @ OAK (W) – 6.1 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 4 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 101 pitches.

I’m happy The Irish Panda had a beneficial start, but did it have to come with just four strikeouts and as many walks? The slider was the big player this game (9/36 whiffs) while the changeup went…no. NO. 1/19 CSW?! That’s like going to an Irish pub and they only serve Bud Light. Whatever, be happy he had the slider and expect the slow ball to return.

Kyle Wright vs SD (ND) – 6.1 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 35% CSW, 86 pitches.

Hmmmmm. Nick, his command was clearly back! Was it? Does this look like a well-commanded game? Notice the hittable curveballs, the four-seamers all over the place instead of concentrated at the top of the zone, and the floated sliders and changeups. And yet, he fanned nine and was bliss for your squads. But whatever, my suspicions don’t warrant dealing him away nor benching him, so I’m just going to push those thoughts away.

Joe Ryan vs CLE (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 103 pitches.

Atta boy Ryan. He’s at 92/93 mph and while the slider wasn’t there, the Guardians didn’t put up much of a fight against his four-seamer. The Royals shouldn’t either later in the week.

Justin Steele @ ARI (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 10 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 38% CSW, 90 pitches.

13 Whiffs? A King Cole?! 10 STRIKEOUTS?! When did Steele legitimately become an action start to match his name? His slider was ridonkulous at 48% CSW while his four-seamer didn’t jump in velocity, but it found called strikes at a 35% rate. I’m astounded and…oh. I get it. Blame it on the Diamondbacks. Yeah, I said it. While I do believe Steele pitched as well as we’ve seen all year, it’s only this remarkable because of Arizona. So? He gets them again on Saturday!! …That’s a really good point. It’s a coin flip to me as I see this as a bit of a Birthday Party and I’d heavily wager his slider doesn’t earn nine whiffs again. Up to you.

Alek Manoah @ TB (L) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 82 pitches.

Aces gonna ace. I wanna call him the Good Morning Man as he’s Great and A.M. 70% strikes on sliders makes me awfully happy, I just wish he was able to get more than five whiffs between the sweeper and the four-seamer. I know, I’m getting greedy, I’ll get it together and simply enjoy the good times.

Martín Pérez vs BOS (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 96 pitches.

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?! That’s five straight excellent outings from Pérez, this time against the hawt Sawx. Hat Sax? I’m going to ignore that. He didn’t have the same increased sinker velocity, but his command was insanely good once again, missing the middle of the zone to feature cutters, changeups, and sinkers on their respective edges. He gets the Astros next and it feels like you have to adhere to the Vargas Rule regardless of the team at this point, you know?

Brandon Woodruff @ MIA (W) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 94 pitches.

Aces gonna ace. I was originally planning on dropping Woodruff on The List tomorrow, but I kinda dug this outing. Four-seamers had a 20% SwStr, sliders and changeups each worked, his command was solid, and he coasted against the Marlins. I may push him to #5 or #6 given how this start doesn’t simply eliminate all the bumps in the road before this, but it certainly feels like he’s okay now. I hope so.

Aaron Nola @ LAD (ND) – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 108 pitches.

And he didn’t earn a Win. I swear, even when things actually go his way, they don’t. He’ll have to perform at this level a second time when he faces the Dodgers again next week and I don’t care, I’m starting Easy A. He’s too legit to quit.

Adam Wainwright vs SF (W) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 96 pitches.

After the Cardinals jumped all over Rodón, Waino got locked in and did exactly what he needed to do: throw strikes and not mess it up. He tallied 19 called strikes between sinkers and curveballs and that’s exactly what you do when gifted nine runs from your offense in the first four innings.

Frankie Montas vs LAA (L) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 12 Ks – 22 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 101 pitches.

He allowed a two-run shot to Ohtani in the first (with Trout on, of course) and didn’t allow anything else the whole game. His splitter returned, his fastball overwhelmed, and things were wonderful. I’m so glad that splitter is working again.

Joe Musgrove @ ATL (ND) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 6 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 99 pitches.

Aces gonna ace. What more do you want from Musgrove? He’s clearly Top 10 if not Top 5 right now and just proved it against a strong team, albeit with a low 24% CSW. He made it work.

Humberto Castellanos vs CHC (ND) – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 92 pitches.

You know, I keep brushing off HC as I play the mode where I can die and my character doesn’t disappear forever, but Humberto has allowed more than 3 ER just once all season and will get the Cubs a second time. Not the worst NL-Only stream, just not something for your 12-teamers.

Elieser Hernandez vs MIL (L) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 85 pitches.

With Jesús Luzardo hitting the IL, the Marlins will need Elieser to do a bit more than this, specifically the 3/29 whiffs from his slider. Without that pitch cookin’, he can’t go five strong. No reason to chase it right now.

Triston McKenzie @ MIN (L) – 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 95 pitches.

His slider went 9/24 whiffs and I’m shocked the strikeouts were so low. He’s doing a better job of throwing his heaters and breakers for strikes and I’m finding myself kinda in on McKenzie right now. Kinda. I can’t help but hold onto some skepticism, but if he keeps pitching like this, that’ll fade soon like Bryan LaHair’s moment in the spotlight.

Michael Kopech vs NYY (L) – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 1 Hits, 4 BBs, 3 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 91 pitches.

I was astounded to see Kopech toss 41 pitches in the second inning (with zero whiffs on over 50 pitches at the time) and somehow make it through six full frames. He looked flat-out lost at times and his fastball ended the day sitting 91/92 mph. Michael Kopech. 91/92. You can argue it was because of the fatigue of the start, but I can’t help but feel like he’s a premier sell-high at the moment. The command was far from great and the fastball isn’t the pitch we wanted it to be, let alone the underperformance of the breakers so far. It all adds up to a guy who shouldn’t come close to a 1.54 ERA and 0.94 WHIP and 26% strikeout rate. I actually said “WOW” out loud when I just looked that up (sorry neighbors). It’s going to fall apart quickly.

Austin Gomber vs KC (ND) – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 84 pitches.

A PQS inside Coors? Sure, I’ll take that, even if he had just five whiffs. He’s someone to stream on the road against a poor club and with the Mets coming to Colorado over the weekend, Gomber will stay put on the wire.

Tyler Wells @ DET (L) – 4.0 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 71 pitches.

Womp womp. I went to the Wishing Wells hoping Tyler could pull this off against a mediocre Tigers crew and now it’s the Rays and Yanks. Oh Wells.

Carlos Carrasco vs SEA (ND) – 4.1 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 16% CSW, 77 pitches.

Ouch. Carrasco has been getting through this year with one of his changeup or slider coming through in a big way, but it made us wonder — which will occur first: having both in one game or neither? Welp, we got the latter today and sadly Carrasco got burned for it. Now he heads to Coors and Oracle Park and I’m hoping one of those is serviceable.

Robbie Ray @ NYM (W) – 6.0 IP, 5 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 9 Ks – 27 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 97 pitches.

Nothing quite like earning a Gallows Pole with a whopping 27 whiffs and being found down here with 5 ER to your name. His heater sat 94.3 mph in this one, nearly matching 2021’s numbers, and it’s a huge sigh of relief. But the 5 ER! Oh right. Forget about that, his stuff was insanely good and it somehow didn’t go his way today. Seriously, you should care more about the whiffs and the velocity (and the overall command!) than those numbers. THROW EM AWAY AND CELEBRATE.

Patrick Corbin vs HOU (L) – 6.0 IP, 5 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 86 pitches.

Seeing Patrick down here reminds me of heading to the local bar and seeing the same dude you met a few weeks ago. It’s getting comfortable and that may be a problem.

 

Game of the Day 

Luis Severino vs. Kyle Bradish – I enjoy watching Severino as I believe an SP #1 is still in there + Bradish just earned 11 strikeouts. I hope he can repeat it.

But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? – I’ve moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.

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Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)