There are times when a guy is performing well but you know in the back of your head that he won’t pan out like he wants you to believe. Right now, that guy is Ian Kennedy who went 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BB, 10 Ks against the Cards last night. I took a quick peek at this game, and his stuff was looking as good as ever with great command around the zone. It’s his second fantastic outing in a row and it may look like he’s a new pitcher. The numbers will tell you that across his last 13 starts since 6/13, Kennedy has a 2.42 ERA, 89.31 K/9, and a 2.54 BB/9. Problem is that his FIP is around 4.50 and xFIP near 4.00 in that span. I want to be encouraged and if I needed some help I may lean to rolling the dice in future streaming matchups with Kennedy, but I’m not going to join the crew of people that believe he’s turned over a new leaf. It’s the same one, just lost a little chlorophyll.
Let’s see what every other SP did yesterday:
Gerrit Cole – 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 8 Ks. Aces gonna ace. I will note though that I was ready to swap Archer and Cole and now I have some slight reservations in that. I probably will do it anyway, but it’s not a sure thing now.
Mike Leake – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 1 Hit, 1 BB, 6 Ks. He was activated from the DL and gave the Giants a start they needed, with his only allowed hit a solo shot to Jung-Ho Kang. Leake can do this, but his floor is lower than you’d think. Just be a bit cautious and you can squeeze out that value.
Joe Ross – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks. Great to see Ross bounce back and continue being a beast. Can you give me a few more strikeouts though? k thx.
Luis Severino – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 6 Ks. All is great outside of the four walks. Get it together Severino, your stuff is good enough that you don’t need to be fearful of hitting a bit of the plate.
Zack Greinke – 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks. A pair of solo shots and a triple were the only legit baserunners and they all came around to score. So it goes.
Aaron Harang – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 2 Hits, 4 BBs, 3 Ks. HAARRA- oh, this start was actually okay for once. Carry on.
Justin Nicolino – 7.2 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BB, 4 Ks. One of the most obvious One Night Blands we’ve had this season.
Vidal Nuno – 6.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BB, 4 Ks. This is the best outing we’ll see from Nuno this season. It’s his fourth time starting this year, and he hadn’t gone into the 6th before last night.
Scott Kazmir – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BB, 8 Ks. There we go Scotty. Good to see this from Kaz to keep your confidence alive.
Sonny Gray – 8.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. It’s fine, but it’s starts like these that keep Gray outside the Top 15. When he’s not killing it in ERA (this isn’t bad, but 3.38 isn’t sparkling), the Ks just aren’t there.
Yordano Ventura – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BB, 6 Ks. In his last three starts since his “demotion”, Ventura has a 1.42 ERA with 21 Ks. He also has only walked 1 batter in each of last two starts. I’m definitely not sold, but this is very intriguing. Sidenote: His stat line looks like someone trying to hide subliminal demonic messages.
Carlos Rodon – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 4 BBs, 8 Ks. It’s really hard to put a boatload of faith into Rodon who walks four batters errrr day like it’s his J-O-B. Nevertheless, he’s a prime upside guy if you need that.
Yovani Gallardo – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BB, 4 Ks. I know some people are going to be devout in their support of YoGa, but I just can’t do it. His ceiling isn’t nearly exciting enough, let alone inconsistent, for me to endorse him.
Chris Tillman – 6.2 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. You can’t spell Win with Tillman. But he wasn’t THAT bad… Dude, let me have my fun. Tillman has been better in the second half and a decent streamer moving forward for those unaware.
Carlos Martinez – 6.1 IP, 3 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BB, 6 Ks. Ehhhh it’s alright.
Marco Estrada – 5.2 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks. I have to hand it to Estrada, he’s looking more comfortable for longer than I expected, but I really don’t think he coasts through the end of the year.
Randy Wolf – 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 9 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks. Wait, he’s still pitching?! Looks like he’ll get another shot in the rotation, but there’s now way I’m touching Dirty Randy.
Kyle Gibson – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 4 BBs, 2 Ks. The only thing to like here is the 3.18 ERA and that’s not all that cool. Thanks for the
Erasmo Ramirez – 7.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 2 Ks. Blegh.
Dan Haren – 4.1 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks. Haren is no longer the ace of any town and it’s affecting him. Who am I kidding, Haren just isn’t all that good.
Danny Salazar – 4.2 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. He’s known as a bit of a Cherry Bomb, and he allowed a pair of HRs that did him in during the first inning. Still like him, especialyl with not a single walk, so whatevs, move along.
Matt Barnes – 5.1 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 2Ks. Barnes isn’t worth your time.
Taylor Jungmann – 4.0 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. This is a bit disappointing to see, but I think it just didn’t go his way against the Nats. Don’t run away just yet.
Randall Delgado – 2.1 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BB, 2 Ks. He’s filling in for an injured Jeremy Hellickson and it’s not pretty. It’s possible that there is a time where he has some value, but now is not that time.
Anthony DeSclafani – 5.0 IP, 6 ER, 10 Hits, 0 BB, 4 Ks. Every time I write about DeSclafani all I can think of is a some guy with an afro and shades stuck in a 70s club. We know Tony Disco, you think what you’re doing is great and all, but no one wants to dance with you.
Williams Perez – 4.2 IP, 6 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks. – Sir W. isn’t nearly as cool his nickname implies.
Jonathon Niese – 5.1 IP, 7 ER, 11 Hits, 2 BB, 3 Ks. Niese has value only in the best matchups, and pitching in Coors is at the wrong side of the spectrum.
Andrew Heaney – 3.1 IP, 8 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. A regression was imminent, and he doesn’t have the K rate to salvage starts. To be fair, this was against Toronto and not a solid start in its own right. I don’t think he fully rights the ship next time out in Detroit, but the following start in O.co could be solid.
Chris Rusin – 2.0 IP, 11 ER, 12 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. Rusin 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.
Today’s Streamers
Aaron Nola vs. Miami Marlins – A tough call this time with both Raisel Iglesias and Kevin Gausman with both decent matchups, but I like Nola’s floor against a struggling Marlins team the most.
Tomorrow’s Streamer
Julio Teheran vs. Colorado – Can’t believe I’m endorsing Teheran, but he has looked a little improved recently, and faces a Colorado team outside of Coors and without CarGo.
Game of the Day
Lance McCullers vs. Clayton Kershaw – Not only do we get to see Clayton fight once again for a perfect game, but McCullers comes back to the rotation. Who doesn’t want to see how the youngin’ looks?