Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
May 01, 2005
Games of the Day

Two American League division winners send their aces against each other this afternoon as Bartolo Colon takes on Johan Santana as the Angels face the Twins. Colon has a very interesting home/road split early in the season. He's allowing fewer runs at home (3.05 ERA vs. a 5.06 road ERA) but he's getting less on the road (.171 BA vs. a .273 home BA). The difference is that he's allowed 3 of his four homers in his 10 2/3 road innings, vs. just 1 in his 20 2/3 home innings. All four of the homers hit off Bartolo have come with men on.

Santana has become a strikeout machine. His 45 K in 33 innings is good for a K per 9 rate of 12.3, best in the majors. Given those numbers, it's quite amazing that he's given up 13 runs so far.

The other (or only?) Los Angeles team host Shawn Chacon and the Colorado Rockies today. Derek Lowe takes the mound for the Dodgers. Chacon's return to the starting rotation has been quite successful so far; he's only allowed 1 homer in 17 innings this season after allowing 12 in 63 1/3 in 2004. He's also cut his ERA by more than half. The strikeouts that have eluded Lowe over the previous three seasons are coming back. Through 2001, mostly as a reliever, he average 6.9 K per 9. As a starter from 2002-2004, that fell to 5.1 K per 9. This year so far he's splitting the difference, collecting 6.1 K per 9.

Enjoy!


Posted by David Pinto at 10:36 AM | Matchups | TrackBack (0)
Comments

Santana's ERA is a pretty good lesson in peripheral ERA and DIPS; he basically has better peripherals than Pedro, but Pedro has given up something like half the hits. Also Santana has had hits bunched against him, as I think all 3 HR have had runners on base.

Posted by: Carl at May 1, 2005 01:44 PM

How 'bout them Brewers whooping on the Reds again today.

Posted by: Brett at May 1, 2005 04:19 PM

How about Mark Prior. Bases loaded and 2 outs in the fifth. He's got an 0-2 count on Mike Lamb. For the next pitch Michael Barrett sets up RIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE. Prior throws a fastball RIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE. You can guess what happened next. Worst major league pitch I have ever seen. There's absolutely no excuse for it.

Posted by: Anthony at May 1, 2005 04:31 PM

I think it was supposed to take him by surprise...

Looked a lot like the one Mondesi hit last night... but that one was a mistake and this seemed like it was right on the target... and Mike Lamb's not an over the hill retread with a .370 slugging percentage...

Posted by: john swinney at May 1, 2005 05:08 PM
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