Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
September 17, 2008
Games of the Day

Phil Hughes returns to the Yankees rotation tonight as they continue their series with the AL Central leading White Sox. Clayton Richard takes the hill for Chicago, and given the ERAs of the two pitchers this might turn out to be a slugfest. If Hughes can get two or three good starts under his belt, however, the Yankees go out on a positive note. Unlike some Yankees fans, I don't see this season as a disaster. It's the Red Sox 2006, a good team with some bad luck. As the Red Sox showed in 2007, that can be turned around quickly. If Hughes shows he can pitch, the Yankees head into 2009 with Wang, Joba and Phil in the rotation, maybe rounded out by Sabathia. That's not bad. These types of finishes force teams to really look at how they can improve, as opposed to , "We made the playoffs with these players, we'll be alright."

Meanwhile, the Red Sox and Rays continue to fight for the right to play the AL Central champion instead of the Angels. A win by the Rays reduces their magic number to clinch the division by three, since they then hold the tie-breaker in head-to-head competition against Boston. A Boston win means we won't know until they play a few more games against eastern division teams. Matt Garza hosts Tim Wakefield. Garza posts a 2.74 ERA at home this season. Wakefield has yet to defeat Tampa Bay in 2008 despite a 2.77 ERA against the Rays this season.

Both the Phillies and Mets send out inexperienced major league pitchers in their quests for the playoffs. J.A. Happ faces the Braves while Brandon Knight jousts with the Nationals. Both hold high ERAs and matchup against two good young pitchers, Jair Jurrjens and Shairon Martis.

Cliff Lee goes for win 23 against the struggling Twins. Scott Baker tries to get Minnesota back on the winning track. Although not as extreme, Baker shares Lee's ability to keep batters away from free passes. Lee does a much better job of keeping the ball in the park, however.

Finally, the Brewers send Ben Sheets against the Cubs and Jason Marquis. A Chicago win reduces their magic number to two. In 11 1/3 innings at Wrigley this season, Sheets walked nine and struck out nine. Two BB and seven K in one game, and just the opposite in the other. Marquis has only allowed four runs in 13 1/3 September innings despite giving up 10 hits and 8 walks. He's bending but not breaking.

Enjoy!

Find World Series odds for all these teams at Bodog Sportsbook.


Posted by David Pinto at 01:17 PM | Matchups | TrackBack (0)
Comments
Post a comment









Remember personal info?