May 28, 2017

Games of the Day

It’s been difficult to find good pitching match-ups lately, but it appears MLB was saving them for today. The slate starts with the Athletics sending Andrew Triggs against the Yankees and Michael Pineda. Triggs comes into the game with a 2.77 ERA mostly due to three great starts on the road. The only run he allowed in those three games came on a solo home run. Pineda is strong in two of the three true outcomes, with 61 K and 9 BB in 53 2/3 innings. He allowed 11 home runs, however, but with a low OBP of .267, nine of those were solo shots.

The Orioles send Alec Asher to face the Astros and Lance McCullers. Asher worked mostly out of the bullpen this season, but found his control in his two starts. He walked two in 12 1/3 innings as a starter, five in 16 2/3 innings as a reliever. McCullers dominates at home, 3-0 with a 1.74 ERA this year. His 40 K in 31 innings led to a .193 BA allowed.

Lance Lynn takes on German Marquez as the Cardinals and Rockies play the rubber game of their series. The first two games ended in shutouts. Lynn’s ERA is due to his low BA allowed of .188 dropping to .138 with runners on, with an even bigger drop in slugging percentage from his overall .354 mark to just .246 with men on base. Marquez owns a 1.06 ERA on the road this season, but Coors hurt him to the tune of a 6.50 ERA. He gives up the same number of hits home and road, but at home most of them go for extra bases.

Finally, the penultimate game of the day features the ultimate face off between sinister pitchers as Jon Lester and the Cubs take on Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. Lester uses an assortment of pitches to keep his strikeout rate high. None of the them are overly fast, but changing speeds and location does the trick. Kershaw still throws hard, with the double whammy of an undetectable curve ball. He is very close to a five-year span with an ERA under 2.00.

Enjoy!

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