The Yankees visit Detroit with Bartolo Colon taking on Justin Verlander. The Tigers are one of the coldest teams in baseball right now, tied with Minnesota for longest current losing streak at six games. Colon is pitching like he did in his peak seasons of 2000 and 2001, with 26 strikeouts in 26 innings. He’s showing better control, however, with just six walks. He’s throwing his fastball with the same movement he did in 2009, but two miles an hour faster, and he’s getting it down in the strike zone.
Bartolo Colon fastball location 2009. Heat map: Baseball Analytics.
Bartolo Colon fastball location 2011. Heat map: Baseball Analytics.
Verlander is also pitching as well as ever except for the six home runs allowed. He’s giving up long balls at twice the rate of last year, and the Yankees are one of the most powerful teams in the majors.
In the stomach flu contest, Jered Weaver takes on Clay Buchholz as the Angels visit the Red Sox. I’ll quote from Sunday’s post on Weaver:
One key to Weaver’s success is getting the lead-off man in an inning. He’s faced the first batter in 47 innings, allowing three hits and two walks, one of the hits a home run.
He has not pitched well at Fenway in the past, but this isn’t the greatest offense Boston has put on the field, either. Buchholz’s ERA is a reflection of the high number of walks he issued and home runs he allowed. In 27 innings, he’s three short of the number he allowed last season in 173 2/3 innings.
Finally, Yovani Gallardo and Jair Jurrjens battle in Atlanta as the Brewers play the Braves. Gallardo is off to a rough start, bringing a 5.40 ERA into the game. He’s been particularly bad on the road, with a .370/.392/.609 opposition slash line. The good news is that his FIP is about a run and a half lower than his actual ERA, so I suspect he’ll turn around his poor April. Jurrjens has yet to allowed a hit with runners in scoring position, covering 17 at bats. He has walked three. That helps account for his 1.23 ERA
Enjoy!
Thanks to Baseball Analytics for the heat maps.