Tag Archives: Cole Irvin

June 13, 2024

Games of the Day

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The Braves and Orioles finish their series in Baltimore with Reynaldo Lopez facing Cole Irvin. Lopez brings a 1.85 ERA into the game, and is just on the edge of qualifying for the leaderboard. He induced eight double plays in 25 opportunities. Irvin’s 2.87 ERA is helped by allowing just 12 walks in 62 2/3 innings.

The Phillies finish at Fenway with Aaron Nola facing Tanner Houck. Nola’s season high in wins stands at 17 in 2018, and he has a good chance to meeting or passing that mark with an 8-2 record not quite halfway through the season. Houck does qualify for the ERA leaderboard, and his 1.91 ERA leads Tarik Skubal of Detroit by 0.01 runs. Houck also leads the AL in home runs per nine innings, having allowed just two on the year.

June 2, 2024

Games of the Day

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The Rays and Orioles square off in Baltimore as Zack Littell takes on Cole Irvin. Littell’s excellent three-true outcomes are somewhat tempered by the high BABIP against him, .337. That’s well above his career average of .301. Irvin allows a low OBP of .283, and effectively lowers that with six runners removed on ground ball double plays.

The Reds send Nick Lodolo to face the Cubs and Ben Brown. Lodolo makes his eighth start of the season. So far he showed great control with 46 K and just nine walks in 40 1/3 innings. Brown does walk batters, but his high K rate and low home run rate help him to a rookie ERA of 2.72.

Finally, the Rockies send Austin Gomber against the Dodgers and Gavin Stone. Gomber limits hits despite a low 6.3 K per 9 IP. He allowed just one run in his last three road starts covering 20 innings. Stone is another low K pitcher, but helped himself this year by limiting home runs, allowing just four dingers in 57 innings.

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May 27, 2024

Games of the Day

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There are a number of good pitching matchups on Monday. The Red Sox stand seven games back of the second place Orioles as Cooper Criswell brings his 2.86 ERA against Cole Irvin and his 3.15 ERA. Both induce low BABIPs.

The Twins stand five games back of the second place Royals as Alec Marsh faces Joe Ryan in Minnesota. Again, the visitor bring the better ERA, 2.72 for March and another 3.15 for Ryan. Ryan stand 5-0 with a 1.52 ERA career against Kansas City, including a well pitched no decision on March 30th of this year. Marsh greatly reduced his walks and HR allowed this season to bring down his ERA.

Gavin Stone of the Dodgers visits the tribute to Ebbets Field as he meets Tylor Megill of the Mets. Stone is harder to hit this season with a .253 BA allowed compared to .338 his rookie year of 2023. Megill struck out 11 in his nine innings so far in 2024.

Finally, Mitchell Parker of the Nationals takes on Charlie Morton of the Braves. The rookie Parker owns a 3.32 ERA in 38 innings. His control is great as he walked just eight batters while striking out 32. Morton, seasonal age 40, still pitches well with a 3.35 ERA in 51 innings. His .344/.468 OBP/Slug is a bit high, but only three of the sixteen extra-base hits against him have come with runners on base.

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April 2, 2023

Games of the Day

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Cole Irvin of the Orioles and Tanner Houck of the Red Sox try to stop two hot offenses in Boston. Irvin is coming off his best season in 2022. He limits walks,, but trades those for hits due to his low K rate. We’ll see if the Orioles defense is up to the balls in play. Houck pitched 146 innings in the majors with a 3.02 ERA. He allowed just eight home runs in those innings.

Mike Clevinger makes his White Sox debug as he takes on the Astros and Luis Garcia. After missing all of 2021, Clevinger posted a 4.33 ERA in 2022, giving up 20 home runs in 114 1/3 innings. Garcia owns a .619 winnings percentage the last two seasons with a 3.51 ERA. It helps to play for a high scoring team.

The Phillies and the Rangers kick off Sunday Night Baseball, sending Bailey Falter against Martin Perez. Falter gives up few walks, so he can get away with allowing a high home run rate. Perez posted the first sub 3.00 ERA in 2022, coming in at 2.89. He allowed just eleven home runs in 196 1/3 innings.

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September 6, 2022

Games of the Day

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The Twins try to get a rare win against the Yankees as Joe Ryan battles Gerrit Cole. Ryan does a good job of keeping batters off base, allowing a .293 OBP. Forty seven of his one hundred hits allowed this season, however, went for extra bases. Cole comes off an August in which the Yankees offensive slump hurt his record. He allowed a 3.20 ERA, but only had a 1-4 record to show for that.

The Braves begin a west coast trip as Kyle Wright takes on the Athletics and Cole Irvin. Wright is 4-1 with a 3.82 ERA in five starts against AL teams this season. After going 4-1 with a 1.85 ERA in July, Irvin finished August 1-4 with a 4.23 ERA. He allowed one home run in July, six in August.

Johnny Cueto leads the White Sox against the Mariners and Logan Gilbert. Cueto helped stabilize an injured White Sox rotation with his 2.93 ERA in 129 innings. He walked just 27 batters this season. Gilbert keeps the opposition power down as he allowed a .399 slugging percentage this season.

Enjoy!

August 1, 2022

Players of the Month

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Juan Soto of the Nationals made himself very attractive to trade partners by posting a .495 OBP in July to lead the majors. He also managed a .616 slugging percentage, but not that many extra-base hits, as all the walks took away opportunities for hits.

Three batters posted OBPs around .450 with slugging percentages over .800. Aaron Judge of the Yankees, with thirteen home runs on the month, slugged .806 with a .446 OBP. His teammate, Matt Carpenter, with nine home runs on the month, slugged .822 with a .447 OBP in limited playing time.

At the top, however, is Austin Riley of the Braves, who slugged .885 as he collected 26 extra-base hits, fifteen doubles and eleven home runs. He reached base at a .459 clip, mostly on a .423 BA. It’s tough to hit .400 for a month, and for his monster July, Riley wins the Baseball Musings Offensive Player of the Month for July 2022.

The pitching side provides a tougher choice. Dylan Cease of the White Sox posted a 0.76 ERA to lead the majors, good for a 5-1 record. He blew batters away with 10.1 K per 9 IP, but his walk rate was a bit high. Merrill Kelly of the Diamondbacks posted a 1.31 ERA with a 4-0 record, and pitched 41 1/3 innings in six starts, the only pitcher to reach 40 innings in the month. While his K rate came in at just 7.2 per 9 IP, his walk and home run rates were outstanding.

That brings us to the amazing month by Cole Irvin of the Athletics. He led the majors with just 0.79 walks per 9 IP, and added a very low 0.26 HR per 9 IP. He struck out just 5.8 batters per 9 IP. Despite all the balls in play against him, Irvin allowed just 19 hits in his 34 innings. He also managed to go 4-1 for a bad team. His unusual performance earns him the Baseball Musings Pitcher of the Month for July 2022.

July 27, 2022

Games of the Day

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The Twins send Chris Archer against the Brewers and Corbin Burnes in the battle of the upper mid-west. Archer is another no-decision pitcher as he averages a little over four innings per start. His ERA stays low as he’s not allowed to get in trouble. Burnes is in his third straight season with a sub 2.50 ERA.

Cristian Javier of the Astros faces Cole Irvin of the Athletics in an afternoon west coast game. Javier struck out 115 batters in 83 1/3 innings, helping to hold opponents to just 54 hits. Irvin keeps his ERA low by avoiding walks, issuing just 20 in 102 1/3 innings.

The Rays try to hold off the Orioles as Drew Rasmussen faces Tyler Wells. Rasmussen’s ERA balloons to 4.15 on the road, where his opposition batting averages is over 100 points higher. Wells had problems with the Rays this season, 0-2 with a 7.50 ERA in three starts.

Enjoy!

June 29, 2022

Games of the Day

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Oakland sends Cole Irvin against Jameson Taillon and the Yankees Wednesday afternoon in The Bronx. Irvin and Taillon own similar ERAs, 3.29 for Irvin versus 3.19 for Taillon. Irvin stands 2-5 as the Athletics score two runs or less in eight of his appearances, while the Yankees scored two runs or less in only four of Taillon’s appearances. The Yankees won two of those games, while the A’s are 2-6 for Irvin.

At the same time across town, Justin Verlander takes on the Mets and Taijuan Walker. Houston goes for a four-game season series sweep of New York. Teams try to bat left-handers against Verlander, but he’s holding that group to a .159/.232/.232 slash line. That’s right, no on base and no power. Walker allowed just three home runs this season in 65 1/3 innings. He’ll have a challenge from Houston as the Astros are second in the AL in home runs at 102.

The Red Sox send Nick Pivetta against the Blue Jays and Alek Manoah in a battle for second place in the AL East. After a rough early season, Pivetta is 8-1 with a 1.85 ERA in his last ten starts. Manoah improved on his rookie season by reducing his walk and home run rates.

Finally, the White Sox battle the Angels with Michael Kopech facing Shohei Ohtani. Kopech came into his own this season as a full-time starter. He allowed just 34 hits in 62 2/3 innings for a 2.59 ERA. Ohtani worked well from the mound in June, 3-1 with a 1.88 ERA.

Enjoy!

June 1, 2022

Games of the Day

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Justin Verlander takes on Cole Irvin as the Astros face the Athletics in an early afternoon west coast game. Verlander comes into the game with a 2.03 ERA, his only weakness the home run ball. Eight of his thirty eight hits allowed left the park. Batters make contact versus Irvin as he issued just nine walk in 40 innings while striking out 26. That hasn’t hurt him much, as his ERA stands at 3.15.

At the same time, the Braves send Kyle Wright against the Diamondbacks and Madison Bumgarner. Wright raised his strikeout rate this season and brought his ERA down to 2.68. With 61 K in 53 2/3 innings he allowed just 38 hits. Bumgarner owns a 3.35 ERA, but he is coming off a rough month of may in which he allowed seven home runs in 25 1/3 innings.

Enjoy!

May 22, 2022

Games of the Day

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The Twins and Royals offer another good pitching match-up as Bailey Ober takes on Brady Singer. Ober dropped his ERA nearly a run and a half compared to his year in 2021 by cutting his home run rate in half. Singer makes his second start after three relief appearances. He pitched seven shutout innings in his first start five days ago.

Rookie MacKenzie Gore takes on Alex Wood as San Diego goes for a sweep in San Francisco. Gore, a left-handed pitcher, features a reverse platoon split early in his career. Left-handed batters hit .333/.500/333 against him in 16 PA, while right-handed batters hit .229/.275/.292 against him in 102 PA. Wood had a tough time at home this season, with 20 hits allowed in 14 2/3 innings in San Francisco this season.

Finally, the Athletics send Cole Irvin against the Angels and Patrick Sandoval. All four of Irvin’s home runs allowed came on the road this season. Sandoval has yet to allow a home run anywhere in 2022. He is one of three pitchers not to allow a home run this season in at least 30 innings.

April 24, 2022

Beat the Streak Picks

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For the past few years Baseball Musings tried to help with playing Beat the Streak. The Day by Day Database keeps track of hit streak of at least five games. In addition, two programs produce top ten lists of players with a high probability of a hit.

Here are the top picks my programs produced for use in Beat the Streak. This post mostly explains the ideas behind the calculations. In addition, this post shows tests on the Neural Network (NN). This post discusses an NN that includes the ballpark. I updated the models, and the results of those tests are here.

The Log5 Method yields these top picks:

Lowe is off to a great start in 2022, with a .382 BA and a .424 OBP. Since his OBA is based mostly on a high number of hits, his current season excellence dominates the Log5 calculation. Batters tend to put the ball in play against Irvin, adding to the probability of this being a good match-up. Lowe is two for five career against Irvin, but did strike out twice.

Here are the NN picks:

  • 0.264, 0.696 — Trea Turner batting against Sean Manaea.
  • 0.258, 0.688 — Tim Anderson batting against Chris Archer.
  • 0.264, 0.684 — Michael Brantley batting against Yusei Kikuchi.
  • 0.278, 0.675 — Corey Seager batting against Cole Irvin.
  • 0.262, 0.674 — Xander Bogaerts batting against Shane McClanahan.
  • 0.275, 0.672 — Ty France batting against Carlos Hernandez.
  • 0.285, 0.669 — Nathaniel Lowe batting against Cole Irvin.
  • 0.260, 0.666 — Jose Iglesias batting against Tyler Alexander.
  • 0.249, 0.661 — Nick Castellanos batting against Eric Lauer.
  • 0.266, 0.661 — Wander Franco batting against Rich Hill.

The NN list is still dominated at the top by batters with the best long-term hit averages. Lowe and Franco, however, have the best 2022 hit averages in the group. Corey Seager is the consensus first pick, with Turner the consensus double down choice.

You can follow the NN results on this spreadsheet. I do not guarantee results. Your best pick is going to have about a 25% chance of not getting a hit. Good luck!

April 14, 2022

Beat the Streak Picks

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For the past few years Baseball Musings tried to help with playing Beat the Streak. The Day by Day Database keeps track of hit streak of at least five games. In addition, two programs produce top ten lists of players with a high probability of a hit.

Here are the top picks my programs produced for use in Beat the Streak. This post mostly explains the ideas behind the calculations. In addition, this post shows tests on the Neural Network (NN). This post discusses an NN that includes the ballpark. I updated the models, and the results of those tests are here.

The list of today’s Log5 picks:

The list seems to be more about Irvin of the Athletics rather than the Rays batting against him. It makes sense as Irvin owns both a low strikeout rate and a low walk rate. That means more balls put into play that can turn into hits. With a career opposition BABIP of .308, that happens often.

Franco is the perfect foil, as he also owns a low K rate, a low walk rate, and a high BABIP.

Here are the NN picks:

  • 0.267, 0.697 — Tim Anderson batting against Logan Gilbert.
  • 0.248, 0.677 — Trea Turner batting against Luis Cessa.
  • 0.254, 0.670 — Luis Robert batting against Logan Gilbert.
  • 0.275, 0.662 — Wander Franco batting against Cole Irvin.
  • 0.253, 0.657 — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. batting against Luis Severino.
  • 0.242, 0.655 — Jose Iglesias batting against Justin Steele.
  • 0.262, 0.655 — Frank Schwindel batting against Kyle Freeland.
  • 0.246, 0.654 — Bo Bichette batting against Luis Severino.
  • 0.247, 0.653 — Teoscar Hernandez batting against Luis Severino.
  • 0.254, 0.650 — Jared Walsh batting against Dane Dunning.

Anderson and Turner pop to the top as the NN puts the most weight on their three-season hit average. Anderson comes in at .302, Turner at .298. Anderson sits as the consensus first pick, with Franco as an excellent double down choice.

You can follow the NN results on this spreadsheet. I do not guarantee results. Your best pick is going to have about a 25% chance of not getting a hit. Good luck!

September 27, 2021

Game of the Day

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Only one game today holds playoff implications as the Athletics visit the Mariners. Oakland sends Cole Irvin against Chris Flexen. Oakland still has a slim chance of winning a wild card slot, but they pretty much need to run the board for that to happen, plus getting help from some other teams to knock down the other three clubs in the race. Seattle, a game closer, also needs help, and they probably need to win five of their last six games.

Irvin faced Seattle four times this season and lost all four starts. Seattle pounded out 29 hits in 16 2/3 innings against him. It was not one game blowout, and none of the four starts were good.

Flexen faces the Athletics four times as well, going 2-2 in his starts. His ERA was good at 3.24. Despite striking out just 17 A’s in 25 innings, Flexen limited Oakland to just 22 hits.

Enjoy!

September 5, 2021

Games of the Day

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Cole Irvin of the A’s takes on Robbie Ray of the Jays in an early game with wild card implications. Irvin represents a the kind of pitcher that brings more action to the game. He struck out 99 batters and walked 33 in 149 innings this season. In fact, among pitchers with at least 100 innings this season, Irvin owns a non-action percentage, (Strikeouts+walks+HitByPitch)/BFP, of 22.3%, tied with Zack Greinke for third lowest in the majors. The high belongs to Freddy Peralta of the Brewers at 46.4. Unfortunately, the top of the list looks like a much better set of pitchers than the bottom of the list.

Ray is near the top of the list at 38.4%, and also near the top of the list in Tom Tango Cy Young points.

Texas takes on LAnaheim with Taylor Hearn facing Janson Junk in Junk’s major league debut. It’s not that great a game, but I had to see if Janson was a Junk baller. He owns an 8.3 career K per 9 in the minors, but that kicked up to 9.2 at AA, with better control as well. At this point, it appears the junk is kept in the trunk.

Finally, the Dodger and Giants play the rubber game of their series for the lead in the NL West. NL Cy Young candidate Walker Buehler goes for the Dodgers, while San Francisco has not announced a starter. FanGraphs shows Jose Quintana, but he pitched 2/3 of an inning on Saturday.

Buehler pretty much manhandled the Giants this season. He allowed five runs, three earned, 34 innings. He gave up 20 hits, only one of them a home run.

Enjoy!

August 19, 2021

Games of the Day

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Detroit is likely to host the slugfest of the day. Jose Quintana of the Angels visits Matt Manning of the Tigers. Despite a high strikeout rate, Quintana allowed 56 hits in 50 innings, including eight home runs for a 6.12 ERA. Manning puts the ball over the plate, with just 13 walks and 25 K in 48 2/3 innings. That led to 61 hits and seven home runs for a 6.10 ERA.

The Athletics face the White Sox, Oakland now in the second wild card slot a game behind the Yankees. Cole Irvin takes on Dylan Cease. Irvin pitched a bit better on the road this season, with just three of his eleven home runs allowed coming in away games. Cease owns a 2.44 ERA at home versus 5.86 on the road. A much better K rate in Chicago led to a much lower BA allowed, .199 versus .258.

Enjoy!

August 18, 2021

Games of the Day

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The Mets battle the Giants in an afternoon game with Tylor Megill facing Anthony DeSclafani. Megill has yet to win on the road where his ERA stands at 4.79. DeSclafani owns a higher ERA at home, 4.15, but is 6-2 in San Francisco this season.

The Brewers send Freddy Peralta against the Cardinals and Jack Flaherty in a match-up of nine game winners. There may not be many hits in this game as Peralta allowed just 58 safeties in 119 1/3 innings, while Flaherty gave up 46 hits in 68 innings.

Finally, Cole Irvin of the Athletics takes the hill against Lance Lynn of the White Sox. Irvin successfully induces contact, as opponents own a .256/.300/.364 slash line against him. The BA is high for this season, but the lack of walks and power against him make up for the extra hits. Lynn blows batters away with Ks, resulting in an even better .200/.263/.318 slash line against.

Enjoy!

May 20, 2021

Games of the Day

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The Giants finish their series against the Reds with a lunch-time game, Johnny Cueto facing Tyler Mahle. Cueto’s ERA improvement this season comes from reducing walks. He issued 26 free passes in 63 1/3 innings in 2020, just five in 27 1/3 innings this year. Mahle still gives up home runs at a high rate, and his 2.93 ERA seems out of line with the rest of his pitching stats. Opponents, however, are just 5 for 32 with men in scoring position.

The Astros and Athletics battle for first place in the AL West as Luis Garcia takes on Cole Irvin. Garcia’s MLB career is off to a good start, with a 3.23 ERA in 47 1/3 innings. He has been hurt by allowing seven home runs. Irvin walked just eight batters in 47 2/3 innings, compensating for the five home runs allowed.

Enjoy!

May 15, 2021

Games of the Day

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Oakland takes on Minnesota with Cole Irvin facing Jose Berrios. Irvin greatly limits walks, giving up just six in his forty one innings of work. In part due to that, four of his five home runs allowed were solo shots. Berrios is winless against the Athletics in five starts, 0-3 with a 4.10 ERA. Oakland batters managed to limit their strikeouts against the Twins starter.

The Giants send Johnny Cueto against the Pirates and Tyler Anderson. Cueto cut down on both his walks and home runs compared to 2020. In the short season he allowed nine home runs and 26 walks in 63 1/3 innings. So far in 2021 he allowed two home runs and five walks. Anderson is a bright spot for the Pirates so far. He allowed just 31 hits in 41 1/3 innings, helping him to a 3.05 ERA.

It’s all Andersons in Milwaukee as the former inhabitants of the city send Ian Anderson against the current tenants and Brett Anderson. Ian, in his second season with the Braves, owns a 2.78 ERA in 71 1/3 career innings. He struck out 84 batters, allowing just 53 hits. The veteran Brett averages just four innings per start this season, with few walks and few strikeouts. The balls in play have not hurt that much, as he allowed 20 hits in 20 1/3 innings.

The real question, however, is who has the better band:

Enjoy!

May 9, 2021

Games of the Day

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The Rays send rookie Shane McClanahan ainst the Athletics and Cole Irvin. McClanahan looks for his first decision in his third start. So far he pitched well, striking out ten and walking just two in eight innings for a 2.25 ERA. Irvin found his control with his move to Oakland, walking just five in 35 innings after walking 14 in 45 1/3 innings in his previous two seasons.

The Sunday night game features an NL East tile as the Phillies visit the Braves with Aaron Nola facing Huascar Ynoa. Nola owns a 2.89 ERA and pitches fairly deep into games for this era’s starters, averaging over six innings. Ynoa also goes deep in games. He made six starts on one relief appearance, and in the starts pitched 33 1/3 innings. He’s hitting much better than his opponents. Ynoa owns a .385/.385/.923 slash line, with all three of his hits going for extra bases. His opponents come in at .187/.237/.366. They do hit for power against him, with 11 of the 23 hits going for extra bases.

Enjoy!

April 28, 2021

Games of the Day

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The Red Sox send Nick Pivetta to the mound at Citi Field to face the Jacob deGrom buzz saw. Pivetta owns a 3.48 ERA despite walking 14 batters in 20 2/3 innings. He survived so far as he only allowed one home run and 14 hits. deGrom walked three and struck out 50 in 29 innings. Only one of the four runs he allowed were earned, giving him the odd line of allowing more home runs than earned runs!

Cole Irvin of the Athletics takes on Tyler Glasnow of the Rays. Irvin is another low walk pitcher, with just three allowed in 21 innings. He’s been hit with runners on base, however, with a .308 BA allowed. Glasnow allowed just 14 hits in 30 2/3 innings, good for a 2.05 ERA.

Finally, the Padres send Ryan Weathers against the Diamondbacks and Taylor Widener. Weather has yet to allow a run as a starter, pitching 9 2/3 innings in two starts with just two hits allowed. Widener 2.82 ERA looks much better than his stat line, and xFIP agrees, with a 4.75 mark. Opponents are just 3 for 17 with runners in scoring position against him.

Enjoy!

May 22, 2019

Games of the Day

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Wednesday starts with an excellent pitching match-up as five game winners square off in Milwaukee. Luis Castillo leads the Reds against Zach Davies and the Brewers. Castillo brings a 1.90 ERA into the game thanks in part to allowing just three home runs in 61 2/3 innings. Davies sports a 1.54 ERA. Opponents hit just .240 against him despite a low strikeout rate. The pitchers rank two and three in the NL in ERA.

Cole will be king as the Phillies and Cubs continue their series with Cole Irvin facing Cole Hamels. The Phillies continue to have good luck with pitchers named Cole, as Irvin won the first two starts of his MLB career, walking just two batters in 13 innings. Hamels stands 4-0 in nine starts this season, holding the opposition to a .216/.290/.357 slash line. (Just for good measure, Gerrit Cole is starting for Houston tonight.)

Finally, Max Fried takes on Jeff Samardzjia as the Braves battle the Giants. Fried walked 11 batters in 50 1/3 innings, helping him limit batters to a .283 OBP. Samardzjia allowed just one of his eight home runs at home this year, and owns a 2.61 ERA in San Francisco.

Enjoy!