Welcome to the SP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every starting pitcher’s performance from every Saturday game. I apologize for the jokes written in my delirium in advance. Have questions? Ask me during my office hours on Playback.tv weekday mornings from 10 am-12 pm ET.
Nick Lodolo (CIN) @ CHW (W) – 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 1 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 42% CSW, 91 pitches.
After a 2023 that came with one of the worst BABIPs we’ve ever seen, it’s fitting that Nick Lodolo’s debut outing of 2024 returned 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 1 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 42% CSW, 91 pitches with a no-hit bid concluding in the sixth frame. Wait, that’s a disgusting line. It sure is. Let’s talk about it.
Lodolo’s curveball was as filthy as ever, looking like peak Chris Sale with 58% CSW as he mixed gorgeous back-foot breakers with surprise hooks for called strikes. It’s the yacker that got us into Lodolo in the first place and catalyzes his 25-30% strikeout rate ability. The question hasn’t been if he can miss bats with the pitch, it’s if the other options can keep him afloat.
The White Sox certainly helped in this one. I wouldn’t classify Lodolo’s fastballs as special, with casual sinkers and four-seamers landing well inside the zone consistently, opening the door for bombardment against strong lineups. That said, he’s not wild with them, either, and he has a plan of attack throughout at-bats missing from many younger arms.
His changeup hasn’t been a reliable weapon in previous seasons and to see 6/12 whiffs with a 75% strike rate was a very welcome sight, though I have my reservations that those numbers will stay reasonably afloat on future days, especially against a stronger set of bats.
Regardless, Lodolo looked excellent in this one on the back of his stellar curveball, despite his heater failing to overwhelm. With the Angels up next, Lodolo should obviously be snatched up in leagues where managers elected to pass over the IL-branded southpaw. I’m not ready to suggest a massive 2024 breakout is coming (don’t forget, Cincy is his home and that heater is HR prone), though it’s clear you should ride it for now.
Let’s see how every other SP did Saturday:
Shota Imanaga (CHC) @ SEA (W) – 5.1 IP, 0 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 4 Whiffs, 19% CSW, 90 pitches.
We’re thrilled he still hasn’t allowed an ER and sealed a Win, but this wasn’t Shōta domination deserving of his shirt. Solid four-seamer locations upstairs, though 1/22 splitter whiffs after earning twelve in his debut outing should outline some of the volatility we could see this year. I personally would like more than seven breaking balls featured, especially if his heater is capable of starts like these where it went just 3/61 whiffs.
MacKenzie Gore (WSN) @ OAK (W) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 11 Ks – 20 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 90 pitches.
Gore is dope and makes me feel dope. 12/52 whiffs on his 97+ mph heater, 43% CSW on his curve, and 5/7 changeup strikes. Imagine if he can get a little more consistent on his slider…Sure, this was the Athetics and we haven’t see him dominate against a good team, but he’s got the goods. I’m going for it against the Astros.
Logan Webb (SFG) @ TBR (W) – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 96 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. There’s our man. With the slider? Nah, 3/26 whiffs and 50% strikes. In fact, his changeup didn’t miss a single bat, but it returned so many outs in play and helped him cruise through seven. I hope you didn’t listen to the Webb of lies that he was cooked. They just wanted you to trade him away…
Max Meyer (MIA) vs ATL (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks – 23 Whiffs, 36% CSW, 91 pitches.
Hot dang, look at you! Meyer went 54% sliders (it’s by far his best pitch, after all), catalyzing a Gallows Pole and a 24% SwStr rate on the breaker against one of the most dangerous lineups in the bigs. That dominating slider opened up his four-seamer and changeup for 11 whiffs of their own and I very well may be underrating Meyer after watching this. It felt like the best version of the kid and likely not what we see with regularity + when does he next start? Braxton Garrett and Edward Cabrera could both return this week, yet Weathers or Puk could both get ousted instead, which would make Meyer get the Cubs next time out. I’m cool with that, just monitor if Meyer actually gets the start.
Cody Poteet (NYY) @ CLE (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 4 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 77 pitches.
Little Poteet found himself a sheep start with the Yankees as they took advantage of the extra man for the double-header. With a massive lead early, he comfortably tossed six frames with a ton of strikes and let the baseball do what it wanted. Not much to lean into for a dependable starter, especially with his reliance for sinker outs over the plate.
Kenta Maeda (DET) vs MIN (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 87 pitches.
Ayyyy, the coin flip went his way! Sure, it was against the Twins and his splitter + slider combined for 5/48 whiffs, but we smile and let our anxiety disappear to the wire as he gets the Rangers next.
Joe Ryan (MIN) @ DET (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 12 Ks – 20 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 96 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. Ryna deserves it, flexing an improved heater from 2023 and more reliable sliders and splitters. In fact, his sliders returned eight whiffs, splitters six whiffs, and four-seamers just five in this one. HE’S GOT IT ALL WORKING. But it was the Tigers! And what do aces do? …they take full advantage of good opportunities. Sure do. We’re riding Junior (J.R.) out there indefinitely.
Ryne Nelson (ARI) vs STL (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 81 pitches.
Okay. So. The four-seamer is cooking. High locations, great iVB, 95+ mph, 40% CSW, 19% SwStr rate, it’s the hottest place in town. Meanwhile, the cutter returned outs in play, but just 12% CSW…at 91/92 mph velocity. I’LL TAKE IT. I’m thrilled to see him lean into the approach and it should work against the Giants this week.
Simeon Woods Richardson (MIN) @ DET (W) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 80 pitches.
He got the chance to start for the double-header and this was much better than what we saw last year, but still not enough for me to consider him as a reliable starter. There is a Toby in here if he can get the right feel for heater spots + limit mistakes with his slider + earn consistent changeup whiffs (it can be filthy!). A bit too underwhelming at the moment, even with his velocity up to 93 mph vs. the 90/91 we saw last year.
Matt Waldron (SDP) @ LAD (ND) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 93 pitches.
Don’t Trust A Knuckleballer. Yes, even if it worked out against the Dodgers and he struck out Betts and Freeman on filthy ones. It’s an unpredictable pitch in every sense.
Clarke Schmidt (NYY) @ CLE (W) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 5 BBs, 7 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 85 pitches.
The Guardians chucked a lineup full of LHB against Schmidt and he responded with a whole lot of walks. The gameplan was high-and-away cutters, sinkers, and sweepers…or at least that’s what he did. This wasn’t a sharp Schmidt and I’m still waiting for the start to get me excited moving forward. He’s not bad, just not dependable.
Joe Boyle (OAK) vs WSN (L) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 86 pitches.
One walk! Against a poor lineup! ATTA BOYLE. 50% strike rate on his fastball is still laughable, but at least his slider stepped up in a big way to go 20/23 strikes with a near 50% CSW. Y’all know you can’t trust this.
Carlos Carrasco (CLE) vs NYY (L) – 4.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 5 BBs, 2 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 88 pitches.
At least he’s throwing a tick harder? And now he gets Fenway, as if you needed more of a reason to let Carlos stick on the wire.
Yariel Rodríguez (TOR) vs COL (ND) – 3.2 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 68 pitches.
This was Yariel’s MLB debut and obviously I watched it. A few things stuck out: He changes his release points across his pitches. His fastball has cut action. His sweeper is solid. There isn’t much else. What lucious writing. I’m not the biggest fan of this – his four-seamer is really a cutter with a ton of horizontal break and isn’t a whiff offering I’d trust to hold up its 12.5% SwStr rate in this one. Being mostly a two-pitch pitcher, I need more than the good slider and this heater to buy in long-term. Remember, this was Rockie Road. I’m not jumping for him against the Padres, personally.
Gavin Stone (LAD) vs SDP (W) – 6.2 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 88 pitches.
Huge props to Stone commanding his sinker inside a ton against RHB Padres hitters and trying to get his cutter inside to LHB. It’s not quite there yet and you can think of Stone a little like Clarke Schmidt in this way – a sinker/cutter approach with one great secondary on a winning ballclub. There’s a bit more upside in Gavin, but it’s close. We’re rolling this Stone against the Mets later this week, of course.
Marco Gonzales (PIT) @ PHI (ND) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 90 pitches.
Marco pitched a great game, then hit the IL with a forearm strain. Sleep, my sweet streaming prince.
Ronel Blanco (HOU) vs TEX (ND) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 93 pitches.
The legend continues. He impressed us with his slider and changeup in his first two outings, now it’s the four-seamer dominating with 9/49 whiffs, which was so dang precise at the top of the zone. That’s a 87th percentile hiLoc at 64% for his heater and now with the Nationals up next, I’m obviously kicking myself for being more aggressive on Blanco after his no-hitter. It was the Rangers twice! And Verlander was returning! Welp, props to those who grabbed him, there’s no way the Astros boot Blanco and leave Hunter or France at this point.
Emerson Hancock (SEA) vs CHC (L) – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 74 pitches.
After a horrific season debut, Hancock displayed how he could be a Toby with tons of fastballs and changeups earning outs. If only that slider could become a major weapon…I wouldn’t trust him in Coors + Woo could be back back after that.
Cooper Criswell (BOS) vs LAA (ND) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 83 pitches.
Needing 83 pitches for just four innings is a bit disappointing and I’m not down to trust the 13 called strikes on the sinker moving forward. This is a desperate Win chance against the Guardians next time out that I’d prefer to avoid.
Andrew Heaney (TEX) @ HOU (ND) – 3.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 1 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 22% CSW, 79 pitches.
Heaney vs. the Astros. Gasp.
Spencer Turnbull (PHI) vs PIT (ND) – 4.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 3 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 88 pitches.
Blegh. He got called strikes on the heater and sweeper, but where’s the whiffs?! Expect a little better against the White Sox, though I think we can all understand that Turnbull isn’t your budding ace or anything close to it. Streamer against poor squads.
Matt Manning (DET) vs MIN (L) – 6.2 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 92 pitches.
Those final two runs in the sixth did him in on a terrible sweeper over the plate to a LHB for a two-run shot. Blegh. Manning’s heater got me excited in the spring but it hasn’t looked the same in his first two outings at just 93 mph, not 94/95 mph (the luck he’s had to get two starts by April 13th despite losing the fifth rotation spot). Still, it’s flat with great iVB and about seven feet of extension and when Manning finds his command, you can swoop him up later.
Kyle Gibson (STL) @ ARI (L) – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 22% CSW, 95 pitches.
Whenever I consider Gibson, I sing a melody. Don’t play games with my start. This is not the roulette wheel to spin.
Ryan Pepiot (TBR) vs SFG (L) – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 85 pitches.
Pepiot’s secondaries let him down here. His four-seamer did all the right things staying upstairs and earning nine whiffs, but his slider was hung and his changeup wasn’t landing low as it should. At least it’s still not the worst line and you got something out it. Whatareyagonnado.
Alec Marsh (KCR) @ NYM (W) – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 90 pitches.
A Win is a Win. Sure ain’t pretty, though. You really don’t need to hold on Marsh.
Chris Sale (ATL) @ MIA (L) – 7.0 IP, 5 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 38% CSW, 102 pitches.
Five runs?! I appreciate going seven to make the ratios hurt a little less and seeing 10/40 slider whiffs is always a joy + watching Sale get his feel for the changeup back is great. But five runs!? Can you locate just a little better please?
Dakota Hudson (COL) @ TOR (L) – 6.0 IP, 5 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 102 pitches.
COL story, bro. But amazing slider locations! Yes yes yes, and even when he does things decently well outside of Coors, it’s still bad. But Toronto! IT’S STILL BAD.
Garrett Crochet (CHW) vs CIN (L) – 4.2 IP, 5 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 10 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 92 pitches.
He’s not immoral after all. Well, when a two-out 3-2 strike is called a ball and is followed followed by a bases-clearing double for 3 ER, you’re gonna have a bad time. Crochet still has some fantastic whiffs in his slider and can overpower with his fastball, though during that tough second frame, he was pushed harder and wasn’t able to find that resolve to find the strikes he needed to get out of it. The fastball wasn’t blowing by everyone in the zone then, while the slider wasn’t the untouchable breaker. It did show a weakness and yet, we don’t care…? That’s ten strikeouts and a single crooked inning that could have been just 2 ER. Brush it off.
Triston McKenzie (CLE) vs NYY (L) – 4.0 IP, 5 ER, 4 Hits, 6 BBs, 1 Ks – 2 Whiffs, 15% CSW, 84 pitches.
Ouch. Velocity is still down, 0/27 curveball whiffs. 2/7 slider strikes. Is that good. No, Steve, this isn’t good. Who’s Steve? Who asks if that’s good? Touché. I’ve already dropped McKenzie in a league before this start and here’s even more confirmation.
DL Hall (MIL) @ BAL (ND) – 3.1 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 75 pitches.
Fastball still at 92/93, changeup at 5/13 strikes, a date with the Orioles…yeah. I’d leave him on the wire against the Cards.
Griffin Canning (LAA) @ BOS (L) – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 9 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 70 pitches.
He’s still 92/93 with his breakers going 2/26 whiffs. At least his changeup returned a 55% CSW, though he’s still way too hittable. I wouldn’t.
Dean Kremer (BAL) vs MIL (L) – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 10 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 85 pitches.
The splitter disappeared for just 3/8 strikes, looking toward the sinker and curve to step in. Not great. Leave him on the wire until he’s in a groove.
Sean Manaea (NYM) vs KCR (L) – 3.2 IP, 6 ER, 9 Hits, 3 BBs, 4 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 89 pitches.
Ouch. The Royals are a tough crew these days and even with a solid changeup approach, Manaea got hammered. I do want to note: There is a cutter in the mix now for Manaea and I hope that comes into play more moving forward. For those on the fence, note that the Dodgers are next. You can move on safely.
Game of the Day
Yu Darvish vs. James Paxton – I really want to watch Darvish meticulously get through the Dodger lineup + can Paxton keep it together at 93 mph?
But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? – I’ve moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.
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Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)
Not sure any of us is in a position to judge Crochet’s morality :)