So last week I elected to give Stephen Strasburg a new nickname: In-and-Out Burger, derived from his inability to stay consistent for a long time. Well, he went 8.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 Hits, 1 BBs, 14 Ks and he’s been consistently dominant now across his last ten starts: 2.07 ERA, 11.67 K/9, and a 1.32 BB/9 across 61 IP. Yeah, those numbers are so damn juicy I feel like I should keep reading and make some tasty beverage for easy money. His Changeup was looking mighty fine tonight, and when paired with a Curveball that he’s finally throwing more often – he threw 35 last time out – Strasburg is looking sharper and as polished as ever. But the problem has never been his stuff. It’s been his ability to dominate each and every night. If you own him, you’re obviously starting every night, so this is all about his 2016 outlook. I made the mistake in February believing that Strasburg was going to bounce back from a tumultuous 2014 and be this dominant self consistently through the season. I’m not sure I’ll be ready to make nearly the same endorsement a second time.
Let’s see what every other SP did yesterday:
Jon Lester – 9.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 9 Ks. Bigger news is that Lester actually picked a guy off. Well, the fella started running before he released the ball so Lester didn’t have a choice. Anywho, this start is great and you should feel great. Great.
Jacob deGrom – 5.0 IP, 6 ER, 10 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks. What is this deGrom. Before this start, you had allowed more than 3 ER just once since May 16th. Yes that was 20 games started where half of them had at least 8 Ks. So when you do this against the freakin’ Marlins, it’s a little bit weird bud.
Gerrit Cole – 6.1 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks. Aces gonna kinda ace. Cole first looked at Strasburg…then deGrom…then back at Strasburg, threw up his hands and turned into Switzerland.
Josh Tomlin – 9.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. The Tomlin hype train keeps up CHOO-CHOOing like a boss even though he had his toughest matchup yet against Kansas City. And yet I still can’t fight the feeling that his absurdly good BABIP that will be near .150 after this start is going to bite a bunch of you in a place that I don’t want to say out loud. But you’re just typing and not saying a dang word. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN.
Carlos Martinez – 8.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks. Now that’s more like it Cmart.
Tyson Ross – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 9 Ks. Ross, you’re so dang close to being good yet I know you’ll never get there. You just can’t have a WHIP low enough to make me happy. That’s why I’m dating your younger, sexier brother Joe.
Kris Medlen – 6.1 IP, 0 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 0 Ks. So you started him because you liked his hardwood floor, but you didn’t invite anyone over because the place doesn’t have any luxuries whatsoever. Yep, sounds like Toby’s home alright.
Tom Koehler – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 4 Ks. Yes I know this is Koehler’s third straight start 2 ER or fewer. Whoop de freakin’ do. Jeremy Guthrie allowed just 4 ER across three straight starts in May. Yeah, I went there.
Ariel Pena – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. Sing to me Ariel! I wish I weren’t so…What’s that word again? Baaaaaaadddd.
David Buchanan – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks. He sounds like a guy running for president who you know isn’t going to win. Is that who you really want to stick into your lineup?
Jake Odorizzi – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. So Odorizzi isn’t going to be a Top 25 next year, but if his shaky 2nd half has him fall into the mid 40s, you bet I’m gonna jump on that next year.
Brett Anderson – 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks. Our Call Boy got the job done with a bonus of some sweet, sweet Ks.
Felix Hernandez – 7.0 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks. The King is struggling again baby. He’s either going to be a steal next year or a dud. I’m leaning on the steal side, but I highly doubt I’ll own him anywhere. A risky pitcher that early in a draft is not my cup of tea.
Julio Teheran – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 7 Ks. I’m impressed that Teheran only allowed 2 ER against the mighty, mighty Jays, but his WHIP brings things back down to Earth.
Nick Tropeano – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. I don’t this Nick for a multitude of reasons, but the most recent one is that he reminded me that TV Tropes exists and I’ve been lost there for hours now. HELP.
Chris Heston – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 8 Ks. So the K upside is promising, but everything else – especially the four walks – is not. I don’t believe that Heston will every truly figure it out as his delivery sets him up for wildness. He throws across his body and often gets on the side of the ball, which allows him to get some sweet horizontal ride at the cost of accuracy and less vertical drop. There will be given nights that he will just feel it man and deliver in a big way, but those other nights are gonna be rough. It’s never going to go away with his mechanics.
Jhoulys Chacin – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. Yeah, I didn’t like Chacin in Colorado and I don’t like him in Arizona. Well, to be fair, I wouldn’t like Scarlett Johansson in Colorado either. It’s the thin air.
Chris Rusin – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks. Speaking of which…Rusin has limited upside, pitches his home games at Coors Field, and doesn’t deserve a spot on your team. This should be the blurb for every Colorado starter.
J.A. Happ – 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks. That Happened. The Ks are still there, which makes me think they aren’t going away and he got Singled Out a bit. Stay with him through the year.
Mark Buehrle – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks. The Burly Buehrle keeps doing his thang. Just without a Win today because clearly the Jays are no match for the ferocious Braves.
Alfredo Simon – 6.1 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. The cheese in Simon comes not from France, but from Kraft. You mean the guy who owns the New England Patriots? No. Just no.
Adam Warren – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks. So Eovaldi goes down and this is what we get in return. Warren was a deeeep sleeper this spring and while it’s possible he throws a decent 5/6 inning start at some point, I don’t see him holding much value than that small upside.
John Lamb – 4.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks. Lamb is seriously starting to annoy me now as his Changeup clearly is more bi-polar than referring to Antarctica and the Arctic circle at the same time. But on the real, Lamb just isn’t as polished as the other studly rookies for me to get any movement in me nethers.
Ubaldo Jimenez – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 4 Ks. Just go away. Please, I mean it this time. And don’t think about sneaking up, I can see the sun’s reflection of your head from a mile away. Are you still making U-bald-o jokes Nick? YOU TRY MAKING ORIGINAL JOKES IN SEPTEMBER.
Phil Hughes – 3.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. So…that MFRTSPA that Hughes was totally going to win…well this is awkward, but unless he crashes in his final weeks, I think Ervin Santana will ultimately get it. Right? I mean do we really want to give it to Kyle Gibson or Trevor May? I know what you’re thinking but Tyler Duffey hasn’t started enough to earn it and I’d even say Santana has still made a bigger impact.
Jason Hammel – 3.2 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. The days of Hammel are behind us. I for one accept our new Tomlin overlords.
Joe Kelly – 2.1 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. We knew it was going to be a hit for Kelly like it was Since U Been Gone.
Aaron Brooks – 6.0 IP, 6 ER, 10 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. A room without Brooks is a room with a soul.
Derek Holland – 5.2 IP, 5 ER, 10 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks. Pass the Dutchie.
Collin McHugh – 3.2 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 3 BBs, 4 Ks. Welp, the idea of a revitalized McHugh is donezo. We had our moments, but it’s time to hang it up for 2016.
Jeff Samardzija – 3.0 IP, 10 ER, 11 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. Oh my lord this is bad. Like if three Titanic crashed into three major cities and unleashed sharks to everyone involved. That kind of Loose Lips.
Today’s Streamers
Ervin Santana vs. Detroit Tigers – Believe it or not, Detroit has been a bottom third offense in the second half, and Santana can rack up the Ks better than anyone else on your waiver wire.
Tomorrow’s Streamer
Chris Tillman vs. Tampa Bay Rays – Blegh. Seriously, the only other options are Charlie Morton vs. the Cubs, Tanner Roark vs. Miami and Hector Santiago vs. Minnesota. There are all shaky pitchers in their own right, so give me the guy against the worst team…the Rays.
Game of the Day
Chris Archer vs. Luis Severino – Playoff implications for the Yankees and two solid pitchers make this an easy choice.