There's no question that t he start that turned the most heads last night was Robert Stephenson going 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 4 BBs, 11 Ks again the Pirates. I took the time to watch this one and he was locked in from the start. In fact, he struck out the first six batters he faced in this game and cruised until the sixth where he left with the bases loaded. Now this is a near 2.00 WHIP as well to go with those Ks, including four walks - and it's fun to note that he went 3.1 innings with 2 ER, 7 Hits, 4 Walks, 5 Ks after the opening stretch. But let's get to the meat of this as I'm sure you're curious if he's a guy to pick up. This might sound surprising but...meh. The Pirates were chasing his Slider a TON in this one, which allowed him to get ahead in counts with pitches that would normally be taken off the plate. Remember, Stephenson's biggest knock has been his walk rate, which is created by a Fastball that has its moments, but gets himself stuck in bad counts often. In this game, he avoided that a bit at the start with a Slider that got whiff after whiff (22 swings-and-misses overall this game for an easy Gallows Pole) and I'm not buying that this will happen often. Now, his schedule is fantastic - Mets, Brewers, Mets, Pirates, Cardinals - and I don't blame you for running after it if you're looking for that extra help at the end of your staff. Still, I don't see this being a game that we see often from Stephenson and that floor is still very very low.
Let’s see how every other SP did yesterday:
Do you like Tyler Mahle tomorrow against PIT?
Nope. I dislike rolling with guys on their first callup and I’m not overall impressed with Mahle from what I’ve read.
A Little Mermaid joke for Miranda? Well played sir…