If you’re a masochist and want to endure a super frustrating start, look no further than Steven Matz’s outing against the Yankees last night as he went 6.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks. He allowed two hits in the first off stupidly weak hits, followed by a poorly executed Changeup that scored two, then a well placed two-seamer that Didi should have fouled off, but caught the line for a double. Then Teixeira hits a 3-run HR in the second on a flyball that’s caught in the majority of ballparks in the league. At least Matz showed that he had it in him to stick around and shut down the pinstripes for four innings after and give you a salvageable 6 Ks and a 1.17 WHIP, but I already have people ragging on me for making him Top 20 and there’s still a part of me that believes I have it right. I know how crazy that sounds, but given the question marks in the 20s, I still think Matz has a good chance of providing Top 20 numbers ROS. Obviously I need to dock him some points come Monday for this start and he’ll be outside the teens, but I wouldn’t be giving up on the kid.
Let’s see what every other SP did yesterday:
Hisashi Iwakuma – 7.1 IP, 0 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks. This came against Boston, which makes this super good start super gooder. Yeah, that’s a thing. Iwakuma’s last start against the Cubs was a tad unlucky, and I like to believe he’s coming around a bit, as this is his third start in five games with 1 ER or fewer – the other was a 2 ER effort as well. Does that mean I’m all for his start against Detroit next? Ho boy, that’s a tough one. It’s not fair that he has to go Cubs/Sawx/Tigers…
Max Scherzer – 8.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 11 Ks. Aces gonna ace. That’s why he’s #1, an extra ER than we’d like be damned.
Jake Odorizzi – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. Odorizzi has been on a great 3 game roll, as he had a pair of 0 ER starts before this one. I would feel bad not mentioning that this was against the Royals and that he gets the Jays next. Can’t say I’m too excited about that.
Marco Estrada – 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks. Big rebound from Estrada who looked like he was fulling regressing after his last seven starts or so. The Astros like their strikeouts like they like stupid hills in center field, though I’m most impressed here with his goose egg in the walk column. He gets to Rays + Yanks next so expect good times ahead.
Chris Sale – 8.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks. Of course the start after we question if Sale is still Top 10 he gives us his first double-digit strikeout performance – against the Tigers no less. Freakin’ baseball man.
Rick Porcello – 8.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks. Porcello just keeps on keepin’ on. Might be one of the more underrated starters this year as he holds a 3.46 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and a sizeable 119 strikeouts. Don’t forget the 14-3 record, of course.
Tom Koehler – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks. Hey Tom, did you convince some kids to make this start for you? Cause this ain’t you fella.
Michael Fulmer – 6.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks. After a few shaky starts, it’s nice to see Fulmer get back to his old ways. I’m super curious what the Tigers end up doing with him as they fight to win the division. Just 2 games back from the Indians and I feel Detroit will push that innings limit just a bit if they need a great start mid September. We’ll see.
Kevin Gausman – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks. See that stat line? There’s Gausman’s upside. That’s what we’ve been chasing for a while and it came against a good team as well as he faced the Rangers. Don’t forget it, but don’t get too excited as a 6 ER start is still tailgating like a madman.
Tyler Anderson – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks. Anderson allowed a Turner 2-run shot in the first and then nothing else. I know it’s hard to believe that I’m still low on the kid after putting up solid under-the-hood stats all around, I just can’t believe that he’ll keep up his command when he such a small margin of error playing in Coors. But yeah, I’m fine with you picking him up. I just need to let out my feelings, you know?
John Lackey – 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 7 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks. Looks like Lackey is turning it around. Good for him, I guess. What, you don’t like Lackey? I dunno, he’s always come across as that guy who makes the new kid feel super uncomfortable until someone else saves the youngin’ from Lackey’s death stare.
Edwin Jackson – 8.0 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks. Going way Edwin, you should be called EdLoss, am I right? I’m so sorry for that joke.
Cole Hamels – 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 6 Ks. That walk rate is creeping up again and it’s a bit frustrating, especially against the O’s who like their walks like they like their spins of a Fred Durst record – never. I stand by the fact that he’s still very good and suppressing hard contact and inducing weak contact, which should lead him to outperform his FIP/xFIP, though a regression to a 3.40 ERA or so wouldn’t shock me. Just fix dem walks fella.
Johnny Cueto – 7.2 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks. Through six, Cueto was simply dealing. Then a pair of solo shots in the 7th. No biggie, just smalls. Then he went out in the eighth, walked a batter and allowed two singles that turned into two runs. Whaddyagonnado.
Collin McHugh – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 10 Ks. The Jays are striking out aplenty as McHugh got in on the action. Pretty impressed with this one and it’s the second game in four starts where he’s collected 10 Ks. Problem is that he gets the supa hot Twins next, followed by a Jays rematch and Orioles in Camden. Can’t say I’m trusting McHugh in any of those outings.
Michael Wacha – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks. One of the better starts from Wacha as of late if you can believe it. I still wouldn’t be happy owning him in a 12 teamer, especially with so many young fun arms these days.
Zack Godley – 6.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks. Ah yes, The False God.
Rob Whalen – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 5 Ks. Another day, another Braves starter debut, and another Cup of Schmo.
Tyler Duffey – 6.0 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks. That K/BB is nice but we are so far away from trusting Duffey again. So far away…
Jered Weaver – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 9 Hits, 0 BBs, 1 Ks. I still have visions of Weaver after ball games running into the clubhouse to see if there were pitchers who performed better than him. In those fortunate nights, we rears back and lets loose a mighty cackle of joy.
Phil Klein – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks. Since Aaron Nola went on the DL, Klein got the start and did exactly what you’d expect from a no-name Philly starter.
Junior Guerra – 4.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 5 Ks. And here we go…It’s about time Guerra had a few setbacks, though I have to admit I expected it a little later as he got the Padres in the start and gets Braves + Reds next.
Chad Green – 3.2 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 4 BBs, 2 Ks. Welp this didn’t go nearly as expected. I liked what I saw in his brief time and was hoping it would translate in his return against the Mets. At least this means Severino is most likely getting a shot in the near future? Super interested to see how that goes.
Cody Reed – 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks. He’s a true Young Gun but this wasn’t supposed to go well at all as he faced the Cards.
Jeff Locke – 4.1 IP, 5 ER, 9 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks. Oh right, Locke is still a thing and he pitches and he ruins dreams and he doesn’t actually ruin dreams because no one dreamed of him doing well and now we’re all sad.
Kendall Graveman – 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 9 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks. Wait, so Graveman isn’t someone to invest in? You don’t say…
Edinson Volquez – 5.0 IP, 7 ER, 11 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks. Ha! At least I changed my stream from Volquez to Green, right? RIGHT?
Trevor Bauer – 2.2 IP, 7 ER, 8 Hits, 5 BBs, 1 Ks. Please tell me you’ve already moved on from Bauer. Please.
Brock Stewart – 4.0 IP, 9 ER, 10 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks. Today was the day of super under the radar guys with decent stuff getting shelled as they returned to the majors. I group Green and Stewart together and they both fell apart in their chance to prove themselves once again on the grand stage. Stewart has the better excuse heading into Coors, but it’s all kinda sad, really. I hope they each get chances at some point to get a proper sample size and possibly cultivate into productive streamers at the very least.
Today’s Streamers
Matt Boyd vs Chicago White Sox – I like the way his Changeup is looking these days and I’m betting on him to continue his ride against the ChiSox. So Boyd is actually going Saturday now and JZ is going today, so today I’m going with nobody. Crazy, right? All the good matchups belong to guys just on the brink of not being streamers (Matt Moore vs the Phillies or Drew Smyly vs Kansas City) or to the really really bad (Ricky Nolasco vs Oakland or Ryan Vogelsong vs the Braves).
Tomorrow’s Streamer
Ervin Santana vs. Tampa Bay Rays – He’s been on a good roll and while I really don’t like him overall, there isn’t a better option. :-/
Day After Tomorrow’s Streamer
Matt Boyd vs Chicago White Sox – Okay, for realsies this time. I like the way his Changeup is looking these days and I’m betting on him to continue his ride against the ChiSox.
Game of the Day
Vincent Velasquez vs. Matt Moore – We’re going to be streaming this game today at 1:00pm on Twitter via Periscope, so come on by as we hang out and discuss what we’re looking for as these young pitchers square off. Other games include the return of Mike Clevinger and Drew Pomeranz’s latest chance to prove himself a worthy addition to the Sawx ballclub.