Welcome to the SP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every starting pitcher's performance from every Tuesday 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.
Jonathan Cannon (CHW) vs HOU (W) - 8.2 IP, 0 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks - 9 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 106 pitches.
Hey. Pick up Jonathan Cannon. We saw him command effectively in his previous outing, but with a date against the Astros, it felt wise to hold off as it could have been an exception + the Astros create a low floor that's ideal to avoid. Cannon responded with 8.2 IP, 0 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks - 9 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 106 pitches, looking like an absolute beast. His sweeper was the main weapon of attack and it earned out after out as batters chased it out of the zone, while his sinker deftly worked around the plate, and his changeup was brutal to LHB, and it even had a gorgeous strikeout to Altuve as well.
It was all in his command, yes, but the pitches themselves dart enough in each direction to take advantage of his game plan. It's "Canibal McSanchez" + armside sinkers, gloveside sweepers, and low changeups. That's the full diamond of locations you want to see and you don't have a game like this without the ability to replicate something closer to it in the future. With the Tigers up next, you really should add Cannon to your squad.
Let's see how every other SP did Tuesday:
Slade Cecconi (ARI) @ WSN (W) - 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks - 5 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 70 pitches.
I don't get it but here, have a "Gold Star". Why did the Nationals elect to just sit there and let Cecconi hurl 16 called strikes with his four-seamer with just 15 swings? Did you want the dude to earn a "King Cole"? He went 78% strikes on the heater in this one and the Nationals obliged, putting themselves in poor counts and getting into outs. What a weird game. No, I definitely don't buy it.
Tobias Myers (MIL) @ LAA (W) - 6.1 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks - 10 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 90 pitches.
That's three straight games of 6+ IP and 0 ER for Myers, albeit against the Tigers, Jays, and Angels. His heater can be hard to hit with 19" of "iVB" and solid extension, while his slider and changeup show legit promise as whiff pitches, and the cutter...well, that wasn't as good as we've seen here. I think he's getting a bit fortunate during this stretch, but I do believe a great starter is in here if he can wield all his weapons properly. Wait, he's not doing that across 20 IP of shutout baseball? I know how weird that sounds, but I think this outing could have gone very differently if he faced a tougher lineup. At this point, we have to "Vargas Rule" it for the Padres next and I sure hope the results stick around.
Nestor Cortes (NYY) vs BAL (W) - 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 6 Ks - 8 Whiffs, 20% CSW, 105 pitches.
Hot dang, look at you! Cortes sat 93 mph, the highest four-seamer velocity of the season, and mixed it well with his cutter to find outs against a tough Orioles offense. I don't think this was the best precision we've seen from him, but the heater's improved velocity + elite 19" of "iVB" + intertwining cutters made him tough to be squared up against, even with pitches over the plate. Phew.
Nick Lodolo (CIN) @ PIT (W) - 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 8 Ks - 18 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 95 pitches.
Remember how I said Lodolo's curveball wasn't looking great? Yeah, the pitch returned 8/26 whiffs at 50% CSW with his heater sitting above it for seven whiffs and his changeup playing its role well with 67% strikes. That's a co-share of the "Gallows Pole" and a full share of our devotion for the Pirates (again!) + Cardinals up next.
Spencer Schwellenbach (ATL) vs DET (W) - 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks - 18 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 89 pitches.
Fitting to have a classically themed image on the day Mr. Crescendo has his breakout moment with a "Gallows Pole". You hear that?! It's the sound of managers' necks across the country twisting to get a look at Spencer. 35% CSW with 7/23 whiffs on the cutter. 35% CSW four-seamers. 36% CSW curveballs. 6/7 strikes on the splitter. All of this plus a 76% strike slider and 14 whiffs across his breakers as Spencer dominated the Tigers. And now he gets the Cardinals + Pirates. Get the fella and have fun with this. But the cutter got a lot of whiffs on pitches over the plate. Yeaaah, that's probably not happening against better offenses, but I'm still heavily encouraged by this.
Hogan Harris (OAK) vs KCR (W) - 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks - 3 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 100 pitches.
Harris incessantly pounded the top half of the zone with four-seamers, tallying seventeen called strikes on the pitch before the night ended. The heater is obviously solid, but I was disappointed to see the changeup fail him so often. That's the pitch I think can transform Harris if he can tunnel it well with his pronounced heater and big curve. What about the slider? Yeah, what was that thing doing? 12/23 strikes without a whiff and generally poor precision. Get that guy outta here or refined or whatever. Just not this.
Michael King (SDP) @ PHI (ND) - 4.2 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 6 Ks - 12 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 100 pitches.
You almost made it, King. Your changeup was vicious, but. neither the sweeper nor slider was doing a whole lot, and it made you a bit pickier than usual. So it goes, way to work out of trouble to let just one run score.
Logan Webb (SFG) @ CHC (ND) - 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks - 7 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 101 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. Webb feels like a "Holly" who belongs after the "Ace Potential" tier of The List, but he produces lines like these more consistently than his contemporaries so I just can't justify dropping him that far down. So you continue to live at the very bottom of the Aces tier, watching other young chickens become executives, just like you.
Bailey Falter (PIT) vs CIN (L) - 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks - 6 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 80 pitches.
Uhhh, Blame it on the Reds? Is that a thing? I can't really explain it otherwise as Falter wasn't all that special here. Throw strikes, they still have to hit 'em, ya know?
Justin Steele (CHC) vs SFG (ND) - 6.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks - 14 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 96 pitches.
Legit Steele is here and I think it's here to stay. His heater is doing exactly what it should be doing and the slider is good enough (with room to grow, too!). It's so nice to have you back.
Framber Valdez (HOU) @ CHW (L) - 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 2 Hits, 5 BBs, 5 Ks - 9 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 93 pitches.
Valdez had nothing but sinkers and a 54% strike curveball that found a fair number of outs. Blame it on the White Sox. It's that simple.
Chris Bassitt (TOR) vs BOS (ND) - 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks - 8 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 99 pitches.
The kitchen sink of all eight pitches showed up here and it was business per usual. Seriously, y'all know who he is. Nothing's new here.
Tanner Houck (BOS) @ TOR (ND) - 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks - 10 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 103 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. First start for Houck with the new label and there's always a start that's a little weird wearing the new pair of sneakers. But seriously, the splitter command was a bit worse here and his slider got hit a little more than usual. So it goes, we still love him.
Bryce Miller (SEA) @ CLE (W) - 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 2 Ks - 6 Whiffs, 22% CSW, 92 pitches.
0/38 whiffs on everything outside of the four-seamer. When will you learn? When will you learn that your actions lack of secondaries have consequences? We're talking 1/23 CSW on splitters + sweepers + cutter (he threw one lol) and now I look up to see y'all pointing at his ERA and Win, wondering what the problem is. Maybe this is totally fine, maybe I want him to earn more strikeouts and not lean on the "HOTEL" to ensure he doesn't let his baserunners score. All you need is a slider or cutter to get you whiffs. That's it.
Casey Mize (DET) @ ATL (L) - 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks - 11 Whiffs, 17% CSW, 87 pitches.
You know, I think Mize pitched pretty well despite the low CSW and lack of volume. His heater was all the way up to 97 mph, he located sliders and heaters well, and earned a ton of strikes that became foul balls instead of outs or whiffs, especially on the slider (13/1 foul to BIP is way off). I'm not ready to tell you he's fully back, but he's not as lost as he once was, especially with that velocity. Sadly, we sit back against the Phils next, but if the skills are still there, I may be back in.
Michael Lorenzen (TEX) vs NYM (ND) - 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks - 6 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 82 pitches.
Ayyyy, we'll take that "PQS" and what should have been a Win, but The Grimace Was Too Powerful. What a ridiculous run this is for the Mets, and what a normal start this is for Lorenzen.
Aaron Nola (PHI) vs SDP (ND) - 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks - 11 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 95 pitches.
A two-run shot was the big blow in the sixth frame ("Careful, Icarus") and why is it always the sixth frame?? The curve was back to being dope and you should feel fine about Nola. Even if the fastballs were a bit off? Yes, even if the sinker and four-seamer were not the best versions of themselves.
Albert Suárez (BAL) @ NYY (L) - 3.2 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 5 BBs, 3 Ks - 9 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 96 pitches.
He tried his best, but it's the dang Yankees. And now it's the Astros. You really shouldn't have been rostering Suárez.
Austin Gomber (COL) vs LAD (ND) - 6.2 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks - 8 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 92 pitches.
This should have been a Win and I still can't believe it wasn't. Anyway, Gomber survived(ish) and let's be happy for him.
Jake Irvin (WSN) vs ARI (L) - 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 4 BBs, 2 Ks - 5 Whiffs, 22% CSW, 97 pitches.
Ah. Irvin had the worst curveball he's had in about a month and the whole dam collapsed. I think he deserves the benefit of the doubt that he'll get it back in his next start, though it is Coors, the place where spin goes to die. Or maybe just get bought out at the margarita bar, I don't know, it's just not around.
Aaron Civale (TBR) @ MIN (ND) - 3.2 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks - 14 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 84 pitches.
Blegh. Just nine curveballs and he had nothing to support his high cutters (43% CSW!) at the bottom of the zone. I'm stoked the cutter is looking great, but he needs that complementary pitch and the sweeper isn't doing enough to earn that spot, while the sinker is still mediocre. Get the curve back, Civale.
Triston McKenzie (CLE) vs SEA (L) - 2.1 IP, 4 ER, 3 Hits, 4 BBs, 0 Ks - 3 Whiffs, 19% CSW, 59 pitches.
He sat 92 mph for the first time in ages, but couldn't spot the dang thing. This wasn't an injury-related pull, this was a "you don't know where it's going" pull. He's a pure "Cherry Bomb" but the frozen yogurt version.
Lance Lynn (STL) @ MIA (ND) - 5.1 IP, 5 ER, 10 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks - 13 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 97 pitches.
You're picking up two Ls to get one. I should probably stop doing that. Smart.
Griffin Canning (LAA) vs MIL (L) - 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks - 9 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 100 pitches.
Canning can be targeted against poor lineups. The Brewers are not a poor lineup. GAME IS EZ.
Pablo López (MIN) vs TBR (ND) - 4.0 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks - 6 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 54 pitches.
Blegggggh. This one really hurts. The Yankees made sense, but this was after a decent outing and came with just six changeups. Six! Yeah, because they were right down the middle. They sure were, everything was. Sigh. He's fighting with each pitch and I hope he can hit the reset button. Find a way to take a step back and lock into what worked for him in 2023 with his feel. That's really all I can say at this point. The raw talent is still obviously there and a vet like him is likely to get himself out of the hole. I hope he can find it.
Luis Severino (NYM) @ TEX (ND) - 6.1 IP, 6 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks - 5 Whiffs, 17% CSW, 92 pitches.
The Power of Grimace saved Severino from an ugly Loss (The Mets scored in each of the final five frames to secure the comeback), but don't let that gloss over the fact that Severino simply isn't an arm to roster in 12-teamers. Sure, it was the Rangers (who have been kinda rough, might I add), but a "HAISTBMBWT?!" and a horrible ratio floor? With a ceiling of mediocrity? Why?
Roddery Muñoz (MIA) vs STL (ND) - 4.0 IP, 6 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks - 10 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 76 pitches.
Roddery can be fun when he's working the edges. This was not a game where he worked the edges. Good luck guessing when he'll pull an Aerosmith and decide to be Livin' on the Edge once again.
Walker Buehler (LAD) @ COL (ND) - 4.0 IP, 7 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks - 3 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 70 pitches.
Oh no. Anyone have a revivify scroll left? This man needs to be brought back! Two hung breakers were smacked over the fence and low sinkers got men on base and I'm still waiting to see the Buehler outing that features a game plan that works. Not the one previously - that was an executed game plan that didn't work. He'll get there in time, but you should treat him like a stash until he shows it. Sidenote: That ninth inning was bonkers. And yes, I did think Teoscar swung.
Alec Marsh (KCR) @ OAK (L) - 3.0 IP, 7 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks - 14 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 76 pitches.
Well that's not fun. When Marsh isn't getting strikes on his slider and has to throw more fastballs, it's not the best time ever. I don't think he pitched as poorly as 7 ER suggests, but he's also not close to a stud who demands dominance as long as he doesn't collapse on the bump. Count me out for the Rangers and Guardians, of course.
Game of the Day
Taj Bradley vs. Joe Ryan - I want to see the same four-seamer/splitter two-pitch mix from Bradley + it's always fun watching Ryan dominate.
But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? - I've moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.
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Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter/X)
