Welcome to the SP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every starting pitcher’s performance from every Wednesday 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.
Bowden Francis (TOR) vs BAL (ND) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 81 pitches.
We held a dash of hope for Bowden Francis during spring training and it sprinted far over the horizon before the season’s sun could barely rise. But hark! Kikuchi has been dealt! He’s been granted another chance! AND HE DID WELL AGAINST THE ORIOLES! Surely this must be it? The man just earned a Gold Star!
Ehhhhh, I’m not sold. Tonight’s 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 81 pitches is certainly a great step forward, but I didn’t see a sustainable arm to trust each week. His four-seamer earned more whiffs than usual (7/48) and did most of the work here, needing 17 foul balls in order to prevent balls in play and find two-strike counts. Given Francis’ 47% ICR on the pitch this year, fewer balls in play off the heater is always a good thing, but that foul ball rate is sure to come down from its absurd 35% clip here.
Meanwhile, the splitter had its moments but wasn’t a legit weapon akin to the cream of the crop (Yes, you should read that in a thick Brooklyn accent. If you didn’t, please take note that I wrote it hearing da cream of de crop and I need you to join me.). The slider was decent, and the curve was sent over the fence. It’s not a full arsenal.
All of that said, Francis does get the Angels next and there are plenty of worse chances to take. Don’t consider Francis as a legit hold throughout August, but a pickup against the white wings of Anaheim? Sure, knock yerself out.
Let’s see how every other SP did Wednesday:
Davis Martin (CHW) @ OAK (ND) – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 82 pitches.
Hot dang, look at you! This was cutters and sliders galore with Canibal McSanchez certainly at play + four-seamers lingering around the edges of the zone and letting the spin win for him. You need some help? Nah? Okay, cool cool cool. If he were to get another start, it would be against the Yankees, so we can just move on here. You ain’t doing that.
Valente Bellozo (MIA) vs CIN (W) – 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 92 pitches.
Bellozo gave us a proper showcase of how baseball is so dang unfair. Why does Valente get by with worse stuff and tons of pitches down the plate against a tougher offense, while Abbott executes an approach as good as we’ve seen all season and gets blasted? BASEBALL. WHY. He’ll get the Phillies next and I just can’t do enough mental gymnastics to make that make sense.
Luis Gil (NYY) vs LAA (W) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 5 BBs, 6 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 107 pitches.
This definitely wasn’t Gil’s peak (3/10 changeup strikes is horrendous) but I’m happy the heater and slider did enough against the lowly Angels crew. Now go feast on the CrySox.
Cole Ragans (KCR) vs BOS (W) – 6.1 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks – 18 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 106 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. This ignores a two-run shot on a horrible cutter on the inner half erased by a “fielder’s choice” error earlier in the frame, but it doesn’t overlook the solo shot off a 2-0 down-the-pipe fastball at 95 mph. Those two pitches encapsulated Ragans’ outing – a lot of questionable command and still a low-velocity heater (we saw 91/92 in the final inning!). But yes, PEW PEW PEW with a super legit changeup, and ohhhh man, the strikeout earned with a high 97 mph heater paired with an 87 mph slider down-and-in chase was beautiful.
Paul Blackburn (NYM) @ COL (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 93 pitches.
Wow, Paulie Punchouts strikes again! Superb cutter, slider, and changeup precision allowed Blackburn to forgo heaters 81% of the time and I absolutely love that for him. Maybe he can replicate it in an evening against his alma mater, the Athletics, up next.
Erick Fedde (STL) vs TBR (W) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 93 pitches.
Fedde found enough strikes with his array of cutters, sweepers, and sinkers to force the lowly Rays to do something about it. A wise idea, Fedde. Way to make a better impression on the Cardinal family. Now go earn yourself a Spider-Man award across the final two months.
Joe Ryan (MIN) @ CHC (ND) – 2.0 IP, 1 ER, 1 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 33 pitches.
Ryan left his game early with a triceps injury. That’s a major yikes. It sure is. Dangit Joe, please be okay.
Ryan Feltner (COL) vs NYM (ND) – 1.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 0 BBs, 1 Ks – 2 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 24 pitches.
He was pulled with a lat issue and is likely hitting the IL. Sorry fella.
Tarik Skubal (DET) @ SEA (ND) – 7.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks – 21 Whiffs, 38% CSW, 102 pitches.
Aces gonna ace with a Golden Goal. Honestly, what else did you expect against the Mariners? H*ck, he even sat a tick up, at just below 98 mph. Lol.
Brandon Pfaadt (ARI) @ CLE (W) – 6.1 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 6 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 81 pitches.
Well, ain’t this fun. Pfaadt was throwing a tick harder and locating incredibly well with his entire arsenal. Eno and I chatted about young arms with great Location+ numbers and Pfaadt is on the List. To me, the major question is if he can find that one extra offering to take full advantage of his better-than-average command. Until then, he’ll have games like this merged with a fair number of clunkers.
Yusei Kikuchi (HOU) @ TEX (W) – 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 4 Hits, 3 BBs, 8 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 100 pitches.
Hmmmmm. Velocity was 1-2 ticks down. Changeup gave zero whiffs along with just 3/12 strikes (jeeeeez). Many non-competitive sliders. So, not peak Kikuchi, and yet the line is what you want. Welp, I’m glad we got production and we should expect more against the Jays. No need to be concerned. Yet.
Joey Estes (OAK) vs CHW (ND) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 96 pitches.
He really does have excellent four-seamer command at the very top of the zone. I just wish it had some more oomph to it (What, two zeroes mph?! That’s asking a lot, Nick!) and for a secondary to properly shine. Wait for a secondary to properly look like filth. Huh. Both shine and be filthy? Schrodinger’s slider. Anyway, I’m tepid on starting him against the Mets – this was a far better matchup and the result was overall…meh.
Trevor Rogers (BAL) @ TOR (ND) – 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 2 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 94 pitches.
It’s still just his second game in Baltimore. Give him time to adapt to whatever new information he’s getting from his new coaching staff and when we see a major change, I’ll let ya know. Until then, keep sitting on your hands for something else.
Chris Sale (ATL) vs MIL (ND) – 4.2 IP, 2 ER, 9 Hits, 2 BBs, 10 Ks – 18 Whiffs, 42% CSW, 96 pitches.
Aces gonna get Singled Out and still strike out 10 across 14 outs with a stupid good CSW that would have earned the King Cole if he earned just one more out. That’s Baseball, Suzyn.
José Ureña (TEX) vs HOU (L) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 0 Ks – 2 Whiffs, 12% CSW, 65 pitches.
Remember kids, If you trust José, Ureña boatload of trouble. I mean, not even one strikeout?! HAISTBMBWT?!
Javier Assad (CHC) vs MIN (ND) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 3 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 75 pitches.
Can we all collectively move on from Assad now? PLEASE?! Let’s make him Assad the point.
Carson Fulmer (LAA) @ NYY (ND) – 4.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks – 2 Whiffs, 21% CSW, 90 pitches.
What is it with the ultra-low whiff totals tonight? A HAISTBMBWT?! isn’t the most surprising thing from Fulmer against the Yankees, and I’d still consider Fulmer in deeper leagues for a potential night of production against the Jays next week. It’s not a bad set of secondaries here.
Blake Snell (SFG) @ WSN (W) – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 93 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. So you allowed a home run that led to a PQS. Big deal. Everything else was glorious and it’s #HotSnellSummer. The curve and changeup have become so dang reliable and it changes everything for Snell. And why not, we saw 5/8 slider strikes, what a glorious day!
Eduardo Rodriguez (ARI) @ CLE (W) – 5.2 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 1 Ks – 3 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 65 pitches.
Getting three whiffs with just one strikeout is kinda laughable (HAISTBMBWT?!) but he was one out away from a PQS in his Still ILL outing at just 65 pitches. That has to earn some praise, right? He located his cutter/slider armside + changeups gloveside as well as you could hope for in a return from injury and it could be 75 pitches of easy livin’ against Rockie Road next.
George Kirby (SEA) vs DET (ND) – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 7 Hits, 1 BBs, 7 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 97 pitches.
Aces gonna allow two HRs to ruin what was a lovely BSB night. We’re talking 10 four-seamer whiffs for a 50% CSW as he nailed that heater to the top of the zone with his hammer of a curve and slider underneath. This is the good stuff…save for those longballs, of course. I removed Kirby from the top tier of The List due to his lack of strikeouts, but if he can execute like in this game consistently, he’ll return in no time.
Michael King (SDP) @ PIT (ND) – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 32% CSW, 94 pitches.
Aces gonna struggle with the sweeper but at least still give us seven strikeouts? Meh, at least he’ll get them again and exact revenge. Take em down, King. You have your crown now and make it so.
Gavin Stone (LAD) vs PHI (ND) – 4.2 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 20% CSW, 84 pitches.
Seriously, you don’t have to roster Gavin. His slider and changeup can be good enough to steal Wins on the Dodgers (especially when the heater is 95+), but with a tough matchup like this, he should be benched and possibly dropped. He’s a Toby, not a Spice Girl.
Ben Lively (CLE) vs ARI (L) – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 4 Hits, 4 BBs, 2 Ks – 4 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 93 pitches.
I cursed you after leading with you last week, didn’t I? How could I do this to all of you? We’ve seen Lively have a misstep in the past and calibrate right after. He deserves one pass for all that he’s done.
Freddy Peralta (MIL) @ ATL (W) – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 37% CSW, 93 pitches.
I’m a little shocked that A) His slider was so consistent down and out of the zone armside (yay!) or B) That it didn’t matter for the results. This really wasn’t the chaos I’ve been seeing across his last few starts and I want to be encouraged despite the terrible ratios. I really do.
Tyler Phillips (PHI) @ LAD (ND) – 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 19% CSW, 79 pitches.
Uh, yeah. That makes all the sense. This may be when we mature past the TP antics with Walker and Suárez both nearing their returns to the rotation. That’s totally fine with me…okay fine, maybe not for Taijuan. I’m still sour from when he stole Turnbull’s spot in May. Sigh.
Carlos Carrasco (CLE) vs ARI (L) – 4.1 IP, 4 ER, 5 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 79 pitches.
Yeah, just don’t roster Carrasco. It really is that easy.
Jake Irvin (WSN) vs SFG (L) – 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 94 pitches.
Oh no. Has this run truly come to an end? The four-seamer seemingly was spotted effectively here, while the curveball wasn’t the pretty hook along the edges we’ve seen as of late. And now, at the nadir of the season, he just had to have a date scheduled wth the Orioles. My apologies, after that game will be the nadir of his season.
Taj Bradley (TBR) @ STL (L) – 4.2 IP, 5 ER, 9 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 9 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 92 pitches.
I could feel the monkey paw curl on this one. Yes, Bradley did return a 67% strike rate on both his four-seamer and splitter, but they both found the zone in the same place where you don’t want to locate either one. I should have specified the BSB to be included, dangit! I’m sad to see Bradley’s Cherry Bomb tendencies pop up for two starts following his absurd run for nearly two full months and I hope he eradicates the fear of a true slowdown with his next outing against the…Astros? Awwww man.
Marco Gonzales (PIT) vs SDP (ND) – 4.2 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 23% CSW, 91 pitches.
Marco played his game of changeups on the edge, cutters armside, curves low, etc. and Marco still needs the good grace of Koufax above to ensure he gets outs on his BABIP-heavy approach. We’re not ready to jump into this, though, especially with the Padres up next.
Davis Daniel (LAA) @ NYY (L) – 3.1 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 83 pitches.
Hey, not the worst we’ve seen against the Yankees. Nick, this is pretty terrible. Okay fine it’s terrible. Why do you have to have two first names? Y’all know I don’t trust people with two first names. But Joe Rya—oh. YUP (Seriously, I’m sorry you’re hurt Joe. Injuries are the worst.).
Andrew Abbott (CIN) @ MIA (L) – 5.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 104 pitches.
Uhhhh, but this was a version of Abbott I could actually get behind…? It was the BSB with fastballs upstairs + many sweepers and changeups down low. It should be great. And yet, here we are, looking at a clunker dead in the eye and wondering how on Earth it got here. I guess we give it the ole Cherry Bomb try against the Cardinals next, right gang?
Kutter Crawford (BOS) @ KCR (L) – 3.2 IP, 6 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 3 Ks – 10 Whiffs, 22% CSW, 85 pitches.
Let me put this bluntly. Crawford doesn’t have the feels for his arsenal. Sure, he was squeezed a touch and nearly escaped the fourth frame, but he’s not tallying all the whiffs with his four-seamer or sweeper. The kutter isn’t dominating. The splitter and curve aren’t helping much at all. The fella just isn’t demanding success on the bump. At least the HR totals are coming down (just one here!) but I left this one feeling a little sad about Crawford. He doesn’t have that mojo right now.
Will Warren (NYY) vs LAA (L) – 4.1 IP, 8 ER, 8 Hits, 3 BBs, 6 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 93 pitches.
Uhhhh, hi. Yes, I would look to return a streaming pick. What do you mean no refunds? So what if he’s going back to the minors, I just want to forget this ever happened and move on with my life. Uh huh, uh huh, yes I know I can do that without returning Warren but it would be a lot easier if I could. No, I won’t hold, thank you very much. BAD DAY TO YOU, SIR.
Game of the Day
Bryan Woo vs. Detroit Tigers – #Woo90PitchesWatch is back on y’all.
But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? – I’ve moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.
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