Friday’s Streaking and Slumping Starting Pitchers
Streaking
Clay Buchholz, Boston Red Sox
The young righty is a big part of the BoSox postseason push. In his last four trips to the mound, Buchholz has allowed just five earned runs in over 28 innings of work.
In his most recent start, Buchholz shut down the Tampa Bay Rays for just one run on five hits. He also struck out five batters, bringing his K count to 22 during this current streak.
Buchholz is likely to earn himself a spot in the playoff rotation after watching the postseason from the sidelines last year. The team hasn’t set any pitch count for its budding ace like it did in 2008.
“I don’t think there’s any caution flags that have been thrown out right now,” Buchholz told the Boston Globe. “They haven’t mentioned anything to me about it. I think if that’s the case, if I was getting close, I think they would take me out in the fifth or sixth inning. I feel strong. I think we’re going more on how my body feels than anything.”
Scott Kazmir, Los Angeles Angels
Life on the West Coast has been good to Scott Kazmir.
Since moving from Florida to Los Angeles, the left-hander has posted a 1.86 ERA in his first three starts for the Angels. However, those performances have earned Kazmir an unimpressive 0-1 record in that span.
The Halos power outage at the plate has prevented Kazmir from getting the win, averaging just over one run per game in those starts. In his most recent trip to the bump, Kazmir gave up just two runs in six innings while the offense scored just enough to get the 3-2 victory.
Tim Stauffer, San Diego Padres
San Diego is showing some fight in September and Stauffer is the team’s hardest punch.
The righty is 3-0 in his last four starts, allowing just six runs in that span. He has given up only one earned run in his last three, posting a 1.40 ERA in just over 19 innings pitched.
In his most recent appearance, Stauffer went six innings, striking out three batters but walked four. Known more for his breaking balls, he relied on his fastball and changeup versus the Rockies. That wide array of pitches has kept batters guessing in the second half of the season.
"It was a solid outing. What I like was that he made pitches when he needed to," manager Bud Black told MLB.com. "The four walks were unlike him. I really like the use of the changeup. I thought that was his best pitch."
Slumping
Scott Richmond, Toronto Blue Jays
The Jays young right-hander is caught in pitching hell right now.
In his last four outings, Richmond has been pounded for a total of 23 runs in just over 20 innings of so-called work. His latest nightmare was a six-run, three-home run waxing in 4 1-3 innings versus the Detroit Tigers. Somehow, Toronto overcame that and scored eight runs to give Richmond the no-decision. He hasn’t posted a win since June 24 and has an ERA north of 8.00 since the break.
When asked to sum up his troubles, which were manifested in four walks, Richmond simply stated, “Plain and simple, it's lack of fastball command".
Luke Hochevar, Kansas City Royals
Hochevar’s recent troubles could be due to the fact the Royals righty is tipping his pitches.
“You feel like you’re pitching your game, making pitches, and getting killed,” he told the Kansas City Star. “It’s nice, because I felt like we went through every scenario, like, ‘I’m not mixing enough, maybe I need to pitch backward more. Maybe my location’s not good enough.’
“It’s human nature, you start questioning your stuff, ‘Is my stuff good enough?’ I even thought about canning my curveball.”
Hochevar has been bashed for 18 runs in his last three games, spawning a grotesque 11.57 ERA in just 14 innings. Against the Cleveland Indians last weekend, he allowed five runs on seven hits but struck out six batters.
The trouble is coming in bunches for the youngster. He is susceptible to big innings in recent starts, posting some three, four and five runs innings during this current funk.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
San Francisco (79-67) at L.A. Dodgers (88-59)
Trailing the Rockies by 3½ games and the Dodgers by 8½, the Giants will try to get back into the playoff race as they kickoff a three-game set in southern California with lefty Jonathan Sanchez (6-12, 4.16 ERA) going up against Los Angeles’ Vicente Padilla (3-0, 2.01).
San Francisco went 4-5 on its recent nine-game homestand, but did manage to take two of three from the Rockies to remain in the hunt for the N.L. wild card. However, the Giants, who were idle on Thursday, have lost their last six games after taking a day off and they are just 2-5 in their last seven as a road ‘dog.
The Dodgers have won seven of nine overall, including a three-game home sweep of the Pirates capped by Wednesday’s 3-1 victory. Los Angeles is on several positive streaks, including 25-12 at home against southpaws, 6-1 as a favorite, 69-31 as a home chalk and 40-19 against N.L. West rivals. The Dodgers have also won four of their last six against San Francisco, including two of three in northern California last weekend.
Sanchez is just 2-9 on the highway but has been the victim of some tough luck in his last two roadies, allowing a combined two runs on six hits in 12 innings but losing in Philadelphia (1-0) and Milwaukee (2-1). The Giants have lost six straight starts by Sanchez against the Dodgers, including all four this season. In his lone start in Los Angeles, he allowed five runs on six hits in five innings of an 8-0 loss.
San Francisco has not had much luck with Sanchez on the hill, currently on slides of 10-27 overall, 4-17 on the road, 5-14 against the N.L. West, 7-22 as a ‘dog and 0-6 when he gets five days off.
Padilla is making his fifth start in a Dodgers uniform and he’s been magnificent in the first four, allowing a combined six runs (five earned) in 22 1/3 innings. He faced these Giants on Saturday and allowed just one unearned run on three hits in six innings of a 9-1 beat-down. Padilla has held the Giants to two earned runs or less in six of his seven career starts against them.
With Sanchez pitching, the Giants are on “under” streaks of 5-1-1 overall, 3-0-1 on the road, 7-3-2 as a road ‘dog and 7-2-2 against the N.L. West, but as a team San Francisco is on “over” runs of 5-1 overall, 4-1 after a loss and 5-2-1 in series openers. Los Angeles is on a plethora of “under” streaks, including 17-6-3 overall, 10-2-2 at home, 12-5-2 against the N.L. West, 6-1-3 in series openers and 9-2-2 as a home favorite. Finally, the “over” is 4-1 in the last five meetings between these rivals.
ATS ADVANTAGE: L.A. DODGERS and UNDER
AMERICAN LEAGUE
L.A. Angels (87-59) at Texas (80-65)
The Rangers trail the A.L. West leading Angels by 6½ games and will try to cut into that lead in the opener of this crucial three-game series at Rangers Ballpark when they send Tommy Hunter (8-3, 3.33 ERA) to the mound opposite Los Angeles lefty Scott Kazmir (8-8, 5.32).
The Angels pulled out a 4-3 victory in Boston on Thursday to avoid a three-game sweep at Fenway Park, but they’re still just 2-4 in their last six games and on further slides of 1-4 on the road and 1-5 on the road against winning teams. On the bright side, Los Angeles has won five of seven against A.L. West rivals.
Texas has lost four in a row and five of six on its current nine-game homestand, scoring only one run in its last four contests. Oakland swept the Rangers this week, outscoring them 19-1. Despite their recent struggles, the Rangers are on positive streaks of 14-5 on Fridays, 17-7 at home against teams with winning records and 23-8 at home against southpaws.
The Rangers have dominated Los Angeles this season, winning nine of 12, including five of six in the Lone Star State.
Kazmir, acquired from the Rays in late August, is making his fourth start for the Halos, and he’s looked very sharp in the first three, allowing four runs in 19 1/3 innings (1.86 ERA). He’s coming off Sunday’s 3-2 home victory over the White Sox as he gave up two runs in six innings.
Kazmir has had great success in nine career starts against the Rangers, allowing three earned runs or fewer in each game, with the Rays going 8-1 (1-1 this season). He’s 5-1 with a 2.28 ERA in those nine starts, including 2-1 with a 2.52 ERA in four outings at Rangers Ballpark
Hunter is 6-2 with a 3.34 ERA at home this season and he’s coming off Sunday’s complete-game 7-2 home victory over the Mariners yielding the two runs on six hits. The Rangers have won six of Hunter’s last eight starts and three straight when he’s in front of the home crowd. Texas is also 7-1 when he goes off as a favorite and 6-2 when he opens a series.
It’s been nothing but “unders” for the Angels lately, including 17-4-1 overall, 8-1 on the road, 5-1 as an underdog, 4-0-1 against A.L. West teams and 6-1-1 against teams with winning records. The under is also 11-5-1 when Hunter starts for the Rangers and 6-1-1 when he takes the hill as a ‘dog. As a team, Texas has stayed below the total in 36 of 54 at home, 77 of 117 overall, 40 of 60 as a favorite and 36 of 53 against left-handed starters. However, the over is 5-3 in the last eight matchups in this rivalry.
ATS ADVANTAGE: UNDER
Baseball Today
SCOREBOARD
Friday, September 18
San Francisco at Los Angeles Dodgers (10:10 p.m. EDT). Vicente Padilla (11-6, 4.42 ERA) and the NL West-leading Dodgers host the contending Giants in the opener of a weekend series. Jonathan Sanchez (6-12, 4.16) is scheduled to get the ball for San Francisco.
STARS
Thursday
-Howie Kendrick, Angels, homered and added an RBI blooper to break a ninth-inning tie, in a 4-3 win at Boston.
-Wade Davis, Rays, threw a four-hitter to earn his first major league win and Tampa Bay beat Baltimore 3-0.
-Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners, hit a game-ending single to center in the bottom of the 14th inning, leading Seattle to a 4-3 win over the White Sox.
-Cole Hamels, Phillies, struck out 10 in eight sharp innings to lead Philadelphia to a 4-2 victory over Washington.
-Brian McCann, Braves, hit a tiebreaking three-run homer and finished with four RBIs in Atlanta's 7-3 win against the New York Mets.
-Jody Gerut, Brewers, hit his second career grand slam to power Milwaukee to a 7-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
-Matt Maloney, Reds, pitched five innings to earn his first major league win, helping Cincinnati beat the Florida 3-2.
GETTING THAT LOOK AGAIN
Cole Hamels appears to be rounding into form for the NL East-leading Phillies. Hamels pitched eight innings in Philadelphia's 4-2 win over Washington on Thursday night and matched a season high with 10 strikeouts. Hamels, the MVP of last season's NL championship series and World Series, is 3-1 with a 1.43 ERA in his last five starts.
COSTLY LOSS
Florida lost 3-2 at Cincinnati, extending its skid at Great American Ball Park to nine straight and wasting a chance to gain ground in the NL wild-card race. The Marlins dropped five games behind Colorado and 1 1/2 games behind San Francisco, who were both off. Atlanta, which beat the New York Mets 7-3 moved a half-game ahead of Florida.
WORTH NOTING
The Braves have won seven straight games for the first time since 2006. They beat the reeling Mets 7-3 on Thursday night to move 10 games over .500 for the first time since May 16, 2007. ... The Reds sold only 9,685 tickets for their 3-2 victory over Florida, the second-smallest gate in Great American Ball Park's seven-year history. The smallest was 9,087 for the second game of a day-night doubleheader against Pittsburgh on Aug. 31.
LOOKING CY WORTHY
Zack Greinke boosted his Cy Young credentials, lowering his major league-leading ERA to 2.14 with five scoreless innings in the Royals' 9-2 victory over Detroit. Greinke (14-8) allowed three hits, struck out eight and walked two. He has allowed only one earned run in his past four starts, lowering his ERA from 2.43.
EARLY END
Oakland right-hander Brett Tomko has been sidelined for the rest of the season with nerve damage in his right arm. Tomko told team doctors he felt something in his arm during his five-hit shutout against the Rangers in Texas on Monday. He threw 114 pitches and could not move his arm the next morning.
NOW PLAY BALL
Right-hander Tanner Scheppers, the Texas Rangers' supplemental first-round pick in the amateur draft, agreed to a minor league contract with a $1.25 million signing bonus. This year was the third time Scheppers has been drafted. ... The Kansas City Royals agreed to a three-year major league contract with first-round draft pick Aaron Crow. Crow, selected 12th, a hard-throwing right-hander, is guaranteed $3 million even if he doesn't reach the majors under the deal that begins next season. He would earn about $4.5 million if he makes it to the big leagues.
SPEAKING
"Go on and ask (the players). I don't have any more quotes. Seriously, what am I going to say?'' - The usually loquacious White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen after his team blew two-run ninth inning lead and lost to the Mariners 4-3 in 14 innings.
MLB Weekend Cheat Sheet
By: Marc Lawrence
And then there were two. Two weeks remaining in the 2009 MLB season, this its. And with the pennant race grows tighter than ever as we near the finish line.
Let’s preview the top four series this weekend. Remember, all results are within the series and all pitcher records are ‘team starts’ (the team’s record in games in which the pitcher starts) versus this opponent.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Chicgao Cubs at St. Louis Cardinals
Most Recent Series Result: Cardinals 7-3 last 10 games (8-5 this season)
Most Recent Series Result at the Site: Cardinals 5-1 last 6 games home (5-1 this season)
Key Day/Month Stat: Cardinals 9-3 Fridays; Cubs 3-11 away Fridays
Best Arm in the Series: Cardinals Carpenter 5-1, 3.69 ERA home career team starts
Worst Arm in the Series: Braves Dempster 0-6, 3.98 ERA away last 6 team starts
San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers
Most Recent Series Result: Dodgers 4-2 last 12 games (9-6 this season)
Most Recent Series Result at the Site: Dodgers 7-4 last 11 games home (4-2 this season)
Key Day/Month Stat: Dodgers 12-2 home Saturdays
Best Arm in the Series: Giants Lincecum 4-0, 2.82 ERA last 4 team starts
Worst Arm in the Series: Giants Sanchez 1-6, 6.15 ERA career team starts
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Detroit Tigers at Minnesota Twins
Most Recent Series Result: Twins 13-7 last 20 games (7-4 this season)
Most Recent Series Result at the Site: Twins 5-1 last 6 games home (5-1 this season)
Key Day/Month Stat: Twins 0-5 Saturdays home
Best Arm in the Series: Twins Pavano 4-0, 1,48 ERA career team starts; Tigers Washburn 7-1, 2.64 ERA career team starts
Worst Arm in the Series: Tigers Porcello 0-1, 9.00 ERA away career
Los Angeles Angels at Texas Rangers
Most Recent Series Result: Rangers 11-4 last 15 games (9-3 this season)
Most Recent Series Result at the Site: Angels 10-2 Saturdays; Twins 3-12 Saturdays
Key Day/Month Stat: Angels 16-4 Sundays home; White Sox 5-15 Sundays
Best Arm in the Series: Angels Kazmir 8-1, 2.28 ERA career team starts
Worst Arm in the Series: Angels Lackey 0-4, 12.28 ERA last 4 team starts: Angels Weaver 0-4, 5.18 ERA last 4 away team starts
Texas Swoon
By SportsPic
It's becoming more and more clear the Texas Rangers are headed into another of their late season collapses. Managing a single run the past four on the diamond going 0-4 costing backers a whopping -$614 at the betting window the Rangers are now 8-7 (-$222) this September, 45-49 the past 3+ years during final month of play. Rangers have had success vs Halos this season winning 9-of-12 meetings including 5-of-6 in Arlington but recent lack of offense puts Rangers in dangerous territory against visiting Halos and starter Scott Kazmir. Halos are smacking 5.5 runs/game on the road, Kazmir despite not recording a personal victory in an Angels uniform (2-1 TSR) has put up solid number entering with a 2.33 SWR, 0.995 WHIP, 8.95 ABRA and 17.43 BOR with the team. Road team with a starter like Kazmir who have a high Batter-Out-Rating/9 leads to a low Avg-Base-Runner-Allw/9 making it tougher for the opposition to score. These starters (BOR >15, ABRA <10) are good bets with their clubs winning at a 69.4% clip (351-155) outscoring opponents 4.5 to 2.3. There-in-lies the second angle, Rangers are just 1-16 the past seventeen at home scoring <4 runs/game. Finally, keep in mind Kazmir had an 8-1 TSR vs Rangers with the Rays.