Big Unit shoots for win No. 300

BadCo · May 31, 2009

May 29, 2009, 2:51 PM
Big Unit shoots for win No. 300

He'll face the Nationals on Wednesday in an attempt to reach the heralded plateau

<cite class="source"> </cite>

 

On tap: June is here, and with it comes a busy week in the National League. Ten of the 16 NL teams play a full seven games, and four of those teams (Astros, Cardinals, Dodgers and Marlins) will play entirely at home.
But that's not Week 9's most compelling story: That honor belongs to Randy Johnson, who goes for his 300th career win Wednesday at Washington. Of course, the Nationals hit a career-high three home runs against him in San Francisco on May 11, so it'll be interesting to see whether he'll achieve the milestone in his first try. No matter your opinion on the "Big Unit," this is history, and history you should cherish at that, as it might be some time before we see another 300-game winner. Jamie Moyer is next closest among active players with 249 wins, but he's 46 years old. Andy Pettitte (219) has the most wins of any pitcher younger than 40. (He's 37.) And of the under-30 crowd, CC Sabathia is your active leader in wins (121, 28 years old).
Quick click by section, if you're seeking advice in a specific area:

Team advantages

The chart below lists each of the 30 MLB teams' number of games scheduled ("Gm"), home games ("Hm"), games versus right- and left-handed pitchers ("vs. RHP" and "vs. LHP") and games at either hitter- or pitcher-friendly ballparks.
Note: Some teams' totals versus right- and left-handed pitchers exclude games against teams with unclear starters. They include: White Sox (Tuesday, OAK), Blue Jays (Saturday, KC), Dodgers (Sunday, PHI), Padres (Tuesday, PHI) and Giants (Sunday, @FLA).
<style type="text/css">.mod-inline td img {margin: 0px;}</style>
<table style="margin: 0pt; width: 100%;"><thead><tr><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 30px;"><center> Team </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 10px;"><center> Gm </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 10px;"><center> Hm </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 10px;"><center> vs. RHP </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 10px;"><center> vs. LHP </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 40%;"> Hitters' parks? </th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 40%;"> Pitchers' parks? </th></tr></thead><tbody><tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Safeco Field (@SEA-3); McAfee Coliseum (@OAK-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> U.S. Cellular Field (OAK-4, CLE-3) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> U.S. Cellular Field (@CHW-3) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Metrodome (@MIN-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Metrodome (CLE-3); Safeco Field (@SEA-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Yankee Stadium (TEX-3, TB-3) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> U.S. Cellular Field (@CHW-4) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> McAfee Coliseum (BAL-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Safeco Field (BAL-3, MIN-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Yankee Stadium (@NYY-3) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

$tex.gif$

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Yankee Stadium (@NYY-3) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Dodger Stadium (@LAD-3); Petco Park (@SD-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Great American Ball Park (@CIN-3) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Great American Ball Park (CHC-3) </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Land Shark Stadium (MIL-4, SF-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Dodger Stadium (ARI-3, PHI-4) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Land Shark Stadium (@FLA-4) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Petco Park (@SD-3); Dodger Stadium (@LAD-4) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Petco Park (PHI-3, ARI-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2* </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Land Shark Stadium (@FLA-3) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;">
</td></tr> </tbody></table>

BadCo · May 31, 2009

June tends to present the Northeast with the most trouble in the weather department; since 2001, Baltimore, New York, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are the only cities to have seen more than 4 percent of their scheduled games postponed, suspended or shortened in that month. (New York is tops, with 6.5 percent between the two teams.) Sure enough, the Yankees are the greatest concern for postponements in Week 9, with their series against the Rangers seeing increasing chances of precipitation Tuesday through Thursday (60 percent chance in the series finale). Chicago, Florida, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Washington are also cities to watch for bad weather in Week 9.
Weatherproof games: Rockies at Astros (4, Mon-Thu); Pirates at Astros (3, Fri-Sun); Angels at Blue Jays (3, Tue-Thu); Royals at Blue Jays (3, Fri-Sun); Orioles at Mariners (3, Mon-Wed); Twins at Mariners (3, Fri-Sun); Royals at Rays (3, Tue-Thu); Indians at Twins (3, Tue-Thu)
Load up: Hitters

The teams listed below have the most favorable overall hitting matchups, accounting for recent performance, strength of opponents and ballpark factors.

Dodgers (ARI-3, PHI-4): Manny who? Just because Manny Ramirez is on the sidelines doesn't mean the Dodgers can't score runs; they're just finding different ways to do it in the wake of his suspension. Though their home-run production is down -- from 0.83 per game through May 6 to 0.50 per game since -- they're actually scoring more runs per contest since Manny's suspension (5.9) than before (5.6). How are they doing it? Their batting average is up, from .283 to .302, as is their stolen-base production (0.69 per game to 1.05) and number of sacrifices (from 7 to 12), all signs that "small ball" has become more of the Dodgers' game plan sans Manny. Most impressively, the team has done all this while facing not-too-shabby pitching staffs -- Giants, Phillies, Marlins, Mets and Angels -- so I wouldn't worry that they'll go dormant battling the Arizona and Philadelphia staffs, which have both vastly underperformed this year.

Yankees (@CLE-1, TEX-3, TB-3): Anytime I grant the thumbs-up to the Yankees' offense in a heavy home week, I feel obligated to recite their new ballpark's statistics. So here are the per-game numbers at the new Yankee Stadium from the month of May: 10.7 runs, 19.1 hits, 3.7 home runs (in 16 games). That means the park seems to be getting even more homer-friendly as the season wears on, which is great news when you're an offense set to face two pitching staffs (Rangers and Rays) that rank in the top 10 in baseball in home runs allowed. Besides, the Yankees just got done slaughtering the Rangers' pitching staff in Texas, totaling 23 runs on 47 hits, including five home runs, in three games May 25-27.

White Sox (OAK-4, CLE-3): OK, so ask yourself, do you really think the White Sox are going to remain buried down toward the bottom of the majors in terms of runs per game and team OPS? C'mon, this team ranked in the top 5 in both of those categories and home runs at home in 2008, and through 22 home games in 2009 it has an unsightly .243 batting average on balls in play, worst in the majors and 40 points beneath the team's 2008 number in the category. In addition to Oakland's inexperience and Cleveland's pathetic team pitching performance, the A's will need to dig up a Tuesday spot starter because of their recent doubleheader, while the Indians won't throw Cliff Lee in any of the three games at "The Cell." That definitely works in the White Sox's favor.

Astros (COL-4, PIT-3): The Pirates' staff got off to a hot start, but all good things must come to an end sometime, right? Pittsburgh has lost 19 of its past 29 games while posting a 5.12 ERA and 1.47 WHIP. Colorado, meanwhile, has had pitching problems for much of the year, capped by a recent stretch in which they've gone 5-10 with a 5.95 ERA and 1.62 WHIP. Carlos Lee, Hunter Pence and Miguel Tejada are off to torrid starts at Minute Maid Park; they've combined to bat .355 with 14 home runs and a .997 OPS in 72 games there. Even Geoff Blum is a .297 hitter there through 23 home games.
Tristan's sleeper hitters

Willy Aybar, 3B, Rays: .327 BA, .900 OPS versus right-handers in 2009; .344 BA, .944 OPS in 20 games in May
Kosuke Fukudome, OF, Cubs: .315 BA, .946 OPS versus right-handers in 2009; .343 BA, 1.016 OPS in 21 road games in 2009
Todd Helton, 1B, Rockies: .316 BA, .968 OPS versus right-handers in 2009; .364 BA, 1.126 OPS in 27 career games at Minute Maid Park
Jorge Posada, C, Yankees: .371 BA, 1.221 OPS in 12 home games in 2009; .462 BA, 1.210 OPS in 29 plate appearances versus left-handers in 2009
Nolan Reimold, OF, Orioles: .299 BA, 1.010 OPS versus left-handers in his minor league career; .295 BA, 5 HRs, 10 RBIs in his past 12 games
Skip Schumaker, 2B/OF, Cardinals: .316 BA, .813 OPS in 24 home games in 2009; .313 BA, .819 OPS versus right-handers in 2009
Jason Varitek, C, Red Sox: .309 BA, .944 OPS in 18 games at Comerica Park 2003-08; .310 BA, 1.244 OPS versus left-handers in 2009
Ben Zobrist, SS/OF, Rays: 1 HR per 13.1 ABs, .930 OPS versus right-handers in 2008-09; .314 BA, 1.092 OPS in 25 games in May
Load up: Stolen bases

Favorable matchups listed below are selected based upon opponents' catchers allowing a high rate of steals attempts and/or having low caught-stealing percentages.

Athletics (@CHW-4, BAL-3): Though new Orioles backstop Matt Wieters represents a considerable improvement over Gregg Zaun in this department -- Wieters has gunned down 45 of 126 opposing baserunners (35.7 percent) in his minor league career -- chances are, teams are going to test him early in his big-league career in order to build a scouting report on him. For one thing, he's inexperienced, and inexperience favors his opponents. But that's not why you should exploit Oakland's matchups; you should exploit them because Chicago's A.J. Pierzynski has a reputation as one of the game's worst at gunning down opposing runners. The Athletics pick and choose their times to run, and their speedsters have limited fantasy appeal, but those owners in AL-only leagues can take a look at Rajai Davis (five steals), Adam Kennedy (3) and Ryan Sweeney (3).

Giants (@WAS-3, @FLA-3): This is one of the speediest teams in the game, with 34 stolen bases, eighth-most in the majors. Credit Emmanuel Burriss and Randy Winn with most of those; they have a combined 19. Better yet, those two have been super-comfortable in road games this season, combining to bat .325 in 22 games. But the Giants do get contributions from others; slumping Fred Lewis can be a 30-steal candidate at his best, and Edgar Renteria and Aaron Rowand are capable of swiping a bag or three. Neither the Nationals nor the Marlins are particularly efficient at gunning down opposing baserunners, so if you're in need, take a look at any of the five in most formats.

Cardinals (CIN-4, COL-3): For a team not exactly known for its speed -- try to predict who will lead the team in stolen bases (no easy task) -- the Cardinals were actually decent in the category in their May 8-10 series against the Reds, swiping three bags in three games, including two off Cincinnati backup Ryan Hanigan. Colorado, meanwhile, must rely on weak-armed Yorvit Torrealba with Chris Iannetta on the DL; Torrealba has allowed 19 steals in 20 tries in 16 games this season. As for who might lead the Cards in the category, can you believe Albert Pujols is currently tops on the team with seven? Heck, even Yadier Molina, who shares his genes with slow-footed Bengie and Jose, has three. That's as good a sign as any that this is a team that exploits matchups.

$tex.gif$

Rangers (@NYY-3, @BOS-3): The Yankees might very well get Jorge Posada before this week, not that that's a good thing for them when it comes to throwing out runners. He's coming off a hamstring problem most recently, but the greater concern was the shoulder surgery he had within the past year, limiting his ability to gun down opposing base stealers. Couple that with three games against the Red Sox and particularly Jason Varitek, who has allowed an MLB-high 42 stolen bases, and things look great for Texas on the basepaths in Week 9. Can you believe Nelson Cruz has nine steals already this year? Elvis Andrus (6 steals) has yet to fully realize his potential in the category, but he's a sleeper for this week.
Load up: Pitchers

The teams listed below have the most favorable overall pitching matchups, accounting for recent performance, strength of opponents and ballpark factors.

Brewers (@FLA-4, @ATL-3): That Marlins offense is in quite a funk, striking out 10 or more times as a team on nine of 26 occasions in May and batting .244 with a .690 OPS, an average of 4.2 runs per game and a major league-high 226 whiffs during that span. Atlanta, meanwhile, hasn't been much more productive, having registered a team OPS of .699 while averaging 4.4 runs in 26 games in May. Besides, even though Milwaukee tends to pitch better as a team at Miller Park, it's not like this is a bad staff in road games. The Brewers have a 4.20 team ERA on the road for the season and are 12-6 with a 3.65 ERA and 1.28 WHIP in their past 18 road contests.

Cardinals (CIN-4, COL-3): Dave Duncan might be credited as a wizard among pitching coaches, but nowhere is his mastery more evident than at the new Busch Stadium, where his hurlers tend to dominate. Consider that in the three years and two months of the ballpark's existence, the Cardinals as a staff have a .578 winning percentage, 3.97 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 268 games there, compared to .455, 4.84 and 1.44 in 264 road contests. This year the staff is 17-9 with a 3.23 ERA and 1.19 WHIP in 26 starts at home, and the current five members of their rotation are a combined 62-36 with a 3.15 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in their careers at Busch. Best indicator of how good the going is for the Cardinals' staff: In his second start back from the DL this past Monday, Chris Carpenter tossed six perfect innings. Oh, and by the way, the Cards are a combined 25-11 all-time at the new Busch Stadium against these opponents.

White Sox (OAK-4, CLE-3): I picked Chicago's staff as a favorable fantasy choice for Week 7, and that was the week it suffered a 20-1 drubbing at the hands of the Twins. Outside of that game, however, the team wasn't in any way unproductive. The White Sox actually had a 3.17 ERA during that six-game homestand, including that drubbing -- they allowed only 10 runs total in the other five games -- and for the season have a 3.73 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 22 home contests. You might think this staff is in for trouble at typically homer-friendly U.S. Cellular Field, but it's not, especially not with four games against the Athletics and their MLB-worst .671 team OPS on the schedule. Besides, according to the Park Factors page, "The Cell" has actually leaned toward being pitcher-friendly so far.

Blue Jays (LAA-3, KC-3): Here's a case of perception -- you probably think this inexperienced staff, which has used 10 different starting pitchers so far, stinks -- meeting reality: This staff actually ranks in the majors' upper half in ERA, opponents' batting average and WHIP (where it incredibly ranks No. 2). I understand the perception; this staff just lost nine consecutive road games and was obliterated to the tune of a 6.30 ERA and 1.60 WHIP. But back home, where Toronto has a 3.38 ERA and an MLB-best 1.12 WHIP, I think the Blue Jays get back on track. It sure helps when you have your ace, Roy Halladay, pitching twice, and a pair of middling to below-average opponents on the schedule.

BadCo · May 31, 2009

Projected starting pitchers

The chart below lists each of the 30 MLB teams' schedules and projected starting pitchers. Those pitchers scheduled to pitch twice this week are color-coded.
Notes: The Yankees have named Phil Hughes as their Monday starter, but Chien-Ming Wang might be activated to take his rotation spot the following Sunday.
<style type="text/css">.mod-inline td img {margin: 0px;}</style>
<table style="margin: 0pt; width: 100%;"> <thead><tr><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 30px;"><center> Team </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 14%;"><center> Mon 6/1 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 14%;"><center> Tue 6/2 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 14%;"><center> Wed 6/3 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 14%;"><center> Thu 6/4 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 14%;"><center> Fri 6/5 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 14%;"><center> Sat 6/6 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 14%;"><center> Sun 6/7 </center></th></tr></thead> <tbody><tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SEA
Hill
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @SEA
Hernandez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @SEA
Bergesen
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @OAK
Guthrie
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @OAK
Berken
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @OAK
Hill
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @DET
Matsuzaka
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @DET
Beckett
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @DET
Wakefield
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> TEX
Penny
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> TEX
Lester
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> TEX
Matsuzaka
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> OAK
Colon
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> OAK
Floyd
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> OAK
Richard
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> OAK
Buehrle
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CLE
Danks
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CLE
Colon
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CLE
Floyd
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYY
Jackson
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @MIN
Huff
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @MIN
Lee
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @MIN
Carmona
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @CHW
Pavano
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CHW
Jackson
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CHW
Huff
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BOS
Porcello
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> BOS
Galarraga
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> BOS
Willis
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> LAA
Verlander
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> LAA
Jackson
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> LAA
Porcello
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @TB
Davies
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @TB
Bannister
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @TB
Meche
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @TOR
Greinke
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @TOR
TBD </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @TOR
Davies
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @TOR
Saunders
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @TOR
Weaver
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @TOR
Lackey
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @DET
Palmer
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @DET
Santana
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @DET
Saunders
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CLE
Slowey
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CLE
Swarzak
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CLE
Baker
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @SEA
Liriano
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @SEA
Blackburn
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SEA
Slowey
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CLE
Chamberln
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> TEX
Burnett
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> TEX
Pettitte
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> TEX
Sabathia
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> TB
Hughes
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> TB
Chamberln
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> TB
Burnett
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CHW
Cahill
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @CHW
TBD </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @CHW
E. Gonzlz
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @CHW
Outman
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> BAL
Anderson
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> BAL
Braden
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BAL
Cahill
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BAL
Washburn
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> BAL
Bedard
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> BAL
Vargas
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> MIN
Hernandez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> MIN
Jakubasks
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> MIN
Washburn
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> KC
Sonnnstne
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> KC
Niemann
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> KC
Shields
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @NYY
Price
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @NYY
Garza
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @NYY
Sonnnstne
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

$tex.gif$

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @NYY
Holland
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @NYY
Feldman
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @NYY
McCarthy
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @BOS
Millwood
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @BOS
Harrison
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @BOS
Holland
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> LAA
Halladay
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> LAA
Janssen
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> LAA
Tallet
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> KC
Romero
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> KC
Richmond
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> KC
Halladay
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @LAD
Buckner
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @LAD
Haren
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @LAD
Garland
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @SD
Davis
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @SD
Scherzer
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SD
Haren
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CHC
Kawakami
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CHC
Lowe
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CHC
Jurrjens
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> MIL
Vazquez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> MIL
Medlen
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> MIL
Kawakami
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @ATL
Wells
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @ATL
Lilly
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @ATL
Zambrano
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @CIN
Dempster
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @CIN
Marshall
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CIN
Wells
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @STL
Volquez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @STL
Arroyo
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @STL
Cueto
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @STL
Harang
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CHC
Owings
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CHC
Volquez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CHC
Arroyo
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @HOU
Cook
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @HOU
Jimenez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @HOU
Marquis
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @HOU
Hammel
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @STL
DeLaRosa
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @STL
Cook
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @STL
Jimenez
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> MIL
Miller
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> MIL
Badenhop
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> MIL
West
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> MIL
Johnson
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> SF
Volstad
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> SF
Miller
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> SF
TBD </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> COL
Oswalt
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> COL
Paulino
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> COL
Moehler
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> COL
Rodriguez
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> PIT
Hampton
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PIT
Oswalt
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PIT
Paulino
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> ARI
Kershaw
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> ARI
Wolf
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> ARI
Billingsley
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> PHI
Stults
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> PHI
Milton
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PHI
Kershaw
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PHI
Wolf
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @FLA
Suppan
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @FLA
Parra
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @FLA
Looper
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @FLA
Bush
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @ATL
Gallardo
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @ATL
Suppan
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @ATL
Parra
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @PIT
Hernandez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @PIT
Santana
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @PIT
Pelfrey
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @PIT
Redding
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @WAS
Maine
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @WAS
Hernandez
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @WAS
Santana
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SD
Blanton
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SD
TBD </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @SD
Happ
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @LAD
Hamels
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @LAD
Moyer
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @LAD
Blanton
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @LAD
TBD </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYM
Snell
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYM
Duke
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> NYM
Ohlendorf
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> NYM
Karstens
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @HOU
Maholm
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @HOU
Snell
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @HOU
Duke
(LHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CIN
Wellemeyr
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CIN
Lohse
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CIN
Pineiro
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> CIN
Carpenter
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> COL
Wainwrght
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> COL
Wellemeyr
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> COL
Lohse
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PHI
Peavy
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> PHI
Gaudin
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> PHI
Young
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> ARI
Correia
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> ARI
Peavy
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> ARI
Geer
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @WAS
Lincecum
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @WAS
Johnson
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @WAS
Cain
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @FLA
Zito
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> @FLA
Sanchez
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @FLA
Lincecum
(RHP) </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> SF
Stammen
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> SF
Zimmrmnn
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> SF
Detwiler
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> NYM
Martis
(RHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top;" align="center"> NYM
Lannan
(LHP) </td><td style="vertical-align: top; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYM
Stammen
(RHP) </td></tr> </tbody></table>

Five must-starts: Roy Halladay, Dan Haren, Tim Lincecum, Jake Peavy, Johan Santana
6. Kevin Slowey (MIN) -- Tue-CLE (Huff), Sun-@SEA (Washburn)
7. Clayton Kershaw (LAD) -- Mon-ARI (Buckner), Sat-PHI (Blanton): 4-2, 2.76 ERA, 1.22 WHIP in 15 career starts at Dodger Stadium
8. Randy Wolf (LAD) -- Tue-ARI (Haren), Sun-PHI (TBD): 3.16 ERA, 1.18 WHIP in five home starts
9. Roy Oswalt (HOU) -- Mon-COL (Cook), Sat-PIT (Snell): 20-5, 2.92 ERA, 1.21 WHIP in 38 home starts 2007-09
10. Bronson Arroyo (CIN) -- Tue-@STL (Lohse), Sun-CHC (Wells)
11. Joe Saunders (LAA) -- Tue-@TOR (Halladay), Sun-@DET (Porcello): 19-6, 3.02 ERA, 1.23 WHIP in 28 road starts 2007-09
12. A.J. Burnett (NYY) -- Tue-TEX (Holland), Sun-TB (Sonnanstine): 8-4, 3.01 ERA, 1.03 WHIP in 18 career starts versus Rays
13. Aaron Cook (COL) -- Mon-@HOU (Oswalt), Sat-@STL (Wellemeyer): 3-0, 2.37 ERA, 1.32 WHIP in five career starts at Minute Maid Park
14. Joe Blanton (PHI) -- Mon-@SD (Peavy), Sat-@LAD (Kershaw): 3-1, 4.65 ERA, 1.32 WHIP in his past five starts
15. Rick Porcello (DET) -- Tue-BOS (Matsuzaka), Sun-LAA (Saunders): 3-1, 3.18 ERA, 1.28 WHIP in four home starts
16. Joba Chamberlain (NYY) -- Mon-@CLE (Jackson), Sat-TB (Garza)
17. Edinson Volquez (CIN) -- Mon-@STL (Wellemeyer), Sat-CHC (Marshall)
18. Kyle Lohse (STL) -- Tue-CIN (Arroyo), Sun-COL (Jimenez): 13-5, 3.23 ERA, 1.12 WHIP in 27 career starts at Busch Stadium
19. Ubaldo Jimenez (COL) -- Tue-@HOU (Paulino), Sun-@STL (Lohse): 2-0, 3.38 ERA, 1.23 WHIP in three career starts versus Astros
20. Todd Wellemeyer (STL) -- Mon-CIN (Volquez), Sat-COL (Cook): 9-3, 2.65 ERA, 1.11 WHIP in 17 home starts 2008-09
21. Kyle Davies (KC) -- Tue-@TB (Sonnanstine), Sun-@TOR (Halladay): 3.52 ERA, 1.31 WHIP in 11 road starts 2008-09
22. Jarrod Washburn (SEA) -- Mon-BAL (Hill), Sun-MIN (Slowey): 7-6, 3.26 ERA, 1.10 WHIP in 16 career starts versus Twins
23. Daisuke Matsuzaka (BOS) -- Tue-@DET (Porcello), Sun-TEX (Holland)
24. Manny Parra (MIL) -- Tue-@FLA (Badenhop), Sun-@ATL (Kawakami)
25. Andrew Miller (FLA) -- Mon-MIL (Suppan), Sat-SF (Sanchez): 4.55 ERA, 7.16 WHIP at home 2008-09 (7.16 and 1.93 on road)
26. Gavin Floyd (CHW) -- Tue-OAK (TBD), Sun-CLE (Huff): 11-5, 3.55 ERA, 1.19 WHIP in 21 home starts 2008-09
27. Zach Duke (PIT) -- Tue-NYM (Santana), Sun-@HOU (Paulino)
28. Livan Hernandez (NYM) -- Mon-@PIT (Snell), Sat-@WAS (Lannan): 3-0, 3.03 ERA, 1.32 WHIP in his past six starts
29. Kenshin Kawakami (ATL) -- Tue-CHC (Wells), Sun-MIL (Parra): 2-3, 3.60 ERA, 1.20 WHIP in five home starts
30. Andy Sonnanstine (TB) -- Tue-KC (Davies), Sun-@NYY (Burnett)
31. Ian Snell (PIT) -- Mon-NYM (Hernandez), Sat-@HOU (Oswalt)
32. Bartolo Colon (CHW) -- Mon-OAK (Cahill), Sat-CLE (Jackson)
33. Jeff Suppan (MIL) -- Mon-@FLA (Miller), Sat-@ATL (Medlen): 3-2, 2.98 ERA, 1.23 WHIP in seven career starts at Dolphin Stadium
34. Rich Hill (BAL) -- Mon-@SEA (Washburn), Sun-@OAK (Cahill)
35. Randy Wells (CHC) -- Tue-@ATL (Kawakami), Sun-@CIN (Arroyo)
36. Felipe Paulino (HOU) -- Tue-COL (Jimenez), Sun-PIT (Duke)
37. Trevor Cahill (OAK) -- Mon-@CHW (Colon), Sun-BAL (Hill)
Five "no thank yous": Phillies TBD (Tue-Sun), Derek Holland, David Huff, Zach Jackson, Craig Stammen

BadCo · May 31, 2009

The 50-to-90 group (owned in 50 to 90 percent of ESPN.com leagues)
Scott Baker (MIN) -- Thu-CLE (Carmona): 7-4, 3.71 ERA, 1.03 WHIP in 18 home starts in 2008 and '09
Jeremy Guthrie (BAL) -- Fri-@OAK (Anderson): 3.45 ERA, 1.21 WHIP in three career games (two starts) at McAfee Coliseum
Edwin Jackson (DET) -- Sat-LAA (Santana): 2-1, 3.55 ERA, 1.21 WHIP in five home starts
The under-50 group (available in at least 50 percent of ESPN.com leagues)
Nick Blackburn (MIN) -- Sat-@SEA (Jakubauskas): 12 IP, 13 H's, 4 ERs, 7 K's (3.00 ERA) in two starts versus Mariners in 2009
Dave Bush (MIL) -- Thu-@FLA (Johnson): Win, 7 IP, 6 H's, 2 ERs, 7 K's versus Marlins 5/14/09
Doug Davis (ARI) -- Fri-@SD (Correia): 3-1, 3.51 ERA, 1.05 WHIP in five career starts at Petco Park
J.A. Happ (PHI) -- Wed-@SD (Young): 2-0, 1.16 ERA, 0.64 WHIP in eight career road games (two starts)
John Maine (NYM) -- Fri-@WAS (Martis): Win, 5 IP, 1 H, 0 ERs at Nationals Park 8/13/08; 7-2, 3.79 ERA in 11 career starts versus Nationals
Mike Pelfrey (NYM) -- Wed-@PIT (Ohlendorf): Win, 7 IP, 7 H's, 0 ER at PNC Park 8/15/08
Joel Pineiro (STL) -- Wed-CIN (Cueto): 2-1, 3.38 ERA, 1.00 WHIP in four starts versus Reds 2008-09
Jonathan Sanchez (SF) -- Sat-@FLA (Miller): Marlins have .690 team OPS in May
Jordan Zimmermann (WAS) -- Wed-SF (Johnson): Season-high 8 K's versus Giants 5/12/08
Barry Zito (SF) -- Fri-@FLA (Volstad): 2-0, 0.68 ERA, 0.75 WHIP in two career starts at Land Shark Stadium

BadCo · May 31, 2009

May 31, 2009, 4:27 PM
Volquez faces a tough Cardinal squad

Comment Email Print Share <script type="text/javascript"> var stobj = SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title:"Daily%20Notes%20for%20Monday:%20Volquez%20faces%20the%20tough%20Car", url:"http://sports.espn.go.com/fantasy/baseball/flb/story?page=mlbnotes090601", published: "2009-05-31" }); stobj.attachButton(document.getElementById("espnstlink")); </script>
<cite class="source">

By Adam Madison
Special to ESPN.com
Archive </cite>

Fantasy rotations get a little bit healthier Monday with the return of Edinson Volquez and Hiroki Kuroda. Volquez, returning from back spasms, gets a rematch against the Cardinals, who lit him up for seven runs in 6 2/3 innings on May 10. Kuroda, who has been on the disabled list since April 10 with a strained oblique, gets a home start versus the rival Diamondbacks.Monday is an off day for many teams, with only nine games on the schedule, so pitching is a little thin. But in Chicago, where the A's and the White Sox face off, there may be two candidates under one roof as Trevor Cahill and Bartolo Colon toe the mound. Both offenses rank near the bottom in the league, presenting an opportunity for some timely spot starting. Read on to see what other pitchers are in store for a productive outing.
For starters

<style type="text/css">.mod-inline td img {margin: 0px;}</style>
Starting pitcher rankings for Monday, June 1.

<table style="margin: 0pt; width: 100%;"> <thead><tr><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> Rk </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 30px;"><center> Team </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"> Name </th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> T </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 35px;"><center> W-L </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> ERA </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> WHIP </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> K/9 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> OPSA </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> Opp </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> OPS </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> CT% </center></th></tr></thead><tbody> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Roy Oswalt </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.62 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.36 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.79 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .806 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> COL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .758 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 78.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Aaron Cook </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.82 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.48 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.18 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .779 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @HOU </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .745 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Edinson Volquez </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.25 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.29 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.32 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .665 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @STL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .751 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Joba Chamberlain </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.97 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.57 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9.13 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .826 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CLE </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .781 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.6% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Trevor Cahill </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.45 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.50 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.95 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .861 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CHW </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .723 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.4% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Bartolo Colon </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.80 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.44 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.80 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .797 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> OAK </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .667 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.6% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jarrod Washburn </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.45 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.20 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.44 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .685 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BAL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .781 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.9% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Livan Hernandez </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.28 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.41 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.10 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .810 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @PIT </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .730 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Joe Blanton </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.14 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.58 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.42 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .830 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SD </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .708 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 10 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jeff Suppan </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.23 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.58 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.56 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .905 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @FLA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .706 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 75.6% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 11 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Todd Wellemeyer </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.02 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.64 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.49 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .829 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CIN </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .748 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.2% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 12 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Hiroki Kuroda </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.59 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0.88 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.18 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .513 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> ARI </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .722 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 76.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 13 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Ian Snell </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.43 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.58 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.79 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .862 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYM </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .776 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.9% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 14 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Kevin Correia </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.11 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.48 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.57 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .763 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PHI </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .811 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 81.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 15 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Andrew Miller </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.55 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.58 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.07 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .758 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> MIL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .755 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 76.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 16 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Rich Hill </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.14 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.70 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9.20 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .791 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SEA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .686 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.8% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 17 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Billy Buckner </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.16 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.59 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.06 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .945 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @LAD </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .786 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.8% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 18 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jeremy Sowers </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.71 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.71 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.21 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .954 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYY </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .842 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.5% </td></tr> </tbody></table>Rk.: The author's ranking of that pitcher for that day only. T: Pitcher throws left-handed or right-handed. W-L: Pitcher's win-loss record. ERA: Pitcher's earned run average. WHIP: Pitcher's average number of walks plus hits surrendered per inning. K/9: Pitcher's average number of strikeouts per nine innings. OPSA: Pitcher's on-base plus slugging percentage surrendered to opponents. OPS: Pitcher's opponent's composite team on-base plus slugging percentage. CT%: Pitcher's opponent's success rate putting the ball in play (versus striking out).

BadCo · May 31, 2009

Selected notes: Joba Chamberlain is barely averaging five innings per start, which is the main reason he has just two wins despite pitching for such an offensive juggernaut, but he's running into the Indians at the right time, as Grady Sizemore was just placed on the disabled list and Victor Martinez is questionable with a sore knee. Just as important, the Yankees' offense should tee off on Jeremy Sowers, so Chamberlain has a good chance at his third win of the season. … The Astros' lineup leans right, which helps explain their mediocre .715 OPS against right-handed pitching on the season. That plays into the hands of Aaron Cook, who has walked only two right-handers in 99 at-bats, allowing an impressive .713 OPS in the process, making him a great spot start candidate. … Already one of the best offenses to cycle spot starters in against, now the A's have suffered even more casualties, with Travis Buck landing on the disabled list and Jack Cust dealing with back spasms. Bartolo Colon hasn't pitched all that well recently, but you can't go wrong in a matchup with the worst offense in baseball. … After some early season control problems, Trevor Cahill has looked impressive in recent starts, reminding us why he is considered one of baseball's top prospects. In his past five starts, he has pitched 28 2/3 innings while allowing just six walks and allowed two runs or less in five of his past six starts. Facing one of the weakest offenses in baseball, it looks like Cahill can be trusted for a solid performance. … The Cardinals knocked Edinson Volquez around for seven runs on May 10, so owners may feel a little apprehension in throwing him out there for his first start off the disabled list. That said, while Volquez has had his share of control problems this season, batters are hitting only .185 off of him, showing how filthy his stuff is. He's striking out nearly a batter per inning, so he's probably worth the risk. … Hiroki Kuroda allowed seven runs (five earned) in his last rehab start, which doesn't exactly inspire confidence. The Diamondbacks hit a little bit better in May, and Kuroda didn't do too well against them last season, allowing 15 runs (10 earned) in 20 innings. Kuroda doesn't get enough strikeouts to make it worth the risk.
Now batting

Hitters' count
• Nick Swisher, 1B/OF, Yankees: He has only four at-bats versus Jeremy Sowers, but since Swisher has two home runs against the youngster, it's probably safe to say he's comfortable against the southpaw.
• Adam LaRoche, 1B, Pirates: He's hitting only .241 in 29 at-bats against Livan Hernandez, but with six walks and five extra-base hits (including one homer) he has a .371 on-base percentage and .483 slugging percentage. All seven of his home runs this season have occurred off of right-handed pitching, and for his career, his OPS is nearly 100 points higher against righties than lefties.
• Casey Blake, 1B/3B, Dodgers: Hopefully Blake can suit up on Monday, as he's 5-for-8 against the D-Backs' Billy Buckner.
• Luke Scott, OF, Orioles: Since returning from the disabled list, Scott has been unbelievable, with six home runs in four games. Still owned in less than a quarter of ESPN leagues, grab him now before your leaguemates do.
Pitchers' count
• Melky Cabrera, OF, Yankees: Cabrera could return from injury Monday, but it's not worth the gamble when he's hitless lifetime against Sowers in eight career at-bats. He's never been particularly adept versus left-handed pitching anyway.
• Carlos Beltran, OF and David Wright, 3B, Mets: Both of the Mets' stars have struck out five times in 12 at-bats against Ian Snell, a strong indicator of futility. Both have just two hits in those 12 at-bats, although Beltran, at least, has gone yard; Wright, on the other hand, has a .214 OBP and .167 SLG against Snell.
• Carlos Lee, OF, Astros: In 11 at-bats against Aaron Cook, Lee has just a single and a walk, giving him a .091 batting average and slugging percentage against the ground ball specialist.
• Garrett Atkins, 3B, Rockies: Atkins has only one extra-base hit in his past 27 games, so this isn't exactly going out on a limb here, but nonetheless, against Roy Oswalt he is 2-for-13 (both singles) with two strikeouts.
• Adam Kennedy, 2B, Athletics: Kennedy's ownership has increased 11 percent in the past week, but those owners who were trying to capitalize on his hot streak have missed out: he's been held hitless in four of his past five games. Even if you're counting on his steals, he possesses a career .330 on-base percentage on a team that isn't fond of the stolen base, and despite hitting near the top of the lineup, he has just six runs scored in 20 games.
• Mark Reynolds, 3B, Diamondbacks: With one hit -- a single -- in 10 at-bats against five strikeouts, Hiroki Kuroda seems to have Reynolds' number.
If you're hardcore

• Bill Hall, 3B, Brewers: Hitting .361 with two home runs in 36 at-bats against left-handers, Hall makes a fine spot start against Marlins lefty Andrew Miller, who has allowed right-handers to hit .294 off of him in his career.
• Jason Giambi, 1B, Athletics: Although he has struck out 10 times in 28 career at-bats versus Colon, he's also hit .286 with two dingers against him. Colon's been quite susceptible to left-handed bats this year as well, with five of his seven home runs allowed coming against lefties, allowing a .516 slugging percentage against them.
• Josh Fields, 3B, White Sox: Don't look now, but Fields has strung together hits in six consecutive games, including three multihit games, with three doubles. It couldn't have come at a better time, as he was in danger of losing playing time. He hasn't shown it for most of the season, but the former first-round pick has enough power to be of service in AL-only leagues.
• Nolan Reimold, OF, Orioles: Reimold has displayed impressive power, with five home runs in 60 at-bats in May, including a home run in three consecutive games from May 26-28. Overall, seven of his 15 hits have gone for extra bases.
Triage

Injury list: Out
• Travis Buck, OF, Athletics (15-day DL, oblique)
• Jesus Flores, C, Nationals (15-day DL, shoulder): Flores was set to return Friday, but had a setback in his recovery and could be out a few more weeks.
• Khalil Greene, SS, Cardinals (15-day DL, anxiety disorder)
• Kaz Matsui, 2B, Astros (15-day DL, hamstring)
• Carlos Quentin, OF, White Sox (15-day DL, foot)
• Grady Sizemore, OF, Indians (15-day DL, elbow): Sizemore's bothersome elbow has finally landed him on the disabled list; he should return sometime in mid-June.
• Joey Votto, 1B, Reds (15-day DL, personal)
Injury list: Day-to-day
• Carlos Beltran, OF, Mets (stomach)
• Casey Blake, 1B/3B, Dodgers (hamstring)
• Geoff Blum, 3B, Astros (hamstring)
• Pat Burrell, OF, Rays (15-day DL, neck): Burrell could be activated in time for Monday's game.
• Melky Cabrera, OF, Yankees (shoulder): Cabrera has been out since Tuesday, but could return from a bruised shoulder on Monday.
• Joe Crede, 3B, Twins (knee): Crede fouled a ball off his knee Saturday and is questionable for Monday.
• Jack Cust, OF, Athletics (back)
• Cliff Floyd, OF, Padres (15-day DL, shoulder/knee): Floyd is expected to return this weekend, and should see plenty of playing time against right-handers.
• Travis Hafner, DH, Indians (shoulder): Hafner was supposed to play three straight minor league games before joining the Indians on Monday, but didn't play Saturday due to soreness in his shoulder. He may be activated later in the week.
• Victor Martinez, C/1B, Indians (knee): Martinez fouled a ball off his knee Saturday and is questionable for Monday.
• Kaz Matsui, 2B, Astros (hamstring)
Weather concerns

• The Rockies-Astros and Orioles-Mariners contests are the only weatherproof games on Monday.
• Cleveland and Miami (50 percent chance of thunderstorms) both have a significant chance of precipitation and therefore possible rain delays. Things are more moderate in Pittsburgh and Chicago, where there's only a 30 percent chance of rain.

BadCo · May 31, 2009

10 Lists of 10

<cite class="source">http://search.espn.go.com/matthew-berry/ </cite>
 

Doing 10 lists of 10 is actually harder than you might think. Coming up with the lists and then what's on the list, it's 100 pieces of information for a column. Okay, it's only 70 because I always have three sort of goofy lists when I do these. But still, even the goofy ones require some thought.It's a format I enjoy but that's harder than it might appear at first glance. Takes forever to write, actually. The only positive? You don't need to write a clever intro since it's exactly what it says it is. Ten lists of 10. So I'm going to take advantage of that and dive in. As always, the numbers you see in parentheses are ownership percentages in ESPN standard 10-team mixed leagues.

List One: Ten things I noticed when going through the box scores for last night (Wednesday, May 27).
1. Juan Rivera (3 percent) goes 2-for-3 with an RBI. He's now up to .293 on the year. Over his past 10 games, he is hitting .316 with three home runs and six RBI. 2. Luke Scott (5 percent) hit a home run and is now off the DL. He's hitting .311 on the year.
3. Delwyn Young (0.3 percent) batted second and played second base. He's now appeared at 2B, LF and RF. They keep finding ways to get him in the lineup. He's hitting .294 on the year.
4. Rick Porcello (32 percent) wins his sixth game of the year by going six innings and giving up only two runs. Over his past five starts, the rookie is 5-0 with a 1.50 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 30 innings.
5. Matt Murton (0.1 percent) batted cleanup for the Rockies. He's a guy that I've just always liked and has some power. He's been starting recently.
6. Jason Isringhausen (2 percent) pitched two scoreless innings in a loss to Cleveland. And recently, anyone throwing scoreless innings in the Rays' bullpen is worth paying attention to.
7. Jerry Hairston Jr. (15 percent) hit his second home run in four days. He now is hitting .300 with five home runs and 12 RBI in the month of May along with four steals. He has appeared at 2B, SS, 3B and OF.
8. Daisuke Matsuzaka (97 percent) needed 102 pitches to get through five innings in his second start since his return.
9. In that same game, Denard Span (49 percent) went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and his 11th stolen base. He is hitting .316 on the season. I have no idea what Span needs to do to get more respect.
10. Justin Upton (98 percent) stole his fifth base of the season. We know about the power, but he had stolen only three bases in the past two seasons combined. But he did have 36 steals in three seasons in the minors. It's not a fluke. If you own Upton, expect 12 to 15 steals this year as well.

List Two: Fun with small sample sizes. Ten guys who have been on fire over their past 10 games.
1. Gary Sheffield (14 percent): .414, 3 HR, 12 RBI
2. Ryan Garko (2 percent): .257, 4 HR, 10 RBI
3. Casey Blake (44 percent): .405, 2 HR, 10 RBI
4. Aaron Rowand (8 percent): .375, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 6 Runs, 2 SB
5. Cody Ross (9 percent): .395, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 11 Runs
6. Nolan Reimold (2 percent): .278, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 5 Runs
7. Adam Kennedy (9 percent): .415, 1 HR, 10 RBI, 2 SB
8. Andy LaRoche (3 percent): .429, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 1 SB
9. Michael Cuddyer (49 percent): .390, 5 HR, 14 RBI, 11 Runs
10. Carlos Ruiz (2 percent): .300, 2 HR, 7 RBI and even 1 SB

List Three: Ten guys who are owned in more than 50 percent of ESPN standard leagues that you should have no problem cutting.

1. David Ortiz (88 percent)
2. Delmon Young (63 percent)
3. Placido Polanco (80 percent)
4. Howie Kendrick (87 percent)
5. Carlos Guillen (53 percent)
6. Ricky Nolasco (63 percent): though I still think he turns it around eventually.
7. Andy Sonnanstine (63 percent)
8. Scott Kazmir (89 percent)
9. Brandon Morrow (60 percent)
10. Troy Percival (69 percent)

List Four: Ten e-mails or comments I have gotten that I am guessing the folks who wrote them would like to take back.

1. Will Seaborn (Arlington, VA): Just wanted to say thanks for the awesome recommendations on Chris Carpenter and A.J. Burnett on the BS Report with Bill Simmons. (TMR note: I liked Carpenter and hated A.J.)
2. Robert Costello (Boston, MA): I'm not sure what this means, but I find myself thinking about you a lot. It's nothing sexual, I'm sure of that. It's something else.
3. From the ESPN Conversation on my Love/Hate article: Trojanav: "You've got to put Carl Crawford on the "hate" list. Every year he gets taken in the first two rounds of a lot of drafts and can't hit 15 homers, has a so-so average and his SB numbers are down."
4. From ESPN Conversation on my March 6 article: RealSamoyed: "I'm just wondering how much Mike Cameron paid you to put him on every list for the past three years? You even ranked him in the top 100 last year, before and after the break! What's the "word" on Cameron? The guy can hit and run. But, he doesn't."
5. From ESPN Conversation on my March 20 article: Angelgr89: "It looks like TMR is going out of his way to bash Yankees players. A.J. Burnett is my breakout player of the year so I'm glad people in my draft are not picking him up earlier."
6. From ESPN Conversation on my March 20 article: Play4Keeps360: "I agree with tecuala. Magic Wandy Rodriguez is mostly hocus and no pocus in my book. Peripherals are there but luck often isn't."
7. Brad (Aliso Viejo, CA): I have enjoyed your work and you're a pretty funny fella. So far this year I have been disappointed. It seems like you recommend everyone with a little upside and the whole Big Papi is done thing, that's gonna sting.
8. From ESPN Conversation on my April 23 article: Crenshaw07: "It is way too early to give up on Conor Jackson. The entire team is struggling to warm up at the plate. You will be sorry come late May if you drop this guy."
9. Pretty much everyone from that same April 23 article that defended Mike Brown and the Cavaliers.
10 Dylan (Seattle) First, if you're at all familiar with "LivingSocial" on Facebook, I threw you in my "biggest celebrity crushes" alongside Hayden Panettiere, Erin Andrews, Maria Sharapova and Yvonne Strahovski. Your good looks speak for themselves.
List Five: Ten things I wish I could take back and/or was dead wrong about.
1. Being so down on Joe Mauer. I really didn't think he'd be playing a lot this year due to the back.
2. Putting Derek Jeter on my pre-season "Hate" list.
3. Putting Victor Martinez on the same list.
4. Clearly, I was wrong on Ryan Howard.
5. Not thinking Justin Verlander would bounce back.
6. Being so high on David Purcey.
7. And Jose Arredondo.
8. Not real proud of the "B.J. Ryan is okay" call.
9. Saying Armando Galarraga will finish with a sub 4.00 ERA.
10. Predicting Francisco Liriano will win the AL Cy Young award.

List Six: Ten pitchers I think are sell high and won't sustain the level of success they are having. They will still be good or solid, but I feel they have reached the peak of their value, whatever that may be.

1. Jered Weaver
2. Kevin Millwood (get whatever you can)
3. Brian Bannister
4. Doug Davis
5. Matt Cain
6. Tim Wakefield
7. Randy Wolf
8. Jair Jurrjens
9. Johnny Cueto
10 Zach Duke

List Seven: Ten movies. Every year, my friends and I do a "Summer Movie Pool" where we each pick 10 movies that we think will make the most money from the weekend after Memorial Day until the middle of September. You can't pick a movie that has already opened. Most money made wins, with a bonus if you pick correct order for any film. We've done it four years now. I've won it once and finished second once (there's about 20 of us). Here's the list I just submitted. I'm taking a huge gamble by not putting Public Enemies on here but with this game, that's how you win.
[+] Enlarge

<cite>Evans Ward/AP Photo</cite>TMR may not be the biggest Megan Fox fan, but she'll draw a lot of fans to see Transformers 2.

1. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"
2. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince"
3. "UP"
4. "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs"
5. "Bruno"
6. "Taking of Pelham 123" (this instead of "Public Enemies" will either make or break me)
7. "Year One"
8. "Hangover"
9. "Inglourious Basterds"
10. "Land of the Lost"

List Eight: Ten pitchers with one really bad start. Here's 10 pitchers' ERAs if you take out their one worst start of the year.
1. John Maine (39 percent) 3.70
2. Bronson Arroyo (22 percent) 3.94
3. Trevor Cahill (3 percent) 3.45 (and that includes one brutal 7 ER start. I took out only one)
4. Livan Hernandez (3 percent) 3.43
5. Carl Pavano (4 percent) 4.15 (and he has a 3.58 ERA over his past six starts)
6. Chris Young (69 percent) 3.72
7. Micah Owings (2 percent) 4.10
8. Clayton Kershaw (93 percent) 3.17
9. Brian Tallet (2 percent) 2.87
10. Ubaldo Jimenez (37 percent) 3.59

List Nine: Fun with splits. Those of you in daily leagues who stream pitchers, here are some interesting split stats.

1. Gavin Floyd (26 percent) at home: 1-2, 3.55 ERA
2. Paul Maholm (34 percent) at home: 2-0, 1.98 ERA
3. Joel Pineiro (11 percent) at home: 3-1. 2.05 ERA
4. Barry Zito (9 percent) at home: 0-1, 2.36 ERA
5. Big Fat Bartolo Colon (3 percent) at home: 2-2, 2.75 ERA
6. Tim Wakefield (42 percent) at home: 4-0, 3.00 ERA
7. Ross Ohlendorf (4 percent) at home: 3-1, 3.00 ERA
8. Jason Hammel (0.2 percent) on the road: 1-1, 1.64 ERA
9. Jon Garland (6 percent) on the road: 2-1, 2.13 ERA
10. Kyle Davies (13 percent) on the road: 0-1, 2.16 ERA

BadCo · Jun 2, 2009

Look for Slowey to stay hot

Comment Email Print Share <script type="text/javascript"> var stobj = SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title:"Daily%20Notes%20for%20Tuesday:%20Look%20for%20Slowey%20to%20stay%20ho", url:"http://sports.espn.go.com/fantasy/baseball/flb/story?page=mlbnotes090602", published: "2009-06-01" }); stobj.attachButton(document.getElementById("espnstlink")); </script>
<cite class="source">

By Adam Madison
Special to ESPN.com
Archive </cite>

The aces come out of the woodwork Tuesday. In fact, you could make a strong case that the top five pitchers of the day are the five best pitchers in baseball. The talent doesn't stop there, though, with the likes of Erik Bedard and Kevin Slowey close behind. Slowey is in the midst of an impressive hot streak and is going for his eighth win of the season, which would tie him with Roy Halladay (if he doesn't net a win of his own) and Zack Greinke for the major league lead. Those impatient owners who dropped Slowey after his rough start have to be kicking themselves.Rookie sensation Rick Porcello has five consecutive wins of his own, and we will get to see just how talented he is when he faces one of the league's elite offenses, the Red Sox. Tuesday also marks the major league debut of the Phillies' Antonio Bastardo. He's filling in for Brett Myers, who will undergo major (perhaps season-ending) hip surgery later this week. There are rumors the Phillies are interested in acquiring veteran pitching, but their solution could be found in Bastardo, a 23-year-old southpaw who was cruising with a sub-2.00 ERA in the upper minors.
For starters

BadCo · Jun 2, 2009

Starting pitcher rankings for Tuesday

<table style="margin: 0pt; width: 100%;"> <thead><tr><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> Rk </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 30px;"><center> Team </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"> Name </th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> T </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 35px;"><center> W-L </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> ERA </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> WHIP </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> K/9 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> OPSA </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> Opp </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> OPS </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> CT% </center></th></tr></thead><tbody> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Roy Halladay </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.63 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.06 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.46 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .635 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> LAA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .747 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Johan Santana </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.77 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.09 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 11.73 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .586 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @PIT </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .724 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Tim Lincecum </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.03 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.19 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 11.57 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .607 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @WAS </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .777 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 76.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Dan Haren </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.54 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0.90 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9.00 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .580 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @LAD </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .787 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jake Peavy </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5-5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.67 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.13 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 10.26 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .639 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PHI </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .811 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.8% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Erik Bedard </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.48 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.12 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.94 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .644 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BAL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .773 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> A.J. Burnett </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.78 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.41 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.02 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .783 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> TEX </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .820 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Kevin Slowey </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.11 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.37 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.46 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .828 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CLE </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .782 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Ubaldo Jimenez </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.37 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.44 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.99 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .708 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> HOU </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .741 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.8% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 10 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Randy Wolf </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.84 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.11 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.36 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .660 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> ARI </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .720 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 76.6% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 11 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Manny Parra </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.57 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.73 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.76 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .813 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @FLA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .703 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 75.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 12 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Rick Porcello </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.48 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.20 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.57 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .673 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BOS </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .813 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 13 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Bartolo Colon </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.80 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.44 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.80 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .797 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> OAK </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .672 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.4% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 14 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Randy Wells </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.80 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.16 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.28 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .578 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @ATL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .731 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 81.3% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 15 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Kenshin Kawakami </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.73 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.50 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.71 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .833 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CHC </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .740 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.4% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 16 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Daisuke Matsuzaka </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.82 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.33 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.27 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.116 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @DET </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .761 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 81.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 17 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Antonio Bastardo </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SD </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .714 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 18 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Zach Duke </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.75 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.11 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.25 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .649 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYM </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .775 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 19 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Joe Saunders </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.26 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.19 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.48 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .698 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @TOR </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .791 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 20 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Bronson Arroyo </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.12 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.37 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.43 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .817 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @STL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .750 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 21 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> David Huff </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 10.97 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.25 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.91 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.109 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @MIN </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .777 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.2% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 22 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Craig Stammen </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.56 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.24 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.97 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .706 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> SF </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .685 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 23 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Brad Thompson </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.30 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.23 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.68 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .803 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CIN </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .745 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.8% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 24 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> David Hernandez </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> -- </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SEA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .698 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 25 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Kyle Davies </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.09 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.42 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.33 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .749 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @TB </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .806 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.6% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 26 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Andy Sonnanstine </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.66 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.78 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.29 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .931 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> KC </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .731 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.2% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 27 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Anibal Sanchez </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.79 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.78 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.89 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .902 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> MIL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .755 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 75.9% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 28 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Felipe Paulino </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.75 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.83 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.50 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .948 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> COL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .753 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.9% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 29 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Vin Mazzaro </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> - </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> - </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> - </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> - </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> - </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CHW </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .724 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.3% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 30 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

$tex.gif$

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Vicente Padilla </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.71 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.41 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.71 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .716 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @NYY </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .841 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.6% </td></tr> </tbody></table>Rk.: The author's ranking of that pitcher for that day only. T: Pitcher throws left-handed or right-handed. W-L: Pitcher's win-loss record. ERA: Pitcher's earned run average. WHIP: Pitcher's average number of walks plus hits surrendered per inning. K/9: Pitcher's average number of strikeouts per nine innings. OPSA: Pitcher's on-base plus slugging percentage surrendered to opponents. OPS: Pitcher's opponent's composite team on-base plus slugging percentage. CT%: Pitcher's opponent's success rate putting the ball in play (versus striking out).

BadCo · Jun 2, 2009

Selected notes: A.J. Burnett went into Arlington on Wednesday and hurled six shutout innings, allowing just three hits and striking out seven Rangers. Now that Mark Teixeira is his teammate, Burnett has done well against most of the Rangers' lineup; only Andruw Jones and Josh Hamilton are hitting better than .238 against him, and Hamilton is questionable because of a nagging groin injury. Burnett also has struck out at least a batter per inning in four of his five starts in May, and it's that strikeout potential that makes him worth the risk against a strong offense. … Ubaldo Jimenez is holding right-handers to a paltry .229 AVG/.308 OBP/.276 SLG line, so it is no surprise that he held the Astros, whose lineup is predominantly right-handed, to one run in seven innings in an earlier start this season. He also struck out four and didn't allow a walk or an extra-base hit, and he has proved that he doesn't have much of a problem shutting down mediocre offenses. … It's no surprise that in Manny Parra's last outing against the Marlins, he tied a season high with eight strikeouts. After all, no team in baseball strikes out more than the Marlins, a category they have led the past three seasons. Overall, only the Pirates and the A's have a worse OPS against left-handers. … The White Sox shuffled their rotation, and rather than starting Gavin Floyd on Tuesday, they chose to move him up a day and push Bartolo Colon back a day to Tuesday. Colon is still a smart gamble against the A's porous offense, and for that matter, so is Floyd. The White Sox offense has come alive recently, hitting .349 the past week, so a quality start would offer a good shot at a win. … A favorable schedule has helped mask Joe Saunders' poor peripherals -- a 33-19 strikeout-walk ratio and nine home runs allowed in 66 1/3 innings -- but the schedule starts to get tougher, starting with a matchup against the Blue Jays. It also doesn't help that maybe the best pitcher in baseball, Roy Halladay, will make it hard for Saunders to have a chance at picking up a win unless he throws an absolute gem. … It was only a matter of time before Kevin Slowey's ERA decreased; his marvelous strikeout-to-walk rate and his inflated batting average on balls in play suggested regression. He has been impressive, nonetheless, with two runs or fewer allowed in four consecutive starts while facing the Yankees (1st in OPS) and Red Sox (3rd) along the way. The Indians, in comparison, don't seem so threatening. … Antonio Bastardo has 51 strikeouts to 32 hits in 47 2/3 innings while splitting time in Double- and Triple-A this season, but scouts indicate his stuff isn't nearly as dominant as those numbers suggest. But crafty lefties often can be productive in the majors, too, and beginning your major league career in the comforts of Petco Park can go a long way toward initial success. … Anibal Sanchez will come off the DL to face the Brewers, not Burke Badenhop as had previously been scheduled. ... 22-year-old righty rookie Vin Mazzaro makes his major league debut for the A's. He was 2-2 with a 2.38 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 44 strikeouts in 56 2/3 innings for Sacremento of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. Baseball America ranks him as the No. 8 prospect in the A's organization.
Now batting

Hitters' count:
• Curtis Granderson, OF, Tigers: Granderson is slugging .889 off Daisuke Matsuzaka thanks to four hits in nine at-bats, including two extra-base hits, a double and a home run.
• Kelly Shoppach, C, Indians: He has been a boom-or-bust hitter versus Kevin Slowey, striking out five times with only two hits in 10 at-bats, but both of those hits went yard. Keep an eye on the status of Victor Martinez (knee) to see whether Shoppach is guaranteed a start behind the plate.
• Travis Hafner, DH, Indians: It looks like Hafner might be activated from the disabled list in time for Tuesday's game. Hitting .288 with three home runs in 52 at-bats against right-handers before his injury, Hafner is 3-for-10 with a double and a home run against Kevin Slowey.
• Milton Bradley, OF, Cubs: Bradley is 10-for-24 (.416) in his past eight games, blasting a home run and picking up a double and a triple, so it looks like he's ready to bust out of his early season slump.
• Rick Ankiel, OF, Cardinals: Four of Ankiel's five hits against Bronson Arroyo have gone for extra bases, including three home runs. Overall, he's hitting .385 in 13 at-bats versus Arroyo, with an unruly 1.154 slugging percentage.
• Andre Ethier, OF, Dodgers: With seven hits in 17 at-bats versus Dan Haren, Ethier is hitting .412 off the Diamondbacks ace, roping two doubles and a round-tripper in the process.
• Gary Sheffield, OF, Mets: His hitting streak up to eight games, Sheffield has been a force since Carlos Delgado went down. As is typically the case for him, he does his best work against left-handers, hitting .394 with two doubles and home runs in 33 at-bats this season, and he'll face the Pirates lefty Zach Duke on Tuesday.
• Marco Scutaro, 2B/3B/SS, Blue Jays: After swatting five homers in 89 at-bats in April, Scutaro went homerless in 121 at-bats in May, but he managed to keep himself productive by hitting .322 with 12 doubles and four steals. He currently has seven consecutive multihit games, hitting .484 during that span, and he has a good shot to keep it up Tuesday, considering he's hitting .370 against lefties this season.
• Todd Helton, 1B, Rockies: Helton is slugging .551 against right-handers, accumulating 13 of his 16 extra-base hits against righties, including all six of his home runs. He'll face Felipe Paulino, who is allowing left-handed batters to hit .357 and slug .661 against him, so the numbers indicate quite a favorable matchup for Helton.
Pitchers' count:
• Magglio Ordonez, OF, Tigers: Ordonez has one hit in nine at-bats against Daisuke Matsuzaka, who has struck him out five times while allowing one walk.
• Carlos Beltran, OF, Mets: He's just 2-for-15 (.133) versus Zach Duke, although he has stolen a base against him.
• Nick Swisher, 1B/OF, Yankees: Although Swisher has a home run off Vicente Padilla, that is his lone hit in 15 at-bats. He has worked two walks, but Padilla has struck him out five times.
• Hank Blalock, 3B, Rangers: In 10 career at-bats versus A.J. Burnett, the only success Blalock has had is a single and two walks. Meanwhile, he has struck out three times.
• Bobby Abreu, OF, and Torii Hunter, OF, Angels: The two outfielders have faced Roy Halladay a combined 64 times but have three combined extra-base hits. Abreu is batting .176 (6-for-34) and Hunter is at .133 (4-for-30), and they have combined to strike out 19 times.
• Jhonny Peralta, SS, Indians: He is 2-for-11 (.182) with three strikeouts against Kevin Slowey.
• Jayson Werth, OF, and Chase Utley, 2B, Phillies: Werth has been -- resisting the urge for a pun -- rendered helpless versus Jake Peavy, with just one hit in 11 at-bats while striking out seven times. Even more surprising is the fact that Utley is hitless in eight at-bats, with two strikeouts to one walk.
• Stephen Drew, SS, Diamondbacks: Drew is hitting only .138 against southpaws this season and .258 for his career, so it's not surprising to note that he's 0-for-6 lifetime against Randy Wolf, striking out twice.
• Aubrey Huff, 1B/3B, Orioles: Huff is hitting below the Mendoza Line against left-handers this season, so it's a good idea to sit him versus Erik Bedard, against whom he's 6-for-26 (.231) for his career, with four strikeouts.
If you're hardcore

• Andruw Jones, OF, Rangers: Josh Hamilton's injury woes give Jones an opportunity for more playing time, and he's 10-for-35 with two home runs and a .600 slugging percentage against A.J. Burnett. He was 1-for-4 with a double against him last week.
• Kevin Millar, 1B, Blue Jays: After a strong April, Millar's play has tapered off, but he's worth a gamble against Joe Saunders, against whom he has six hits in 12 at-bats, including two dingers and a double.
• Jason Giambi, 1B, Athletics: Gavin Floyd gives up his fair share of gopher balls, and Giambi has three hits, including a homer and a double, in six opportunities against him.
• Matt Joyce, OF, Rays: After hitting .315 with five home runs in 41 games in Triple-A, Joyce was recalled for Sunday's game and went 2-for-3 with a home run. With Gabe Kapler and Gabe Gross not hitting well and Pat Burrell still sidelined, Joyce could play often against right-handers. He has some pop, slugging .519 with 14 homers in 233 at-bats against righties last season.
• Scott Hairston, OF, Padres: In 59 at-bats against lefties, Hairston is hitting .393 with four home runs and three stolen bases. Phillies rookie call-up Antonio Bastardo might be in for a rude awakening when Hairston sets foot in the batter's box.
Triage

Injury list: Out
• Travis Buck, OF, Athletics (15-day DL, oblique)
• Pat Burrell, OF, Rays (15-day DL, neck): Burrell is not yet comfortable enough for baseball activities, although he hopes to get into the swing of things soon. "I'm hoping to be playing some games -- somewhere -- hopefully by the end of this week or next week," he said.
• Khalil Greene, SS, Cardinals (15-day DL, anxiety disorder)
• Kaz Matsui, 2B, Astros (15-day DL, hamstring)
• Brett Myers, SP, Phillies (15-day DL, hip): Myers is set to undergo surgery on his hip later in the week.
• Carlos Quentin, OF, White Sox (15-day DL, foot)
• Grady Sizemore, OF, Indians (15-day DL, elbow): Sizemore's bothersome elbow has finally landed him on the disabled list; he should return sometime in mid-June.
• Joey Votto, 1B, Reds (15-day DL, personal)
Injury list: Day-to-day
• Carlos Beltran, OF, Mets (stomach)
• Casey Blake, 1B/3B, Dodgers (hamstring): Manager Jim Torre says it will "be a few days" before Blake returns, and he isn't expected to play Monday, so he's highly questionable for Tuesday.
• Geoff Blum, 3B, Astros (hamstring): Blum missed his sixth straight game Sunday, and if his injury doesn't improve soon, he's a candidate for the disabled list.
• Joe Crede, 3B, Twins (knee): Crede fouled a ball off his knee Saturday and missed Sunday's contest.
• Coco Crisp, OF, Royals (shoulder): Crisp is available to pinch-run, but manager Trey Hillman doesn't want him throwing. He's questionable for Tuesday.
• Michael Cuddyer, OF, Twins (finger)
• Elijah Dukes, OF, Nationals (15-day DL, hamstring): Dukes is scheduled to return from the disabled list Tuesday.
• Travis Hafner, DH, Indians (shoulder): Hafner could be activated Tuesday, so consider him probable.
• Josh Hamilton, OF, Rangers (abdominal/groin; available to pinch-hit): Hamilton's nagging groin injury now has affected his abdomen, too, and he is unable to run. He is awaiting MRI results.
• Casey Kotchman, 1B, Braves (shin): Kotchman was hit in his shin by Max Scherzer on Sunday and is questionable.
• Victor Martinez, C/1B, Indians (knee): Martinez fouled a ball off his knee Saturday and missed Sunday's game with a bruised knee. Kelly Shoppach will see another start behind the plate if Martinez can't go.
• Joe Mauer, C, Twins (leg; probable)
• Jake Peavy, SP, Padres (ankle): Peavy's ankle is at least partially to blame for the eight hits and four runs he allowed in 6 1/3 innings in his last start, but he is expected to take the mound Tuesday and feels "confident," according to manager Bud Black, it won't be a problem.
• Aaron Rowand, OF, Giants (ankle): Rowand rolled his ankle on Sunday but the injury isn't considered serious, so he could be active Tuesday.
Weather concerns

• Tuesday will have five weatherproof games: Angels-Blue Jays, Royals-Rays, Rockies-Astros, Indians-Twins and Orioles-Mariners.
• Chicago has the highest chance of rain for the day, with a 60 percent chance of thunderstorms. Elsewhere in the Midwest, Detroit could see some thundershowers (40 percent chance), and in St. Louis, there's a 30 percent chance of storms.
• Thunderstorms could strike the nation's capital (40 percent chance), while in Miami, the Brewers-Marlins risk a 50 percent chance of storm

BadCo · Jun 3, 2009

Johnson takes first crack at No. 300

<cite class="source">http://search.espn.go.com/tristan-h-cockcroft/ </cite>
 

Wednesday's headliner, naturally, is Randy Johnson and his quest for his 300th career win. Interestingly, his first try at win No. 300 will come against the very franchise that drafted him and for whom he recorded career win No. 1, the Washington Nationals (then the Montreal Expos). The "Big Unit" has fallen on hard times more recently, though, with a current 5.71 ERA that would represent a career high. Fortunately, he has tossed 11 1/3 innings and allowed two runs in his past two starts combined.Although the Yankees plan to pitch Andy Pettitte on Wednesday as his back allows, they'll have Chien-Ming Wang in reserve to stand in if needed. If it's Wang's first start back in the Yankees' rotation, he should be watched closely but not activated. After a horrible start to his season, he has managed back-to-back standout relief appearances.

Starting pitcher rankings for June 3, 2009

<table style="margin: 0pt; width: 100%;"> <thead><tr><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> Rk </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 30px;"><center> Team </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"> Name </th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> T </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom; width: 35px;"><center> W-L </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> ERA </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> WHIP </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> K/9 </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> OPSA </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> Opp </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> OPS </center></th><th style="vertical-align: bottom;"><center> CT% </center></th></tr></thead><tbody> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Josh Beckett </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.60 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.47 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8.47 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .733 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @DET </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .761 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 81.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Chad Billingsley </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.80 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.22 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9.24 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .624 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> ARI </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .716 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 76.4% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jered Weaver </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.36 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.03 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.95 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .616 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @TOR </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .791 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Cliff Lee </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.16 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.41 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.57 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .721 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @MIN </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .777 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.2% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Derek Lowe </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.49 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.21 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.30 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .643 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CHC </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .740 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.4% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Johnny Cueto </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.53 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.03 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.65 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .635 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @STL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .750 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Mike Pelfrey </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.88 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.37 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.72 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .716 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @PIT </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .728 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 8 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Ted Lilly </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.50 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.09 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.27 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .699 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @ATL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .731 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 81.3% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> J.A. Happ </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.00 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.00 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.09 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .573 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SD </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .713 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 10 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Andy Pettitte </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.10 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.46 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.81 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .777 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> TEX </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .820 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 11 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Randy Johnson </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.71 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.44 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9.35 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .837 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @WAS </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .777 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 76.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 12 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Braden Looper </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.24 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.34 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.02 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .796 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @FLA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .704 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 75.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 13 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Josh Outman </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.06 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.19 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7.66 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .632 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @CHW </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .724 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.3% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 14 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jordan Zimmermann </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.07 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.48 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 9.20 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .854 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> SF </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .685 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 15 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Chris Young </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.45 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.37 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.61 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .701 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> PHI </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .815 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 16 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Clayton Richard </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.38 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.43 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.75 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .757 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> OAK </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .669 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.1% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 17 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Kyle Lohse </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.98 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.20 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.29 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .689 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CIN </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .742 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 18 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Casey Janssen </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.15 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.69 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.38 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .870 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> LAA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .747 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 19 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Sean West </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 0-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.25 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.08 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.25 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .533 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> MIL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .753 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 76.0% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 20 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Anthony Swarzak </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1-1 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2.08 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.23 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.15 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .664 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> CLE </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .776 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 21 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jason Marquis </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 7-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.93 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.28 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.33 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .663 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @HOU </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .743 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.8% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 22 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jon Garland </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.75 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.69 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.36 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .862 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @LAD </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .784 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.6% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 23 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jeff Niemann </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-4 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.44 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.56 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.33 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .827 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> KC </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .731 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 80.2% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 24 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Brian Moehler </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-3 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.43 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.66 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.17 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .904 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> COL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .750 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.8% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 25 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Brian Bannister </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.64 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.36 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.55 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .688 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @TB </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .806 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 77.6% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 26 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

$tex.gif$

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Scott Feldman </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.91 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.18 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.84 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .650 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @NYY </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .839 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.5% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 27 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Brad Bergesen </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-2 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.94 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.48 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3.99 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .818 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> @SEA </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .691 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 82.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 28 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Jason Vargas </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> L </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 2-0 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.65 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.10 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.60 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .619 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BAL </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .767 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 29 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Armando Galarraga </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 3-5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5.50 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.56 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 6.50 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .867 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> BOS </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .813 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 79.7% </td></tr> <tr class="last"><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 30 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center">

</td><td style="vertical-align: middle;"> Ross Ohlendorf </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> R </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 5-5 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.45 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 1.22 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> 4.75 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle;" align="center"> .766 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> NYM </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> .774 </td><td style="vertical-align: middle; background-color: rgb(248, 248, 242);" align="center"> 83.2% </td></tr> </tbody></table>Rk.: The author's ranking of that pitcher for that day only. T: Pitcher throws left-handed or right-handed. W-L: Pitcher's win-loss record. ERA: Pitcher's earned run average. WHIP: Pitcher's average number of walks plus hits surrendered per inning. K/9: Pitcher's average number of strikeouts per nine innings. OPSA: Pitcher's on-base plus slugging percentage surrendered to opponents. OPS: Pitcher's opponent's composite team on-base plus slugging percentage. CT%: Pitcher's opponent's success rate putting the ball in play (versus striking out).

BadCo · Jun 3, 2009

Selected notes: Josh Beckett was 3-0 with a 2.38 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in five starts in May, and three of those starts came on the road (including one at hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium). Keep riding that hot streak. … Twelve of Chad Billingsley's past 13 starts at Dodger Stadium have been quality starts, and that Arizona offense ranks 25th in the game in team OPS (.716). … The only blemish on Jered Weaver's score sheet against the Blue Jays on May 7 was an Aaron Hill home run. Outside of that, he allowed only two other hits and no other runs, and he struck out eight Blue Jays (back when Toronto was considered one of the best, if not the best, offenses in baseball). He's 4-1 with a 3.38 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in five career starts versus Toronto, and again, Toronto is no longer as scary a matchup as it once was. … Cliff Lee has a streak of nine consecutive quality starts, during which he has a 2.11 ERA and 1.28 WHIP, and he's 7-3 with a 3.78 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 16 career starts versus Minnesota. Need I say more? … Although the Cardinals hammered Johnny Cueto in his only two starts against them in 2008 (16.20 ERA, 3.30 WHIP), he mastered them for a victory on May 8, tossing seven innings of one-run, five-hit baseball. That's much closer to the "real" Cueto than either of his forgettable performances of last year. … The only time in his career when Mike Pelfrey previously pitched at PNC Park, he tossed seven shutout innings for a win on Aug. 15, 2008. I tend to prefer him in home games, but I'll make an exception for him working at a pitcher-friendly ballpark against a Pirates team ranked 23rd in team OPS (.728). … J.A. Happ is quite the spot-start gem for Wednesday. Not only is it a start at spacious Petco Park against a poor Padres offense (26th-ranked .713 team OPS), but he also has a 1.16 ERA and 0.64 WHIP in 23 1/3 career road innings. … Maybe you'll find it relevant to Randy Johnson's matchup, maybe not, but consider that not one of the past six pitchers to win 300 career games picked up win No. 300 on his first attempt, Mark Simon of ESPN Stats & Information reports. Tom Seaver was the last to do it, on Aug. 4, 1985, and the six pitchers to notch their 300th career wins since have needed 2.8 starts on average to do it. Johnson did defeat the Nationals on May 11 in San Francisco, but he didn't look great doing it, and it's not as if Washington's offense is any pushover this season (eighth-ranked .777 team OPS). Count me among those who believe that Johnson won't make history Wednesday. … If only that Josh Outman matchup versus the White Sox were in Oakland, I might have been more apt to chance it, though to be fair, he did pitch well at Rangers Ballpark this past Friday (6 2/3 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 9 K). AL-only owners need to consider using him, because Chicago's offense isn't remotely threatening, but I would lean toward a "no" in mixed leagues. … No matter how good you think Armando Galarraga looked in his most recent start, there's no way you can use him in a matchup against the Red Sox regardless of venue. Even during his breakout 2008 he managed his fourth-worst game score of the season in his only start against Boston, and yes, it was also at home.
Now batting

Hitters' count:
• Derrek Lee, 1B, Cubs: One of the few successful Cubs against Derek Lowe, Lee has batted 11-for-28 (.393 average) with one home run against the right-hander.
• Kevin Youkilis, 1B/3B, Red Sox: He has three career at-bats against Armando Galarraga, and in two of them, he has hit home runs. (He struck out the other time.)
• Derek Jeter, SS, Yankees: He has hit two home runs in six career at-bats against Scott Feldman and has hit five of his seven home runs this season at the new Yankee Stadium. There, he has an OPS 106 points higher than on the road so far.
• Ryan Zimmerman, 3B, Nationals: Three different Nationals homered off Randy Johnson in their May 11 meeting in San Francisco (Ronnie Belliard and Josh Willingham were the others), and Zimmerman was 2-for-3 against Johnson in that game.
• Randy Winn, OF, Giants: In that very same Nationals-Giants game, Winn was 2-for-3 with a double against Jordan Zimmermann. Winn also batted .314 in May.
• Adam LaRoche, 1B, Pirates: He's a perfect 3-for-3 in his career against Mike Pelfrey and has hit far better at PNC Park (.333 BA, .994 OPS in 23 games) than on the road (.154 BA, .603 OPS in 24 games) this season.
• Aaron Hill, 2B, Blue Jays: He already has taken Jered Weaver deep once this season and is 4-for-9 with two doubles versus the right-hander in his career.
• Carlos Pena, 1B, Rays: He's 3-for-9 in his career against Brian Bannister. One of those hits is a double and another is a home run.
• Lance Berkman, 1B, Astros: It sure would be nice if he would begin hitting sometime, wouldn't it? How about on Wednesday versus Jason Marquis, against whom he's a .511 hitter (23-for-45) with 14 walks?
• Hunter Pence, OF, Astros: Although I recently wrote in my batting average on balls in play column that Pence's batting average has been driven in part by good fortune, Wednesday isn't exactly the time to expect him to cool. After all, he's 8-for-18 in his career against Marquis.
• Rick Ankiel, OF, Cardinals: Although he has been nothing but disappointing since his return from the disabled list, Ankiel offers his fantasy owners some promise in a matchup versus Johnny Cueto, against whom he's 3-for-4 with a double and a homer in his career.
• Chase Utley, 2B, Phillies: He's 4-for-11 (.364 BA) with two home runs in his career against Chris Young, and don't let Petco Park scare you off, either. Utley is a .317 hitter with an .898 OPS in 17 career games there.
• Casey Blake, 1B/3B, Dodgers: Familiar with Jon Garland from their days as American League Central rivals, Blake has hammered the right-hander to the tune of a .286 batting average (12-for-42) and four home runs in their careers.
• Orlando Hudson, 2B, Dodgers: The "O" in "O-Dog" stands for offense on this day; he's 8-for-23 (.348 BA) with two homers in his career against Garland.
• Stephen Drew, SS, Diamondbacks: Although Drew has yet to take Chad Billingsley deep, he is 10-for-27 (.370 BA) in his career against the right-hander.
Pitchers' count:
• Garret Anderson, OF, Braves: He's 3-for-22 (.136 BA) in his career against Ted Lilly, with but one double and seven strikeouts.
• Milton Bradley, OF, Cubs: Somewhat familiar with Derek Lowe from their days in the National League West, Bradley has struggled against the ground-baller, going 1-for-9 without an extra-base hit in his career.
• Curtis Granderson, OF, Tigers: He's 1-for-8 with six strikeouts in his career against the red-hot Josh Beckett, but the one hit was a triple.
• Hank Blalock, 1B/3B, Rangers: The Rangers might want to consider sitting him against left-hander Andy Pettitte, against whom he's 2-for-11 in his career.
• Adam Dunn, OF, Nationals: Hot start to 2009 or not, Dunn is 1-for-12 with seven strikeouts and zero extra-base hits in his career against Randy Johnson.
• Vernon Wells, OF, Blue Jays: He can barely touch Jered Weaver, going 1-for-12 lifetime against the right-hander.
• Dan Uggla, 2B, Marlins: He's 2-for-16 (.125 BA) with one double and four strikeouts in his career against Braden Looper.
• Delmon Young, OF, Twins: Not that anyone should be excited to use Young on most days, but certainly you shouldn't on Wednesday. He's 2-for-18 (.111 BA) lifetime against Cliff Lee, with eight strikeouts and nary an extra-base hit.
• Pedro Feliz, 3B, Phillies: He's 2-for-15 (.133 BA) in his career against Chris Young, not to mention a .198 hitter with a .557 OPS in 37 career games at Petco Park.
• Chris Snyder, C, Diamondbacks: He's 2-for-14 (.143 BA) with four strikeouts in his career against Chad Billingsley, but one of the hits was a home run.
If you're hard-core

• Marlon Byrd, OF, Rangers: He's 5-for-7 with one triple and one home run in his career against Andy Pettitte and is batting .500 (8-for-16) with three doubles, two home runs and five RBIs in his past four games.
• Lyle Overbay, 1B, Blue Jays: Though held hitless in their May 7 meeting, Overbay is still a lifetime .357 hitter (5-for-14) with two doubles and one home run against Jered Weaver.
• Matt Joyce, OF, Rays: The ideal type of matchups play to snatch up for this game, as he's 2-for-6 with a double in his brief career against Brian Bannister, not to mention he has a career OPS 142 points greater versus right-handers than left-handers. Meanwhile, Bannister has allowed an OPS 127 points greater to lefties than righties.
• Clint Barmes, 2B/SS, Rockies: He's 3-for-8 (.375 BA) with two doubles and one home run in his career against Brian Moehler.
• Joe Crede, 3B, Twins: If he can work his way back into the lineup Wednesday, it would suit him well; he's 10-for-28 (.357 BA) in his career against defending Cy Young winner Cliff lee.
• Skip Schumaker, 2B/OF, Cardinals: Always a more appealing choice against right-handers, Schumaker is predictably 4-for-7 in his career against Johnny Cueto, a righty.
• Adam Rosales, 3B, Reds: The Cardinals will be trotting out to the mound a pitcher who probably isn't quite 100 percent, Kyle Lohse. Plus, Rosales is already 3-for-6 against the right-hander in his brief big league career.
Triage

Injury list: Out
• Rafael Betancourt, RP, Indians (groin, 15-day DL)
• Travis Buck, OF, Athletics (oblique, 15-day DL)
• Coco Crisp, OF, Royals (bereavement): Out until at least Friday, maybe longer
• Angel Pagan, OF, Mets (groin, 15-day DL)
• Grady Sizemore, OF, Indians (elbow, 15-day DL): Might require surgery that would keep him out for an extended period
• Joey Votto, 1B, Reds (stress-related/inner ear infection, 15-day DL)
Injury list: Day-to-day
• Carlos Beltran, OF, Mets (stomach illness)
• Casey Blake, 1B/3B, Dodgers (hamstring): Was likely to play Tuesday
• Geoff Blum, 3B, Astros (hamstring)
• Mike Cameron, OF, Brewers (knee): Was hoping to play Tuesday
• Alex Cora, 2B/SS, Mets (thumb, 15-day DL): Was expected to be activated Tuesday
• Joe Crede, 3B, Twins (knee)
• Michael Cuddyer, OF, Twins (finger)
• Elijah Dukes, OF, Nationals (hamstring, 15-day DL): Was expected to be activated Tuesday
• Josh Hamilton, OF, Rangers (groin/abdominal): Awaiting MRI results
• Wes Helms, 1B, Marlins (viral infection): Might be available to pinch hit
• Casey Kotchman, 1B, Braves (shin)
• Kyle Lohse, SP, Cardinals (forearm): The Cardinals expect him to start on Wednesday, but it's hard to imagine how his fortunes improve by being pushed back just one day after a game he was "50-50 at best" to start.
• Felipe Lopez, 2B, Diamondbacks (hamstring): Might not yet be 100 percent and could require a day off in the near future
• Joe Mauer, C, Twins (ankle)
• Andy Pettitte, SP, Yankees (back): He's on track to start Wednesday's game, but the Yankees have reserved Chien-Ming Wang to pitch just in case.
• Albert Pujols, 1B, Cardinals (ankle): Said he would be able to play Tuesday
• Chad Qualls, RP, Diamondbacks (forearm): If he's unavailable, Tony Pena would be the most likely candidate to close
• Aaron Rowand, OF, Giants (ankle)
Weather concerns

• A whopping one-third of Wednesday's scheduled games will be played under a roof (or at least a retractable one): Angels-Blue Jays, Royals-Rays, Rockies-Astros, Indians-Twins and Orioles-Mariners.
• Unfortunately, the weather in the other two-thirds of the games isn't ideal; there's a risk of postponement in New York in particular. There's an 80 percent chance of rain, including thunderstorms with heavy rain, threatening Rangers-Yankees.
• Washington (Giants-Nationals) has a 50 percent chance of rain that is expected to remain somewhat steady throughout the afternoon into the evening.
• The chance of rain in Pittsburgh (Mets-Pirates) is 60 percent, but it's somewhat lesser during the day.
• St. Louis (Reds-Cardinals) has a 60 percent chance of rain during the day that drops to 30 percent around game time, meaning the biggest threat in that city is that the field will reach unplayable conditions before the game even starts.
• Interestingly, San Diego actually forecasts a chance of rain, though only a drizzle and a minimal chance of it. Don't worry, Padres fans, it's not as if that's a city in much jeopardy; San Diego's last rainout came on April 4, 2006. Only 16 rainouts have happened in 41 years of baseball in that city, in fact.

Big Unit shoots for win No. 300

Search

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

BadCo

New member

Forum statistics

Share this page