The theme this week is one-word analysis. Coming at ya hot!
AGENDA
Contrary to what the title implies, I don’t think any games will be postponed today. Delayed though? Yes, some will be delayed.
AGENDA
The MLB Draft begins tonight which has absolutely no bearing on this column. Tune into MLB Network at 7pm ET.
AGENDA
If you access this article via Twitter, you may have noticed we publish excerpts with our articles now. Which means I have to write 50 throw away words twice.
AGENDA
The players you sit… those are the ones that get ya.
AGENDA
None of my readers made the most heroic pick of the season last night, not that I’ve said one word about the guy. Let’s correct that…
AGENDA
This is the part with the flavor text. I write this last even though you read it first.
AGENDA
Today’s edition comes equipped with an excerpt for certain RotoGraphs delivery devices.
AGENDA
Plenty of compelling bullpen activity around the major leagues on a busy Sunday afternoon…
Koda Glover was brought into an existing eighth inning with a 6-4 lead, two outs, and a runner on second. He retired Jed Lowrie to end the inning, then the Nationals proceeded to score five runs in a long top of the ninth. Despite the 11-4 lead and lengthy half inning, Glover came back out for the bottom of the ninth, and he allowed four straight singles and a walk before being replaced by Shawn Kelley with the bases loaded, no outs, and two runs already in. After retiring Rajai Davis on a shallow fly ball, Kelley served up a grand slam to Matt Joyce that made it 11-10 Nationals. Kelley retired the next two batters he faced to secure the victory. When it was all said and done, Glover was charged with five earned runs in 0.1 innings, and Kelley was charged with one earned run in one inning.
Despite today’s craziness, Glover has brought much-needed calm to the Nationals bullpen as of late. He has four saves since May 24, and before today, he had recorded saves in four straight appearances. This was the first time Glover has allowed a run in 10 appearances since he landed on the disabled list with a left hip impingement in late April. Even with today’s meltdown, Glover has a 1.74 FIP and 3.21 xFIP on the season. A 3.21 xFIP is hardly something to scoff at, and it seems as if the Nationals have finally found their ninth-inning man (although it remains probable they’ll target bullpen help before the trading deadline). The home run Kelley gave up was the seventh he’s allowed in 15 innings this season, and overall, he has a 5.40 ERA and 5.37 xFIP. As such, he has been surpassed on the grid by Matt Albers, who boasts a strong 1.29 ERA and 3.14 xFIP in 21 innings this year. Read the rest of this entry »
Another week, another Grind, another barrage of home runs.
AGENDA