Roto Riteup: July 22, 2017

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July 22, 2017

The D’Backs are the new kids on the block when it comes to contending, but they quickly showed Max Scherzer that they mean business:

David Peralta, A.J. Pollock, and Jake Lamb go back-to-back-to-back to open what would be a 6-5 walkoff win on Friday.

On the Agenda:

  • Conforto Cruising Since DL Return
  • Cards Drop Nine in the Eighth
  • Fiers Burning the Competition
  • Happy Birthday, CC!
  • Wood Waxed; Garcia’s Grand Slam
  • Other News
  • Whiff Watch
  • WTWT

Sorry for no RR yesterday, just wasn’t able to get it done.

Conforto Cruising Since DL Return

Michael Conforto ended June with a 20-game homer-less streak, but maybe he just didn’t get the pitches he wanted because while he did hit just .222 during the run, he still had a .417 OBP thanks to 13 BB (against just 19 Ks). He also dealt with a stiff back throughout the month and eventually hit the DL with a hand injury after a HBP on June 25th. He returned on July 9th and has been rolling again with a .314/.415/.714 line, including a two-homer night in Oakland on Friday. The 24-year old’s breakout season has been fun to watch. He’s a great keeper league target, too.

Cards Drop Nine in the Eighth

The Cubs were up 3-2 heading into the 8th inning on Friday afternoon. But theeeennnn

Edwards Jr. relieved Strop. 2 3
Carpenter doubled to right. 2 3
Pham walked. 2 3
Fowler walked, Carpenter to third, Pham to second. 2 3
Rondón relieved Edwards Jr.. 2 3
Gyorko walked, Carpenter scored, Pham to third, Fowler to second. 3 3
DeJong hit a ground rule double to deep right center, Pham and Fowler scored, Gyorko to third. 5 3
Wong walked. 5 3
Grichuk singled to left, Gyorko scored, DeJong to third, Wong to second. 6 3
Grimm relieved Rondón. 6 3
Kelly doubled to deep left, DeJong and Wong scored, Grichuk to third. 8 3
Voit hit for Bowman. 8 3
Voit walked. 8 3
Carpenter singled to right, Grichuk scored, Kelly to third, Voit to second. 9 3
Pham singled to center, Kelly and Voit scored, Carpenter to third. 11 3
Fowler grounded into double play, first to third, Carpenter out at home, Pham to second. 11 3
Gyorko walked. 11 3
Pham to third, Gyorko to second on wild pitch by Grimm. 11 3
DeJong struck out swinging. 11 3
9 RUNS, 6 HITS, 0 ERRORS

All nine runs came before the first out was recorded. It happened to come the day that John Mozeliak questioned the team attitude.

Fiers Burning the Competition

Mike Fiers allowed an average of two homers through his first nine starts and didn’t have a single homer-less start. Unsurprisingly, he had a 5.21 ERA, but the Astros kept running him out there which suggested he wasn’t hurt and that they figured regression would run its course on his ridiculous 31% HR/FB rate. And regress it did. In fact, it’s down to 6% of his last 10 starts and he’s got a 2.36 ERA with 69 (nice!) strikeouts in 61 innings, including a 7 IP/1 ER/9 K night in Baltimore on Friday. His true talent is somewhere in between, so his 3.59 ERA is probably a good rest-of-season expectation.

Happy Birthday, CC!

CC Sabathia pitched on his birthday for the second straight season, but had a much better outing this time around. Last year he allowed four runs in six and two-thirds and took the loss against Baltimore at home. This year he dropped a 5 IP/1 ER effort on the Mariners in Seattle en route to his ninth win of the year. It was actually his first birthday win in six tries. Thanks to greatness of Baseball-Reference, we can see all six performances here.

Wood Waxed; Garcia’s Grand Slam

Alex Wood hadn’t lost a game since May 30… 2016. In fairness, he missed June, July, and August of last season and only pitched in relief during September so it’s not quite as impressive of a streak with that information. While W-L record is not a great indicator of skill on its own, the fact that Wood was 11-0 matched up with how excellent he’s been this season.

The Braves weren’t interested in seeing him get to 12-0, though. They tattooed the 26-year old lefty for nine runs (seven of them earned) in just four and two-thirds, including a grand slam by Wood’s counterpart, Jaime Garcia, en route to his first loss of the season. Perhaps the craziest part about it all is that Garcia was reportedly traded to the Twins the night before. It obviously fell through or was reported too soon so he took the mound in LA on Friday and posted a 7 IP/3 ER gem along with his grand slam.

Other News

Whiff Watch

A quick look at the top swing-and-miss starters from yesterday:

WTWT

Here’s what to watch today/tonight:

  • Danny Salazar returns to the big leagues for CLE against TOR. His immense talent makes him someone to keep an eye on because if he gets back on track, he can change the landscape of some fantasy races.
  • Collin McHugh makes his season debut for the Astros. He’s unlikely to be a game-changer on the level of a Salazar, but he could be a strong pickup given the poor pitching landscape of 2017.
  • Sean Manaea is someone I enjoy watching a lot, he faces the Mets in NY.
  • David Price looks to stay hot in LA against the Angels. He has a 2.66 ERA and 43 Ks over his last 44 IP.
  • Julio Teheran’s ERA has been four and a half runs better on the road (2.53), but that will be tested in LA against the Dodgers. He battles Rich Hill, who has shaved his ERA down to 3.55 with a sparkling 1.74 mark over his last five starts.
  • Anthony Banda will make his MLB debut on Saturday. He draws a tough test against the Nationals.

By the way, someone asked where the Pitchers for Tomorrow section is and I wanted to mention that it’s Justin Mason’s thing and it will return next week when he’s back on the weekday RRs.





 

Paul is the Editor of Rotographs and Content Director for OOTP Perfect Team. Follow Paul on Twitter @sporer and on Twitch at sporer.

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