A bit tardy today. Apologies. Good luck whatever you play.
-Lopez for Baltimore seems to be on the start of a down cycle. Moyer is eminently hittable but he did shut the O's down last time out. Sasaki is just about as close to unhittable as you can get.
-Even though they got swept by Cincy, Florida averaged over 10 hits per game so expect an offensive turnaround. Burnett has one day less rest than Astacio but Astacio was showing definite signs of a slump while Burnett had a very high strikeout performance last time out.
-Loaiza is the Blue Jays ace and he has an extra day of rest compared to Bernero. He did get overworked a bit last time out and Toronto's bullpen is awful, so be careful. Detroit has the far hotter bats.
-Interesting pitching matchup in New York. Wells comes off the very short outing so it is tough to tell if that was an aberration or the start of a down cycle. Lowe was touched for 6 hits and 3 run in just 6 innings so he may be turning back into a pumpkin. Both teams continue to score big runs but you have to wonder how long Boston can keep it up without Manny.
-White Sox are hurting offensively with 6 showings of 3 runs or less in their last 10. Cleveland is hot offensively but Colon shows a major overworked pattern (see IE's thread in the Forum). Glover is basically a middle reliever so who knows what you'll get there.
-Both Maddux and Reitsma come off questionable starts and from the looks of things Reitsma may get hit again today. Sheffield is scheduled to come off the DL.
-Both Lidle and Alvarez will be activated from the DL today in the Oakland vs. Tampa game. Tampa outhit the A's 19-7 yesterday but still managed to win by just one run.
-Both Valdes and Suppan are facing the same team in consecutive starts, a situation that has seen pitchers get hit many times this season. Pretty sizable home/road difference for both teams so KC may not be able to duplicate their great results from last week vs. Texas.
-Washburn comes off a very long outing so there is the possibility of overuse. Minnesota's bullpen is badly overworked after having both starters leave very early the past two games. Anaheim is prone to major slumps again as they scored just 1 run in the last 7 innings yesterday to lose a 5-0 lead.
-St. Louis was outhit in every game of their previous series but managed to win 2 of 3. Who knows if that can continue? Pirates are hitting well, with 13 and 10 hits in their last two and 13 runs. Fogg has dipped in his last two starts but if he has a traditional down cycle, this could be a good comeback game. Williams completely handcuffed Pittsburgh last time he faced them.
-Both Tankersley and Quevedo have wicked stuff when they are on, but Tankersley was not on last time out and Quevedo was. Padres are suffering severe injury problems with Nevin out and the pitching staff thinned. Brewers put on a hit parade in their last game but could not turn the hits into more than a few runs.
-Johnson comes off a terrible start, but it is dangerous to fade him here. Gagne has not been as sharp closing for L.A. and Daal generally goes 6 innings, tops. Johnson has spectacular career numbers in L.A.
-Jensen and Jennings have both showed similar patterns of hot starts to the year followed by flamouts recently. Giants offense is not producing runs over the past few weeks. Colorado bullpen is vulnerable at the moment.
-Lopez for Baltimore seems to be on the start of a down cycle. Moyer is eminently hittable but he did shut the O's down last time out. Sasaki is just about as close to unhittable as you can get.
-Even though they got swept by Cincy, Florida averaged over 10 hits per game so expect an offensive turnaround. Burnett has one day less rest than Astacio but Astacio was showing definite signs of a slump while Burnett had a very high strikeout performance last time out.
-Loaiza is the Blue Jays ace and he has an extra day of rest compared to Bernero. He did get overworked a bit last time out and Toronto's bullpen is awful, so be careful. Detroit has the far hotter bats.
-Interesting pitching matchup in New York. Wells comes off the very short outing so it is tough to tell if that was an aberration or the start of a down cycle. Lowe was touched for 6 hits and 3 run in just 6 innings so he may be turning back into a pumpkin. Both teams continue to score big runs but you have to wonder how long Boston can keep it up without Manny.
-White Sox are hurting offensively with 6 showings of 3 runs or less in their last 10. Cleveland is hot offensively but Colon shows a major overworked pattern (see IE's thread in the Forum). Glover is basically a middle reliever so who knows what you'll get there.
-Both Maddux and Reitsma come off questionable starts and from the looks of things Reitsma may get hit again today. Sheffield is scheduled to come off the DL.
-Both Lidle and Alvarez will be activated from the DL today in the Oakland vs. Tampa game. Tampa outhit the A's 19-7 yesterday but still managed to win by just one run.
-Both Valdes and Suppan are facing the same team in consecutive starts, a situation that has seen pitchers get hit many times this season. Pretty sizable home/road difference for both teams so KC may not be able to duplicate their great results from last week vs. Texas.
-Washburn comes off a very long outing so there is the possibility of overuse. Minnesota's bullpen is badly overworked after having both starters leave very early the past two games. Anaheim is prone to major slumps again as they scored just 1 run in the last 7 innings yesterday to lose a 5-0 lead.
-St. Louis was outhit in every game of their previous series but managed to win 2 of 3. Who knows if that can continue? Pirates are hitting well, with 13 and 10 hits in their last two and 13 runs. Fogg has dipped in his last two starts but if he has a traditional down cycle, this could be a good comeback game. Williams completely handcuffed Pittsburgh last time he faced them.
-Both Tankersley and Quevedo have wicked stuff when they are on, but Tankersley was not on last time out and Quevedo was. Padres are suffering severe injury problems with Nevin out and the pitching staff thinned. Brewers put on a hit parade in their last game but could not turn the hits into more than a few runs.
-Johnson comes off a terrible start, but it is dangerous to fade him here. Gagne has not been as sharp closing for L.A. and Daal generally goes 6 innings, tops. Johnson has spectacular career numbers in L.A.
-Jensen and Jennings have both showed similar patterns of hot starts to the year followed by flamouts recently. Giants offense is not producing runs over the past few weeks. Colorado bullpen is vulnerable at the moment.
