Post by Commissioner Erick on Jun 13, 2023 19:37:17 GMT -5
Milwaukee Brewers (83-41) @ St. Louis Cardinals (74-49)
MIL: Mike Arnold: (12-5, 3.17)
STL: Chris Yera (10-4, 3.83)
Brewers 3 Key Stats
16: Home Runs allowed by Mike Arnold this year: Hawkeye hasn’t been quite as effective as in years past—but he still keeps the ball in the park. With 16 homers in 156 innings, Hawkeye still has allowed fewer than a home run-per-nine innings. If the stat holds, it would be the seventh time Hawkeye has accomplished the stat in seven career seasons. St. Louis will likely need to score its runs the long way today.
58: Mike Arnold ground ball percentage: Balls hit in play off Arnold do not tend to fly true through the air. They tend to be bashed down in the ground. Hawkeye has the highest ground ball percentage in the PBA and the highest ground ball mark of his career this year. Hawkeye gets outstanding movement with his pitches, even with the flattened mound, so it’s no surprise his ground ball rate is so high. Milwaukee has the second best Zone Rating among Second Baseman in the NL. That’s big as the rest of its infield is mostly neutral or slightly below in terms of Zone Rating. They’ll need to be sharp with Hawkeye throwing today.
3.54: Milwaukee’s bullpen ERA: The Brewers have long had an elite bullpen to backup their elite rotation—but not this year. Milwaukee has a very good bullpen as its 3.54 ERA ranks fifth, but it hasn’t been the dominant unit of past. Ryan Whalen and Joe Dyck have been the biggest culprits. Each has an ERA of at least 4.68 as each has been homer prone in the new environment. The team has also missed Blayne Enlow, who has kept the ball in the park in Tampa. If St. Louis wants to hit some homers, Whalen and Dyck will be the two guys to try to coax onto the mound.
Cardinals 3 Key Stats
46: Wins in the Cardinals last 67 games. St. Louis has played great once the calendar turned to June with a .687 winning percentage. The Cardinals have mostly pulverized the weak competition placed in front of them, but they’ve also swept the Dodgers this month, and swept Oakland in a two game set this month as well. They haven’t played Milwaukee once during this stretch and play them nine times over the next four weeks though, including the series starting tonight. The next three days may be the last chance to make a run at the division. The Wild Card game is also at stake as the Cardinals nine games with the Brewers are joined by four against the Giants, seven against the surging Rockies, and three in Pittsburgh against a solid Pirates team. A tough stretch and St. Louis will be playing in California October 1 for the right to go to the NLDS. A disastrous stretch could open the door for Colorado, Pittsburgh, or possibly New York to make some noise in September.
3: Homers on his rehab assignment by Juan Vega: Fly By Night will likely skip town in Memphis and come up to St. Louis this weekend. He’s hardly shown any rust after a fractured hand cost him six weeks, demolishing Triple-A competition the last week. Not just any competition either: His homers have come against Phillip Wirths who pitched for the Giants in last year’s playoffs, helping them win a title; Justin Martin, a solid Rangers arm the last several years; and Marcinek Krzeczkowski who has 85 career strikeouts, roughly one for every consonant in his name. Vega has a respectable .268 career average against Hawkeye with 11 hits in 41 at bats and a homer. He should get an opportunity today.
3.7: Joe Mills’ WAR: Mills currently leads NL Second Baseman in WAR, currently in a battle with Colorado’s Alec Sanchez. Country Mills is constantly injured, but his sprained wrist in May was less severe than last year’s devastating meniscus tear that caused him to miss half the season. Mills has been incredibly patient this year, true to his nickname, with more walks than strikeouts. He has a .399 OBP as a result and 23 homers. The doubles have dried up as he’s put less pressure on his legs, but he’s stolen nine bases and played a fine Second Base. St. Louis has its star back, with Mills helping give their offense a chance every week.
Questions for the GMs:
For Luke Grimmelbein, Brock Straub will miss the rest of the year. What corresponding roster move will you make for today?
With Mike Arnold such a prolific ground ball pitcher, do you want to make sure you have an especially elite defense behind him today?
Your bullpen hasn’t been up to its elite standards set the last half decade. What’s been the biggest culprit?
For Tim Lentz, I assume Juan Vega will be back today. Whose spot in the lineup will he take?
Will we see former number one pick Adam McGurk this year knowing that he needs to be on the roster before September 1 to be eligible for the playoffs?
With almost a full season wrapped up, how do you evaluate the Isaiah High for Luis Detres trade?
TRIVIA: Who does Darrick Hall have the most career home runs off of?
MIL: Mike Arnold: (12-5, 3.17)
STL: Chris Yera (10-4, 3.83)
Brewers 3 Key Stats
16: Home Runs allowed by Mike Arnold this year: Hawkeye hasn’t been quite as effective as in years past—but he still keeps the ball in the park. With 16 homers in 156 innings, Hawkeye still has allowed fewer than a home run-per-nine innings. If the stat holds, it would be the seventh time Hawkeye has accomplished the stat in seven career seasons. St. Louis will likely need to score its runs the long way today.
58: Mike Arnold ground ball percentage: Balls hit in play off Arnold do not tend to fly true through the air. They tend to be bashed down in the ground. Hawkeye has the highest ground ball percentage in the PBA and the highest ground ball mark of his career this year. Hawkeye gets outstanding movement with his pitches, even with the flattened mound, so it’s no surprise his ground ball rate is so high. Milwaukee has the second best Zone Rating among Second Baseman in the NL. That’s big as the rest of its infield is mostly neutral or slightly below in terms of Zone Rating. They’ll need to be sharp with Hawkeye throwing today.
3.54: Milwaukee’s bullpen ERA: The Brewers have long had an elite bullpen to backup their elite rotation—but not this year. Milwaukee has a very good bullpen as its 3.54 ERA ranks fifth, but it hasn’t been the dominant unit of past. Ryan Whalen and Joe Dyck have been the biggest culprits. Each has an ERA of at least 4.68 as each has been homer prone in the new environment. The team has also missed Blayne Enlow, who has kept the ball in the park in Tampa. If St. Louis wants to hit some homers, Whalen and Dyck will be the two guys to try to coax onto the mound.
Cardinals 3 Key Stats
46: Wins in the Cardinals last 67 games. St. Louis has played great once the calendar turned to June with a .687 winning percentage. The Cardinals have mostly pulverized the weak competition placed in front of them, but they’ve also swept the Dodgers this month, and swept Oakland in a two game set this month as well. They haven’t played Milwaukee once during this stretch and play them nine times over the next four weeks though, including the series starting tonight. The next three days may be the last chance to make a run at the division. The Wild Card game is also at stake as the Cardinals nine games with the Brewers are joined by four against the Giants, seven against the surging Rockies, and three in Pittsburgh against a solid Pirates team. A tough stretch and St. Louis will be playing in California October 1 for the right to go to the NLDS. A disastrous stretch could open the door for Colorado, Pittsburgh, or possibly New York to make some noise in September.
3: Homers on his rehab assignment by Juan Vega: Fly By Night will likely skip town in Memphis and come up to St. Louis this weekend. He’s hardly shown any rust after a fractured hand cost him six weeks, demolishing Triple-A competition the last week. Not just any competition either: His homers have come against Phillip Wirths who pitched for the Giants in last year’s playoffs, helping them win a title; Justin Martin, a solid Rangers arm the last several years; and Marcinek Krzeczkowski who has 85 career strikeouts, roughly one for every consonant in his name. Vega has a respectable .268 career average against Hawkeye with 11 hits in 41 at bats and a homer. He should get an opportunity today.
3.7: Joe Mills’ WAR: Mills currently leads NL Second Baseman in WAR, currently in a battle with Colorado’s Alec Sanchez. Country Mills is constantly injured, but his sprained wrist in May was less severe than last year’s devastating meniscus tear that caused him to miss half the season. Mills has been incredibly patient this year, true to his nickname, with more walks than strikeouts. He has a .399 OBP as a result and 23 homers. The doubles have dried up as he’s put less pressure on his legs, but he’s stolen nine bases and played a fine Second Base. St. Louis has its star back, with Mills helping give their offense a chance every week.
Questions for the GMs:
For Luke Grimmelbein, Brock Straub will miss the rest of the year. What corresponding roster move will you make for today?
With Mike Arnold such a prolific ground ball pitcher, do you want to make sure you have an especially elite defense behind him today?
Your bullpen hasn’t been up to its elite standards set the last half decade. What’s been the biggest culprit?
For Tim Lentz, I assume Juan Vega will be back today. Whose spot in the lineup will he take?
Will we see former number one pick Adam McGurk this year knowing that he needs to be on the roster before September 1 to be eligible for the playoffs?
With almost a full season wrapped up, how do you evaluate the Isaiah High for Luis Detres trade?
TRIVIA: Who does Darrick Hall have the most career home runs off of?
