Post by Commissioner Erick on Jan 13, 2019 21:33:40 GMT -5
Los Angeles Dodgers (70-53) @ Pittsburgh Pirates (66-58)
LAD: James Kaprielian (7-8, 5.41)
PIT: Sonny Gray (10-9, 3.66)
The charging Los Angeles Dodgers are on a roll and briefly claimed first place in the NL West last week for the first time since April.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have been stuck in neutral holding steady at roughly ten games above .500 as hotter teams charge past them in the playoff race.
The two teams going at different speeds meet in the Game of the Week in a contest that will impact the playoff picture.
The Dodgers have gone 29-9 since July 7th with their offense getting in to gear and making up for a depleted staff. Clayton Kershaw's back spasms forced Michael Matuella into the rotation for five starts, where he did not belong. After Julio Urias healed up, he took a spot, but the Urias is winless with a 7.16 ERA in seven starts. Urias has struggled since 2018 so it's hard to count on him as a reliable starter.
However, after strangely scuffling to begin the season, many Dodgers have heated up. Joc Pederson has four home runs in his last seven games. Nomar Mazara is hitting .333 with six home runs in August. Alex Verdugo has hit at least .293 in every month since June. After injuries sabotaged the start of his season, Jurrickson Profar is batting .339 since retuning in June, and is once again anchoring the top of the Dodgers offense.
The Dodgers have six hitters with at least 20 home runs, plus Profar at the top of the order. This is a dangerous lineup that has rounded into form as one of the best in baseball.
It will be Sonny Gray's job to tame that lineup, and if anybody is capable of dominating a lineup, it's Gray. Gray fired a no-hitter against the San Francisco Giants in late July and is having his best season this year, his first with the Pirates. Gray has managed to keep the ball in the park and strike people out more. Gray spent much of the offseason working on improving his control and command and being more willing to throw strikes earlier in the count. Thanks to his command, most of those strikes haven't drifted into the middle of the plate.
Gray's teammates, however, form an approach completely different than the Dodgers. To this point, the Dodgers only have four players with double digit home run totals, and only two with more than 11. The Pirates have continued to work with a batting average heavy approach, relying on their pitching to do the bulk of the work.
They've found success in unlikely places though. Jin-de-Jhang continues to be a bright source of offense despite modest numbers. Jhang only has four home runs this year after five last year, but his .302 average and 22 doubles give him 2.1 WAR, second best among catchers in the league.
The Pirates will have to deal without Kevin Newman the rest of the way though. A bright spot last year, Newman has been equally as disappointing as he was bright last year. After posting a .307 average and 12 home runs, Newman has hit .258 with two home runs. Not strong with the glove, this has put his WAR at a -0.6.
Questions for the GMs:
For Troy Allenbagh, your offense has finally picked up the past two months. What do you owe that too?
You've settled upon Garrett Kennedy as your new catcher. What convinced you to give up on Austin Barnes?
Your pitching has struggled all year. What prevented you from making a move?
For Mike McAvoy, with Newman out, who will take his spot on the roster and the lineup?
Andrew Stevenson has not developed into an offensive player. Have you soured upon him as a starter?
The Dodgers start a lineup of virtually all lefties. Will we see Gray pulled early to get to more left-handed relievers today?
LAD: James Kaprielian (7-8, 5.41)
PIT: Sonny Gray (10-9, 3.66)
The charging Los Angeles Dodgers are on a roll and briefly claimed first place in the NL West last week for the first time since April.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have been stuck in neutral holding steady at roughly ten games above .500 as hotter teams charge past them in the playoff race.
The two teams going at different speeds meet in the Game of the Week in a contest that will impact the playoff picture.
The Dodgers have gone 29-9 since July 7th with their offense getting in to gear and making up for a depleted staff. Clayton Kershaw's back spasms forced Michael Matuella into the rotation for five starts, where he did not belong. After Julio Urias healed up, he took a spot, but the Urias is winless with a 7.16 ERA in seven starts. Urias has struggled since 2018 so it's hard to count on him as a reliable starter.
However, after strangely scuffling to begin the season, many Dodgers have heated up. Joc Pederson has four home runs in his last seven games. Nomar Mazara is hitting .333 with six home runs in August. Alex Verdugo has hit at least .293 in every month since June. After injuries sabotaged the start of his season, Jurrickson Profar is batting .339 since retuning in June, and is once again anchoring the top of the Dodgers offense.
The Dodgers have six hitters with at least 20 home runs, plus Profar at the top of the order. This is a dangerous lineup that has rounded into form as one of the best in baseball.
It will be Sonny Gray's job to tame that lineup, and if anybody is capable of dominating a lineup, it's Gray. Gray fired a no-hitter against the San Francisco Giants in late July and is having his best season this year, his first with the Pirates. Gray has managed to keep the ball in the park and strike people out more. Gray spent much of the offseason working on improving his control and command and being more willing to throw strikes earlier in the count. Thanks to his command, most of those strikes haven't drifted into the middle of the plate.
Gray's teammates, however, form an approach completely different than the Dodgers. To this point, the Dodgers only have four players with double digit home run totals, and only two with more than 11. The Pirates have continued to work with a batting average heavy approach, relying on their pitching to do the bulk of the work.
They've found success in unlikely places though. Jin-de-Jhang continues to be a bright source of offense despite modest numbers. Jhang only has four home runs this year after five last year, but his .302 average and 22 doubles give him 2.1 WAR, second best among catchers in the league.
The Pirates will have to deal without Kevin Newman the rest of the way though. A bright spot last year, Newman has been equally as disappointing as he was bright last year. After posting a .307 average and 12 home runs, Newman has hit .258 with two home runs. Not strong with the glove, this has put his WAR at a -0.6.
Questions for the GMs:
For Troy Allenbagh, your offense has finally picked up the past two months. What do you owe that too?
You've settled upon Garrett Kennedy as your new catcher. What convinced you to give up on Austin Barnes?
Your pitching has struggled all year. What prevented you from making a move?
For Mike McAvoy, with Newman out, who will take his spot on the roster and the lineup?
Andrew Stevenson has not developed into an offensive player. Have you soured upon him as a starter?
The Dodgers start a lineup of virtually all lefties. Will we see Gray pulled early to get to more left-handed relievers today?
