Post by Commissioner Erick on Jan 17, 2019 1:32:00 GMT -5
Atlanta Braves (68-60) @ Philadelphia Phillies (76-53)
ATL: Mike Soroka (0-2, 5.18)
PHI: Mike Leake (7-4, 4.51)
The Philadelphia Phillies have managed to develop a talented young core with a strong chance of making the postseason for the first time in PBA history. Despite a midseason selling spree, the Atlanta Braves also remain on the fringes of making the playoffs for the first time in their history.
Two of the bright teams of tomorrow face off in Philadelphia as the Phillies continue to forge a path to the postseason, while the Braves cling to their postseason dream.
The Philadelphia Phillies have had a tremendous summer, coinciding with the callups of Mickey Moniak, Seth Beer, and Sixto Sanchez. The Phillies had a competitive start and were playing .500 ball most of the first 10 weeks of the season. With the Mets in disarray and the Nationals unable to separate, Philadelphia found its grove in late June and has kept winning as the weather heated up.
The one question mark involved the team's ability to beat superior opponents. The Phillies had a string of one-run wins against the Pirates, and they knocked off the fading Astros and Brewers with aplomb. However, the Phillies only had one series win against a team currently in first or second place in a division since mid-May, and that was a series win over the Pirates when they took three of four games with one-run wins.
That made their weekend series sweep of the Cubs so rewarding as they displayed to the league that they could dominate an upper echelon opponent. The Phillies starters in the series allowed just three earned runs in 19.1 innings in the series good, for a 1.41 ERA. They swept despite star rookie Seth Beer on the disabled list, nursing a concussion. These are extremely encouraging signs for a team that should get even more dynamic as Beer returns.
The team has gotten great production from several players having career years, the most surprising being Andrew Pullin. After two years of sub-replacement production, Pullin has broken out this year, hitting .282 with 30 doubles and 22 home runs. Pullin has cooled off a little bit this month, but he had a career high in runs in his last start in Philadelphia against the Braves, when he tallied four runs. In fact, the two times Pullin has scored four times in a game in his career have both been against Atlanta.
The Phillies will send extreme strike-thrower Mike Leake to the mound to counter the Braves. Leake is third all time in lowest strikeout rate among pitchers who have thrown over 250 innings. Only Dan Otero and Ivan Nova have struck out a fewer percentage of batters. However, Leake is also extremely stingy with walks, 12th all time, and fourth this year. This allows Leake to survive as he's also given up a high number of home runs this season. Still, while his ERA is a high 4.98, he's 7-1 with the Phillies.
Leake will be relying a lot on the defense of J.P. Crawford, whose 6.3 Zone Rating is third among NL Shortstops. Crawford is one of the best defenders up the middle in baseball, overshadowed by Francisco Lindor among young defenders. Still, Crawford is third or fourth in assists, putouts, double plays, range, and efficiency, cementing his status as an excellent defender.
They'll take on a Braves team that traded Dansby Swanson before the trade deadline, but has remained in the playoff hunt. Atlanta's lineup still doesn't get on base much, nor does it hit for power, despite Evan Longoria producing 26 homers thus far in his first productive year since 2017. Atlanta is only 11th in runs and has lacked pop for much of the year. Instead, the team has relied on the fourth best pitching staff and third best defense in the league to carry them.
Rookie Mike Soroka will get the ball in this critical start, and he's had a down year. After a strong season in Triple-A last year, Soroka returned to the level and posted a 5.11 ERA there this year. He allowed three runs in 4.1 innings for Canada's national team during the WBC, taking a loss to Venezuela the runner up of the tournament. Soroka hasn't won a major league start yet and has been besieged by high BABIPs throughout the minors.
Atlanta will need Ozzie Albies to reel in those balls in play. A Gold Glove winner last year, Albies is well on his way to picking up more hardware this year. Offensively, after an exciting 2017 season, injuries set him back in 2018 with lingering effects last year. Albies hit the ground running this season though, and has carried that start to a .304 average with a .370 OBP. With his defense and extreme contact ability, Albies is on his way to being a star who'll make Braves fans forget all about Dansby Swanson.
First, he'll need to track down the hard-hit balls the Phillies will likely hit off Soroka though.
Questions for the GMs:
For Steve Trent, you joined the Braves midseason. What did you think of the team when you took over?
Looking at the roster, what will your philosophy be going forward?
Mike Soroka will get the start tonight it appears. What is your opinion of his rookie year?
For Matt Grubs, will Seth Beer be activated for today's game or will he continue to sit on the disabled list?
Max Schrock is hitting well over .300 and is looking like he'll double his career high in home runs. Were you expecting anything close to this caliber of hitter when you acquired him?
Your outfield has been so good, Stephen Piscotty, who hit 30 home runs last year, has been buried in Triple-A with three years left on his contract. Will he get at bats when the rosters expand in a few days?
ATL: Mike Soroka (0-2, 5.18)
PHI: Mike Leake (7-4, 4.51)
The Philadelphia Phillies have managed to develop a talented young core with a strong chance of making the postseason for the first time in PBA history. Despite a midseason selling spree, the Atlanta Braves also remain on the fringes of making the playoffs for the first time in their history.
Two of the bright teams of tomorrow face off in Philadelphia as the Phillies continue to forge a path to the postseason, while the Braves cling to their postseason dream.
The Philadelphia Phillies have had a tremendous summer, coinciding with the callups of Mickey Moniak, Seth Beer, and Sixto Sanchez. The Phillies had a competitive start and were playing .500 ball most of the first 10 weeks of the season. With the Mets in disarray and the Nationals unable to separate, Philadelphia found its grove in late June and has kept winning as the weather heated up.
The one question mark involved the team's ability to beat superior opponents. The Phillies had a string of one-run wins against the Pirates, and they knocked off the fading Astros and Brewers with aplomb. However, the Phillies only had one series win against a team currently in first or second place in a division since mid-May, and that was a series win over the Pirates when they took three of four games with one-run wins.
That made their weekend series sweep of the Cubs so rewarding as they displayed to the league that they could dominate an upper echelon opponent. The Phillies starters in the series allowed just three earned runs in 19.1 innings in the series good, for a 1.41 ERA. They swept despite star rookie Seth Beer on the disabled list, nursing a concussion. These are extremely encouraging signs for a team that should get even more dynamic as Beer returns.
The team has gotten great production from several players having career years, the most surprising being Andrew Pullin. After two years of sub-replacement production, Pullin has broken out this year, hitting .282 with 30 doubles and 22 home runs. Pullin has cooled off a little bit this month, but he had a career high in runs in his last start in Philadelphia against the Braves, when he tallied four runs. In fact, the two times Pullin has scored four times in a game in his career have both been against Atlanta.
The Phillies will send extreme strike-thrower Mike Leake to the mound to counter the Braves. Leake is third all time in lowest strikeout rate among pitchers who have thrown over 250 innings. Only Dan Otero and Ivan Nova have struck out a fewer percentage of batters. However, Leake is also extremely stingy with walks, 12th all time, and fourth this year. This allows Leake to survive as he's also given up a high number of home runs this season. Still, while his ERA is a high 4.98, he's 7-1 with the Phillies.
Leake will be relying a lot on the defense of J.P. Crawford, whose 6.3 Zone Rating is third among NL Shortstops. Crawford is one of the best defenders up the middle in baseball, overshadowed by Francisco Lindor among young defenders. Still, Crawford is third or fourth in assists, putouts, double plays, range, and efficiency, cementing his status as an excellent defender.
They'll take on a Braves team that traded Dansby Swanson before the trade deadline, but has remained in the playoff hunt. Atlanta's lineup still doesn't get on base much, nor does it hit for power, despite Evan Longoria producing 26 homers thus far in his first productive year since 2017. Atlanta is only 11th in runs and has lacked pop for much of the year. Instead, the team has relied on the fourth best pitching staff and third best defense in the league to carry them.
Rookie Mike Soroka will get the ball in this critical start, and he's had a down year. After a strong season in Triple-A last year, Soroka returned to the level and posted a 5.11 ERA there this year. He allowed three runs in 4.1 innings for Canada's national team during the WBC, taking a loss to Venezuela the runner up of the tournament. Soroka hasn't won a major league start yet and has been besieged by high BABIPs throughout the minors.
Atlanta will need Ozzie Albies to reel in those balls in play. A Gold Glove winner last year, Albies is well on his way to picking up more hardware this year. Offensively, after an exciting 2017 season, injuries set him back in 2018 with lingering effects last year. Albies hit the ground running this season though, and has carried that start to a .304 average with a .370 OBP. With his defense and extreme contact ability, Albies is on his way to being a star who'll make Braves fans forget all about Dansby Swanson.
First, he'll need to track down the hard-hit balls the Phillies will likely hit off Soroka though.
Questions for the GMs:
For Steve Trent, you joined the Braves midseason. What did you think of the team when you took over?
Looking at the roster, what will your philosophy be going forward?
Mike Soroka will get the start tonight it appears. What is your opinion of his rookie year?
For Matt Grubs, will Seth Beer be activated for today's game or will he continue to sit on the disabled list?
Max Schrock is hitting well over .300 and is looking like he'll double his career high in home runs. Were you expecting anything close to this caliber of hitter when you acquired him?
Your outfield has been so good, Stephen Piscotty, who hit 30 home runs last year, has been buried in Triple-A with three years left on his contract. Will he get at bats when the rosters expand in a few days?
