Welcome to Ronnie’s 3 Ups and 3 Downs! This column looks at some fascinating matchups and facts that might pique the interest of the reader as that day’s games are reviewed. This is my attempt at creating compelling thought on any given day.
Ups
Gerrit Cole
Cole has a rough 5.22 ERA through 29.1 innings on the year, but dont let that fool you, he is as tough a pitcher as ever. He’s striking out an amazing 13.5/9 and his 2.91 SIERA suggests that poor defense and/or luck has played a huge role in his ERA. Today he pitches against the Cleveland Indians, a team is struggling offensively with a .095 ISO over the last week with a 49.6% GB.
Elvis Andrus
Andrus is crushing left handed pitching this season. In 19 PA he owns a 225 wRC+ and he making 0.0% SC. He’s not just doing well against lefties, he’s having a great year overall with a very impressive .396 wOBA. Today he’s facing Seattle lefty Marco Gonzalez. The Mariner hurler is undefeated on the year but has a very high 4.91 xFIP.
Christian Walker
Over the last 7 days Walker is making a fantastic 71.4% HC. His HC has resulted in a massive .381 ISO in 22 PA over those 7 days. Walker faces Pittsburgh’s Jameson Taillon this evening. Taillon is allowing 42.2% HC to right handed batters on the season. This bodes well for the hot hitting Diamondbacks righty.
Downs
Bryce Harper
In his last 44 PA Harper is striking out at a 34.% clip. In that time he has a relatively low .158 ISO and he’s hitting just .237/.341/.395. That low ISO and Slugging can be mostly attributed to a very high 50.0% GB. There are 6 Phillies that have at least 40 PA in the last 10 day and among them Harper ranks 5th with just a 0.2 wRAA. Best to avoid the high priced Harper for now.
Trevor Bauer
Bauer is having a great season so far. In 32.2 innings he’s striking out 11.6/9 with a 2.72 FIP and a very low 7.7% HR/FB. He’s on the Down side of this list because his opponent, the Houston Astros, are the hottest offense over the last week. The Astros as a team have a .408 wOBA over their last 6 games. They’re making 48.6% HC with the leagues best 26.9% LD in that time. Bauer has the skill to pitch through a tough team like the Astros but it’s best not to take that change in this matchup.
Corey Seager
Off to a fine start so far, the LA shortstop is hitting .278/.375/.422 good for a 118 wRC+. Seager, however is riding some inflated numbers to a recent hot streak. In the last 10 days Seager is hitting .355/.412/.452 but he’s doing that on the strength of a .500 BABIP, suggesting that luck is a major part of that success. He has just a .097 ISO over 34 PA and he has just a 18.2% LD in that time.
