Welcome to Ronnie’s Run Down! 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 just my attempt at creating come compelling thought on any given day. There are nine innings in baseball, and nine points in my daily run down.
- In his last 11 games Christian Yelich is hitting .500/.521/.978 with a 100% HR/FB. For the month of July he’s making 44.5% HC with a .465 wOBA. Today he will face the Dodgers Rich Hill. The LA lefty has a 104 ERA+ in 68.1 innings on the season. Yelich is making 48.5% HC on the year against left handed pitching with a .202 ISO.
- Nick Castellanos is making 60.9% HC since the All-Star break which ranks 4th in the Majors. He’s been pretty unlucky in that time as he’s logged 36 PA with just a .217 BABIP. He has a good chance to make a big impact in today’s game as he’ll matchup against the Reds Sal Romano. Romano’s 4.86 SIERA ranks as the 7th worst in the Majors, and his 16.5% K rate is also 7th worst among starters with a minimum of 100 innings pitched.
- Matt Chapman is another hitter burning it up since the break. In his last 50 PA Chapman has a .530 wOBA and a .381 ISO. He’s making 45.5% HC and he’s actually taking the ball the other way with a healthy 39.4% Oppo. Chapman has been worth 1.3 fWAR in the 2nd half, the most of any AL hitter.
- No hitter has more home runs in the 2nd half than Jonathan Schoop’s 7 round trippers. The newly acquired Brewer has been on fire in his last 43 PA with a .512 ISO and .503 wOBA. The nice thing is he’s doing this all with a just about league average .308 BABIP. He also has yet to draw a single walk in those 43 PA.
- The Indians Yonder Alonso is 3rd in the AL with 5 second half home runs. He’s really stepped his game up lately, hitting .324/.425/.824 in 40 PA over his last 10 games. His opponent today is the Twins Adalberto Mejia. Mejia has only made 2 starts on the season but with very limited success as evidence by his 5.25 SIERA.
- Wade LeBlanc takes the hill this evening against the Houston Astros. He’s having a pretty average LeBlanc season with a 4.34 xFIP. Alex Bregman is the Astros best hitter against lefties with a .301 ISO and 174 wRC+ while making 40.2% HC. For the month of July Bergman has a 165 wRC+ and a .409 wOBA.
- Tommy Milone might be a viable sleeper in today’s matchups. He’s made only one start on the season after making 20 starts in AAA. He only threw 5 innings but he struck out six and walked 0. His 2.07 xFIP suggest her performed much better than his 5.40 ERA would appear. He faces the Mets today, a team that ranks dead last in the 2nd half with 28.6% HC.
- The Pittsburgh Pirates are a dangerous offense right now. As a team they are tops in the NL with 40.3% HC in the last 10 days. They also top the NL with a .367 wOBA. Cole Hamels is tasked with holding the Pirates at bay in today’s matchup. Hamels has been up and down this season but for the year he’s allowing 44.9% HC. In his last 17 innings he’s given up 25 runs and 3 home runs.
