The Yankees start off the post-A-Rod era with the Rays sending Matt Andriese against Masahiro Tanaka. Andriese already showed improvement over his rookie season as he pitched 15 more innings with the same number of walks and fewer home runs allowed. Tanaka will match his start total of last season today. His season is very consistent with 2015. He struck out fewer batters but made up for that with many fewer home runs allowed.
The Cardinals try to stop the Cubs winning streak with Luke Weaver, who makes his major league debut against Kyle Hendricks. Weaver is typical of the type of pitcher the Cardinals pulled out of their farm system this decade. He strikes out tons of batters without issuing walks and keeps the ball in the park. Having him debut against the best team in baseball is really throwing him into the fire, however. On top of that, Hendricks is 8-1 with a 1.19 ERA at home this season. Just two of his ten home runs allowed came at Wrigley this season.*
*I wonder if the wind has been blowing in at Wrigley this year? Cubs pitchers allowed the same number of doubles and triples at home and on the road, but 15 fewer home runs at home.
Gerrit Cole battles Brandon McCarthy as the Pirates play the Dodgers in an early afternoon game in Los Angeles. Cole is just 7-7 in 17 starts despite a 2.94 ERA. His strength this year is keeping the ball in the park, with just three home runs allowed in 98 innings. He’s allowed 0.51 home runs per nine innings pitched in his career, which ranks fourth since the start of his career in 2013. McCarthy has been effective for the Dodgers with a 3.00 ERA, but he does not go deep in games, with just 33 IP in seven starts.
The Tigers have been slipping, and now send Matt Boyd against AL Cy Young candidate Cole Hamels and the Rangers. Boyd tries to stop Detroit’s losing streak at five games. He allowed 10 home runs in 55 2/3 innings year, and the Rangers are fourth in the AL with 152 home runs. Hamels trails J.A. Happ in Tom Tango Cy Young Tracker points by 0.3. Hamels does have some trouble at home where his ERA is 4.22, compared to 1.97 on the road.
Enjoy!