Time to bench myself for a day or two in an effort to snap out of my slump after going 0 for 3 last night.
Baltimore Orioles + 105
Yankees 4, Orioles 1 in 15 innings
Rationale:Zach Britton was coming off his best outing, in which he held the Mariners to 3 hits and 0 BB in 9 shutout innings. The rookie had allowed 1 run or fewer in 5 of 8 starts, and the Orioles were 6-2 with him on the mound. Conversely, Bartolo Colon had allowed 3 runs on 5 hits and 3 BB in 6 innings in a loss to Boston in his last outing. Colon was 2-2 with a 5.57 ERA in his last 4 starts versus the Orioles, but he did throw 3 scoreless innings of relief against them earlier this season. Neither team was hitting that well recently – the Yankees were hitting .252 in their last 10 games while the Orioles were hitting .263 – so my decision-making focused more on the pitching match-up.
Reality: The game played out pretty much as I expected, with neither team doing much offensively. Britton did not factor in the decision, going 7 innings and allowing 0 ER on 6 hits and 3 BB while striking out 4. Unfortunately, Colon exceeded my expectations, tossing 8 innings of shutout ball, allowing only 3 hits and 1 BB, while striking out 7. If not for Mariano Rivera's 3rd blown save, the game would not have gone on as long as it did, as both teams combined to leave 29 men on base.
Cleveland Indians + 115
White Sox 1, Indians 0
Rationale: Cleveland (26-13) was off to its best start since 2001 (28-12). Their bats had been red hot of late, scoring 31 runs in their last 3 games. Meanwhile, the White Sox dropped 22 of 31 games after taking the first 2 games of the season from Cleveland, and had won only 2 of their last 12 home games (6-12 at home on the season). The outlook wasn't much better for the White Sox facing Justin Masterson (5-1, 2.73 ERA), and 2-0 with a 1.33 ERA in his last 3 starts against Chicago, including a 7-1 win earlier this season. He was 1-0 with a 1.84 ERA in his 3 starts at U.S. Cellular Field. Meanwhile, the White Sox had lost the last 4 times Jake Peavy (0-0, 6.00) faced the Indians, who was making only his second start since returning from surgery on his pitching shoulder.
Reality: Another great pitching duel. Masterson fell to 5-2 despite allowing only 1 ER on 5 hits and 2 BB in 8 innings, while striking out 8. Peavy was even better, earning his first W of the season. He tossed a complete game shutout, yielding only 3 hits and 0 BB, also striking out 8. Hats off to Peavy for cooling off the hottest hitting team in baseball. Adam Dunn's sacrifice fly in the first inning produced the only run of the game.
San Diego Padres + 115
Brewers 5, Padres 2
Rationale: I anticipated a high scoring affair with Dustin Moseley (1-5, 3.40 ERA) going up against Yovani Gallardo (4-2, 4.88 ERA). Moseley had virtually no run support, with the Padres failing to score in 4 of his 5 losses. The Padres were hitting .291 in their last 10 games and, with Gallardo on the hill for Milwaukee, run support shouldn't have been an issue. And, while San Diego is far from the best hitting team in baseball, they led the NL with 45 stolen bases. With Jonathan Lucroy (2 of 18 CS) behind the plate for the Brewers, the Padres should have made the most of their base runners.
Reality: Not the slug fest I expected, as Moseley continued to be abandoned by his team offensively. The Brewers even out stole the Padres 2 to 1, with Corey Hart (7 SB last season) swiping his first of the year (in 3 attempts). Gallardo pitched well enough for his 5th W, giving up 2 ER on 5 hits and 3 BB in 6 innings, while adding 9 K. John Axford struck out the side to earn his 10th S, avoiding trouble after giving up to hits.
SEASON RECORD: 6-9 (40|PERCENT|), - 420