Since Ground Chuck was ground down, let’s have some fun with numbers. Charlie Morton only went 0.2 IP. In those 2/3 of an inning, he faced 11 batters. He allowed eight hits and one walk, so nine baserunners total. All baserunners scored. He allowed a .857 BABIP. That’s just insane to me. Nine runs in 2/3 of an inning amounts to a 121.50 ERA. That’s just unreal. He had three fly balls and two of those were home runs. The control just wasn’t there, and the luck followed. Just a bad day out. If you went with Hellickson instead (or Gallardo if you were unlike me and noticed that his start was pushed back) you were much better rewarded. Now, on to tomorrow’s streaming pitchers!
Streaming Pitchers: 6/23/2015
Mike Pelfrey RHP MIN (vs. CWS)
Let’s get this out of the way: Mike Pelfrey is not a great pitcher. He’s okay, with a 2.63 BB/9 and a 54.2% ground ball rate. But the strikeout rate is terrible (just 4.23 K/9). His 2.97 ERA comes from the help of some BABIP luck (just .287) and a high LOB% (79.2%). If you think the luck can continue, then I would give him a shot against the White Sox tomorrow. Outside of the Cell, the White Sox hit just a 76 wRC+ at home. They also hit poorly against righties as well, to the tune of an 84 wRC+. It’s hard to trust a mediocre pitcher, especially one that has a low strikeout rate, but his control and his ground ball ability should help keep the White Sox at bay.
Jeff Locke LHP PIT (vs CIN)
We’ve seen Jeff Locke on these fine pages before, so I won’t go into too much detail about him here. Just remember he fits the profile of the Pittsburgh pitchers of the last few years to a tee: okay strikeouts, decent control, great ground ball rate. And the reason that the ground ball rate is important is this: for the last three years, the Pirates have allowed a .289 BABIP. Year to year, BABIP can change, for a pitcher and a hitter, but the Pirates’ defense has usually been above average every year, especially in the infield. They are also one of the teams that have deployed the use of the shift the most over that time, which has helped keep that BABIP allowed down. It’s just another great reason to use a Pittsburgh pitcher against a weaker opponent, especially at home. Now I know that there are a couple hitters on the Reds that are pretty good (Joey Votto and Todd Frazier, anyone?), but besides them it’s pretty slim pickings for the Reds right now. As a team, they only hit an 84 wRC+ on the road, and they are stuck trying to hit in PNC Park, which eats fly balls for breakfast. Sure, they can hit lefties some (104 wRC+ against) but Locke’s ground ball ways should help keep the damage down.
Good luck and happy streaming!
