Sunday, April 21, 2019

Sunday Morning Hot Links

Well I guess a disaster is fine every now and then. Makes life seem real. Been kicked in the balls plenty over the years, what's one more shot to the nuts. Gerrit Cole was freaking terrible and the VapeShops won. The Astros are 13-7. They have won 11 of their last 13 games.

*The Astros, after 20 games, 2019-2010:
2019: 13-7
2018: 13-7
2017: 14-6
2016: 6-14
2015: 13-7
2014: 6-14
2013: 6-14
2012: 8-12
2011: 7-13
2010: 8-12

Every year in which the Astros have been over .500 in the first 20 games in the last decade, they have made the playoffs.

*Yeah but they're 2-4 against Arlington. This is completely unacceptable. The Rangers' 5-run 1st inning was the most runs the Astros have allowed in a single inning, much less the 1st.

*Arlington is 3-1 in four starts vs. Verlander and Cole thus far in 2019.

*Gerrit Cole got blooped and bombed to death, there's no way around it. Cole's line: 4.1IP, 9H/8ER, 8K:3BB. He had allowed 9ER in four starts coming into last night's game. The last time he allowed 8ER in a start was...never in the Majors. If you care, he allowed 8ER on May 19, 2013 when he allowed 8ER against Pawtucket while at Triple-A. His 13 outs were the fewest he recorded in a start with Houston.

It just looked like he was trying to grunt his way through his outing and get to the next pitch, and he was jumping off the rubber a little bit. He was going to out-stuff them. He reached deep into his tank of 98, 99 early, and when he's doing that, he's trying to get out of that big inning. All in all, just a bad night. 

Cole's starts, by ER, MLB career:
8: 1
7: 3
6: N/A
5: 15
4: 13
3: 36
2: 42
1: 34
0: 19

It's not surprising, but the Word is that Cole was tipping his pitches. Cole:
I felt like they were on a lot of stuff in the first inning, especially their takes and some of the pitches that they chose to swing at. I think they were maybe a little bit a step ahead of me in terms of being able to identify what pitch I was throwing. 

*Reymin Guduan had a nice bounceback appearance with 2IP, 0H/0ER, 3K:0BB. He was rewarded with a trip to the Hill Country in favor of Framber Valdez.

*The Astros made Adrian Sampson look like An Actual Decent Pitcher: 4.1IP, 7H/2ER, 3K:1BB. They just couldn't get a big hit. Adrian Sampson, 2019:
vs. Houston: 10.1IP, 11H/3ER, 6K:3BB.
vs. Not-Houston: 7.2IP, 12H/8ER, 6K:4BB.

The Rangers are 6-5 in 2019 when their starting pitcher can't get 15 outs. Yeah that's sustainable over 162 games. Baseball is stupid.

*It didn't help that the Astros were 2x13 w/RISP, with GIDPs from Bregman and Correa.

*George Springer hit a 2-run home run in the 6th. It's his 127th career home run, his 20th home run against Arlington, tied with the Mariners for the most against one opponent.

*Michael Brantley has 2+ hits in eight of his 20 games as an Astro. He has a 12-game on-base streak. He has 2+ hits in six of those games. 

*Jose Altuve was 0x5. It's the 38th 0x5 of his career. He had six 0x5s in 2018. It's his 16th 0x5 with no strikeouts in a game, his first since May 3, 2017.

*Max Stassi finally got his first hit of 2019 with his 1st home run of the season, and threw a batter out. Good job, Max Stassi, I guess. It's the 12th home run of his career, and nine of them have been on the road.

*Chandler Rome on why Yuli Gurriel has suddenly found Patience.

*In the 1st game of a doubleheader, Round Rock beat Memphis 11-6 thanks to back-to-back Homerz from Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez in the 7th, and Taylor Jones and Drew Ferguson in the 5th.

*From David Nuno: How the Hurts family is a Channelview Institution.

*Albert Pujols passed Babe Ruth with 1993 RBIs.

*85,000 Yemeni children have died of starvation. The government has banned all Yemeni travelers from coming to the United States, and have denied Green Cards for Yemini family members of U.S citizens.

*Seattle Times: What an Olympic medalist, homeless in Seattle, wants you to know.

*The Atlantic: How an 18th-century philosopher helped solve my mid-life crisis.

*A Musical Selection: