Welcome to ‘Marty’s Musings’, my weekly column of numbers summarizing the happenings in the baseball world. I am your guide for taking an analytic look at the news and notes throughout the game, and highlighting this week’s key pitching matchups.
This week we take a look at a Minor League no hitter, CC Sabathia and Stephen Strasburg’s strikeout milestones, and Corey Kluber’s sidelining injury.
All this news and more in this week’s Musings.
News and Notes
98 - Pitches it took Tigers’ number one prospect Casey Mize to throw a no hitter at Double A Erie on Monday night. There was a close call early in the game, but Mize was helped by a great outfield play by center fielder Derek Hill. The only base runner was a two-out walk in the seventh inning, but he roared back getting the next seven consecutive batters out. Detroit selected Mize as the number one overall pick in the 2018 draft.
6-4-3 - Triple play for the Montgomery Biscuits, the Double A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. The first triple play in the franchise’s history came in the fifth inning of a 3-1 victory last Wednesday.
102 - Mile per hour linedrive that fractured Cleveland ace Corey Kluber’s ulna bone. Although we’re not exactly sure how much time he’ll miss, estimates put this at a 3-4 month absence between recovery and training to get back on the mound.
9 - Shutout innings for Noah Syndergaard, complemented by one solo home run, to earn himself a ‘true win’ in a dominant 1-0 performance. The rare feat came against the Reds last week, and hopefully put Syndergaard back on track after a horrible April.
18 - Innings it took the Brewers to down the Mets on Saturday night. It was the longest game in Miller Park history, delivered in large part thanks to 14 shutout innings by the Milwaukee bullpen and eight innings by the Mets’. The Mets took a 3-2 lead in the top of the 18th, but the bottom of the inning was a disaster, started by three walks, and ultimately ending on a Ryan Braun two-run walkoff single. Braun ended up with six hits in the game.
17 - Pitchers who are in the elite 3,000 strikeout category, as C.C. Sabathia joined the list last Tuesday. C.C. took the loss, giving up two runs on five hits over 5 ⅓ innings, but his five strikeouts puts him in elite company.
1,272 ⅓ - Innings it took Nationals flamethrower Stephen Strasburg to get to the 1,500 strikeout milestone. That is the fastest of any pitcher to get to 1,500, besting Chris Sale’s 1,290. Despite an injury-riddled start to his career, when he’s on the mound, he remains an elite power pitcher.
42 - Game on-base streak that ended for Yankee Luke Voit on Saturday afternoon. The 42 consecutive on-base games dates back to last season. He’s had a great start to the year, hitting nine homers to go with a solid .377 on-base percentage.
Matchups to Watch
Monday, May 6
Jacob deGrom (NYM) v. Chris Paddock (SD), 10:10 ET
deGrom has been excellent in any game that hasn’t had a rain delay...which should work out well for New York in San Diego. The Mets are coming off a three-game sweep at the hands of the Brewers, and face a tough task against the Padres stud rookie.
Wednesday, May 8
Robbie Ray (ARI) v. Charlie Morton (TB), 1:10 ET
The Rays fully took advantage of the Red Sox slow start and the Yankees injury-riddled early season by taking the lead in the division. Charlie Morton has only had one bad game all season and is coming off two quality starts. The DBacks are keeping pace with the Dodgers in the West, and are leaning on Robbie Ray to help them ascend to first place.
Thursday, May 9
Patrick Corbin (WAS) v. Rich Hill (LAD), 10:10 ET
Washington is five games below .500 and face a test as they take-on the reigning NL champs in LA. Rich Hill has only pitched two games this season, and is still getting into his groove, while Patrick Corbin has been inconsistent in his recent starts.
Friday, May 10
Chris Sale (BOS) v. Renaldo López (CHW), 8:10 ET
While Chris Sale’s homecoming back to the southside of Chicago is interesting enough, it’s Renaldo López who is coming off a dominating start. On Sunday, López struck out 14 batters in only six innings. It’s either feast-or-famine with López, who has given up seven home runs in just 31 innings, and either walked or struckout 56 of the 144 batters he’s faced this year.
Saturday, May 11
Zach Davies (MIL) v. Cole Hamels (CHC), 2:20 ET
The Cubs are currently on a seven-game winning streak after sweeping the Cardinals last weekend, and the Brewers just swept the Mets in Milwaukee. In a tight Central, divisional games will likely determine who ends up on top at the end of the season.
Sunday, May 12
Masahiro Tanaka (NYY) v. Blake Snell (TB), 1:10 ET
The Yankees seemingly have better talent on the injured list than they do on their 25-man roster, yet they are keeping pace with the Rays. This weekend’s series culminates with AL Cy Young winner Blake Snell taking on Masahiro Tanaka.
*All pitching matchups as of Sunday night’s pitching probables
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Steven Martano is an Editor at Beyond the Box Score, a Contributing Prospect Writer for the Colorado Rockies at Purple Row, and a contributing writer for The Hardball Times. You can follow him on Twitter at @SMartano