MLB on Sling TV: Giants at Yankees on TBS and YES; Dodgers at Cardinals on ESPN; All the Action on Fox Sports Regional Networks
(All times Eastern, starters subject to change)
San Francisco Giants (Cueto 13-2, 2.64) vs. New York Yankees (Eovaldi 8-6, 4.93)
1:05pm ET on TBS and YES
Johnny Cueto’s 3-month sojourn to the American League netted him a World Series ring, but little else, as he spent most of his time with the Royals trying to find the strike zone, while simultaneously jeopardizing his value on the free agency market. But now, safely back in the NL, Cueto is pitching as well as ever, leading the league in wins, complete games, innings pitched, and in the top 10 in WAR, WHIP, strikeouts and shutouts, as his K rate has returned to his pre-KC levels and his homers are at a career low. Cueto took the loss as the starting pitcher in this year’s All Star Game, giving up 3 runs on homers to ex-teammates Salvador Perez and Eric Hosmer, and was shaky again in his first post-break start, against the Padres, who scored 4 runs on 6 hits and 3 walks over 5 innings on their way to a 5-3 win.
Nathan Eovaldi’s strikeout and walk rates are virtual the same as last year, and his hits per 9 are down more than 9%, as his BABIP has fallen 47 points. So how is it that his ERA has climbed by nearly three-quarters of a run? Well, last year he gave up 10 home runs in 154 ⅓ innings; this year he’s given up 19 homers in 104 innings, nearly three times as often. And the homers haven;t. For the most part been cheap, as 14 of 19 were deemed “No doubt” or “Plenty” by ESPN’s Home Run Tracker.
Los Angeles Dodgers (Kazmir 8-3, 4.30) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (Lyons 2-0, 3.54)
8:08pm ET on ESPN
The Dodgers are one of 3 teams with only 3 different pitchers to throw 60+ innings, and the best of those, Clayton Kershaw, is currently on the DL, so they really need Scott Kazmir to keep going the way he has of late. Since May 14, he’s 6-0 with a 3.61 ERA in 12 starts spanning 67 ⅓ innings. Of course, his record is skewed by how much the Dodgers love to hit for him, as they’ve averaged more than 5.5 runs in support of him this year.
Tyler Lyons had been one of the Cardinals' emergency starters for the previous three seasons, having gotten the call 20 times while bouncing up and down between the Majors and Triple A. This year, he’s been with the Cards all season, but is only now getting his first start of 2016. In 107 1/3 career innings as a starter, he’s posted an ERA of 5.20, in 83 innings as a reliever his ERA has been 2.71. His 3.54 ERA out of the pen this year is largely attributable to a jarring home run rate, as he’s averaged 2 per 9 innings pitched.
And here’s the action from the FOX Sports regional networks across the land…
San Francisco Giants (Cueto 13-2, 2.64) vs. New York Yankees (Eovaldi 8-6, 4.93)
1:05pm ET on YES
Arizona Diamondbacks (Godley 2-1, 5.31) at Cincinnati Reds (Finnegan 5-7, 4.66)
1:10pm ET on FOX Sports Arizona & FOX Sports Cincinnati
New York Mets (Matz 7-6, 3.56) at Miami Marlins (Urena 1-1, 6.23)
1:10pm ET on FOX Sports Florida
Cleveland Indians (Kluber 9-8, 3.42) at Baltimore Orioles (Worley 2-1, 3.16)
1:35pm ET on SportsTime Ohio
Minnesota Twins (Milone 3-2, 4.71) at Boston Red Sox (Porcello 12-3, 3.47)
1:35pm ET on FOX Sports North
San Diego Padres (Friedrich 4-6, 4.55) at Washington Nationals (TBD)
1:35pm ET on FOX Sports San Diego
Chicago Cubs (Lester 10-4, 2.89) at Milwaukee Brewers (Guerra 6-2, 3.06)
2:10pm ET on FOX Sports Wisconsin
Detroit Tigers (Sanchez 5-11, 6.60) at Chicago White Sox (Quintana 8-8, 3.13)
2:10pm ET on FOX Sports Detroit
Los Angeles Angeles (Lincecum 2-3, 6.59) at Houston Astros (Fiers 6-4, 4.75)
2:10pm ET on FOX Sports Arizona & FOX Sports Cincinnati
Texas Rangers (Griffin 3-1, 4.26) at Kansas City Royals (Volquez 8-8, 4.72)
2:15pm ET on FOX Sports Kansas City & FOX Sports Southwest
Tampa Bay Rays (Snell 2-4, 3.11) at Oakland Athletics (Hahn 2-4, 6.49)
4:05pm ET on Fox Sports Sun
Atlanta Braves (Jenkins 0-1, 4.05) at Colorado Rockies (Chatwood 8-6, 3.83)
4:10pm ET on FOX Sports South
Los Angeles Dodgers (Kazmir 8-3, 4.30) at St. Louis Cardinals (Lyons 2-0, 3.54)
8pm ET on FOX Sports Midwest
Watch baseball on FOX and FOX Sports Regional Networks by subscribing to Sling Blue.
All stats courtesy of ESPN, Baseball Reference and FanGraphs.