MLB on Sling TV: Yankees at Angels on FS1; All the Action on FOX Sports Regional Networks
(All times Eastern, starters subject to change)
New York Yankees (Tanaka 9-4, 3.40) vs. Los Angeles Angels (Weaver 8-10, 5.32)
10pm ET on FS1
Following Wednesday’s 7-4 loss to the Jays, the Yankees have dropped 3 of their last 4, bringing their record to 61-59, good for 4th place in the AL East. Still, since blowing up their roster at the trade deadline, the Yankees are 9-7, thanks to a boost in offense from youngsters Aaron Judge (.389/.450/.778 in 20 plate appearance) and Gary Sanchez (.391/.429/.1.211 in 49 plate appearances). And this is despite the Yankees having to go way down their depth chart for pitching, as Luis Severino continues to be terrible, Chad Green has been up-and-down, and CC Sabathia has, of late, been awful, posting a 6.94 ERA over his last 4 starts. But through it all, Masahiro Tanaka remains the team’s ace, leading the staff in Wins, Innings, ERA, SO/BB, WHIP, and WAR.
Any way you slice it, the Angels are awful. At 51-70, they find themselves mired in the cellar of the AL West, and in a four-way race with the A’s, Rays, and Twins for the AL’s worst record. And lest you think the cavalry is on its way, they have by many accounts the worst farm system in baseball. Jered Weaver isn’t why the Angels are so bad, but he’s a big part of it, as his ERA, ERA+, FIP and WHIP all are the worst among AL qualifiers, and his HR/9 and SO/BB are second-worst. Tragically, ironically, the one thing he’s done reliably well this year is stay healthy, having missed just one start.
But don’t let Jered Weaver scare you away from watching Mike Trout, who at just 25 is well on his way to Cooperstown. Trout is top 10 in batting, on-base and slugging, runs scored, RBI, walks, steals and steal percentage, OPS+, and times on base, and he plays great defense out in centerfield. Through his age-24 season, Trout’s hit every bit as well as Mickey Mantle did, while stealing an extra 90 bases in 97 attempts, and playing superior defense. He is a generational talent being wasted in a parking lot on the fringes of Anaheim, don’t miss the show.
Watch the New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Angels at 10pm on FS1 on Friday by subscribing to Sling Blue..
Here’s the action from the FOX Sports regional networks across the land:
Miami Marlins (Koehler 9-8, 3.86) at Pittsburgh Pirates (Cole 7-8, 3.25)
7:05pm ET on FOX Sports Florida
St. Louis Cardinals (Wainwright 9-7, 4.72) at Philadelphia Phillies (Morgan 1-7, 6.62)
7:05pm ET on FOX Sports Midwest
Boston Red Sox (Porcello 16-3, 3.30) at Detroit Tigers (Fulmer 10-3, 2.25)
7:10pm ET on FOX Sports Detroit
Los Angeles Dodgers (Norris 6-9, 4.26) at Cincinnati Reds (Adleman 1-1, 3.72)
7:10pm ET on FOX Sports Cincinnati
Texas Rangers (Hamels 12-4, 2.88) at Tampa Bay Rays (Andriese 6-4, 3.36)
7:10pm ET on FOX Sports Southwest & Fox Sports Sun
Toronto Blue Jays (Liriano 6-12, 5.46) at Cleveland Indians (Bauer 9-5, 3.97)
7:10pm ET on SportsTime Ohio
Washington Nationals (Roark 13-6, 2.91) at Atlanta Braves (Teheran 3-9, 2.81)
7:35pm ET on FOX Sports South
Minnesota Twins (Berrios 2-3, 9.32) at Kansas City Royals (Volquez 9-10, 4.95)
8:15pm ET on FOX Sports Kansas City & FOX Sports North
Milwaukee Brewers (Suter NA) at Seattle Mariners (LeBlanc 2-0, 4.68)
10:10pm ET on FOX Sports Wisconsin
Arizona Diamondbacks (Greinke 11-4, 4.31) at San Diego Padres (Cosart 0-1, 5.03)
10:40pm ET on FOX Sports Arizona & FOX Sports San Diego
Watch baseball on FOX Sports Regional Networks by subscribing to Sling Blue.
All stats courtesy of ESPN, Baseball Reference, and FanGraphs