Jahan
4 posts
Aug 28, 2022
5:40 PM
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The Yankees begin a crucial three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles tonight in the Bronx. The series, in general, is crucial, and tonights game, in particular, is crucial , because they all are for the Yankees at this point. Despite a 51-game span of. 706 baseball that included a 35-11 stretch and a 13-game winning streak, theyre actually further behind Tampa Bay than when that span started. Perhaps more importantly, the Yankees are closer to being out of the playoff picture than they are to first place, with leads of 1 Roger Clemens Jersey. 5 games and 3. 5 games over Boston and Oakland respectively in the Wild Card race. If you were thinking that tonights game against the woeful Orioles is a soft landing spot, it might not be as easy as you might expect. Nstor Cortes Jr. will take the mound for the Yankees tonight. Cortes has been great for the Yankees this season; theres no secret about that. Hes shown an incredible ability to avoid hard contact, ranking in the 90th percentile or better in barrel percentage, xSLG, and xwOBA across MLB. This has helped him avoid heavy damage and big innings, and has made him incredibly consistent even when hes been bad, hes not that bad. In his worst start in 2021, he still got through 5 Kyle Zurak Jersey. 2 innings allowing only a manageable four earned runs. It should go without saying that the Orioles offense isnt very good at scoring runs, but it isnt the reason that theyre Exhibit A for why some fans believe MLB needs to adopt the European soccer model of relegation. In fact, the Orioles have plated an average of 6. 2 runs per game on the board over their last nine games. As silly as it may sound to say dont take a team with a. 311 winning percentage lightly, because its really hard not to Cortes needs to pitch well tonight. Speaking of matters not to be taken lightly, the Orioles will send 28-year-old lefty John Means to the mound to face the Yankees. The former 11th-round pick has put together a solid three-season stretch for Baltimore among AL pitchers with a minimum of 300 IP since 2019, only Gerrit Cole, Shane Bieber, Lance Lynn, and Chris Bassitt have posted a better ERA+ than Means. The Yankees shouldnt have to wait around for strikes from Means, as he ranks in the 97th percentile in walk rate in MLB. Just about half of his pitches have been four-seamers that he likes to keep up and in to both righties and lefties, and close to 30 percent of his remaining pitches have been changeups that hes kept down and away to righties, down and in to lefties https://www.newyorkystore.com/45-Yankees_Dj_Lemahieu_Jersey. Means will be facing a Yankees lineup that recently reverted from long-awaited offensive juggernaut to once again struggling for runs. Theyve managed to score only 18 runs in their last 5 games, and have gone 1-4 over that stretch. Aaron Boone must agree with me on at least a mild sense of urgency tonight, as Giancarlo Stanton gets the start in right field and Luke Voit will be the designated hitter. The Bombers also hope to get a boost from Gleyber Torres who is back from the IL and will be starting at shortstop tonight.
Last Edited by Jahan on Aug 28, 2022 5:40 PM
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