NERD Game Scores for Thursday, September 18, 2014

Devised originally in response to a challenge issued by viscount of the internet Rob Neyer, and expanded at the request of nobody, NERD scores represent an attempt to summarize in one number (and on a scale of 0-10) the likely aesthetic appeal or watchability, for the learned fan, of a player or team or game. Read more about the components of and formulae for NERD scores here.

Most Highly Rated Game
Boston at Pittsburgh | 19:05 ET
Brandon Workman (82.0 IP, 112 xFIP-, 0.7 WAR) faces Gerrit Cole (117.0 IP, 96 xFIP-, 1.2 WAR). While French theologian John Calvin — and any other number of determinists, religious or otherwise — would likely argue that the outcomes of the various playoff races have been decided already, the editors of FanGraphs are capable only of speaking in probabilities. So far as Pittsburgh’s probability of qualifying for the divisional series is concerned, “almost exactly 50%” is the best answer available to us at the moment. Of greater certainty — one bordering on 100%, in this case — is that Cuban emigre Rusney Castillo will make his second start for Boston tonight in center field.

Readers’ Preferred Broadcast: Boston Radio or Television.

Lone, Brief Note
Regarding Today’s Free Game
Today’s free game features Cleveland at Houston, starts at 8:10pm ET, and can be accessed by means of this hyperlinked text.

Complete Schedule
Here’s the complete and very sortable table for all of today’s games. Pitching probables and game times aggregated from MLB.com and also the rest of the internet. Note that the calculations both for team and game NERD scores have changed recently to better integrate playoff odds into same. Read more about those changes here, if you’re the sort of person accustomed to making poor life decisions.

Away		SP	Tm.	Gm.	Tm.	SP		Home	Time
Nick Martinez	TEX	0	3	6	10	7	OAK	Sonny Gray	15:35
Bran. Workman	BOS	5	3	7	10	10	PIT	Gerrit Cole	19:05
R.A. Dickey	TOR	10	4	5	3	9	NYA	Shane Greene	19:05
Gio Gonzalez	WAS	8	4	5	4	5	MIA	Brad Hand	19:10
Zack Greinke	LAN	9	5	5	4	4	CHN	Tsuyoshi Wada	20:05
Danny Salazar	CLE	10	4	5	4	3	HOU	Scott Feldman	20:10
Kyle Lohse	MIL	5	5	5	5	4	STL	Shelby Miller	20:15
Vidal Nuno	AZ	6	3	4	4	5	COL	Yohan Flande	20:40
Kyle Kendrick	PHI	3	3	4	3	9	SD	Robbie Erlin	21:10
Felix Hernandez	SEA	10	6	6	4	4	LAA	Jered Weaver	22:05

To learn how Game NERD Scores are calculated, click here.
* = Fewer than 20 IP, NERD at discretion of very handsome author.