NERD Game Scores for Tuesday, September 8, 2015

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
New York NL at Washington | 19:05 ET
Harvey (166.1 IP, 87 xFIP-) vs. Zimmermann (173.0 IP, 98 xFIP-)
A lot has to happen for the Washington Nationals — which club currently possesses playoff odds somewhere between 10% and 16%, depending on methodology — a lot has to happen for the Nationals to qualify for the postseason. Roughly one-fifth of it could happen tonight, however, as those Nationals — currently trailing the Mets by five games in the NL East — are scheduled to play that same Mets club tonight along the banks of the Anacostia. The other option, of course, is that Washington loses the game, thus rendering moot all hope.

Readers’ Preferred Broadcast: New York NL Television.

Two Brief Notes
Debut: Carl Edwards, RHP, Chicago NL
Right-handed Cubs prospect Carl (C. J.) Edwards recorded his major-league debut for that same club on Monday, working an inning of relief. Selected in the 48th round of the 2011 draft and signed for just $50,000, Edwards was ranked sixth among Chicago prospects by Kiley McDaniel this past offseason and 64th among all prospects everywhere. Working exclusively in relief this year, Edwards has exhibited the ability to miss bats (posting a 32.3% strikeout rate), but less of an ability to throw strikes (producing also a 17.7% walk rate). He throws a curveball whose break can be expressed perfectly by the Fibonacci sequence.

Today’s Free Game
Today’s free game features the same New York and Washington clubs mentioned above, 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 adjustments here and here.

Away		SP	Tm.	Gm.	Tm.	SP		Home	Time
Ryan Weber*	ATL	5	3	4	3	5	PHI	Aaron Nola	19:05
Kevin Gausman	BAL	8	4	7	10	7	NYA	Masahiro Tanaka	19:05
Matt Harvey	NYN	10	5	7	6	7	WAS	Jor. Zimmermann	19:05
Erasmo Ramirez	TB	6	4	4	4	3	DET	Matt Boyd	19:08
T. Jungmann	MIL	4	4	4	4	6	MIA	Adam Conley	19:10
Francis. Liriano	PIT	8	5	6	4	9	CIN	Raisel Iglesias	19:10
R.A. Dickey	TOR	8	10	7	4	5	BOS	Henry Owens	19:10
Carlos Carrasco	CLE	10	4	6	4	8	CHA	Carlos Rodon	20:10
Kyle Gibson	MIN	4	6	5	4	4	KC	Edinson Volquez	20:10
Jason Hammel	CHN	7	5	6	5	9	STL	Michael Wacha	20:15
Tim Hudson	SF	4	4	4	4	4	AZ	Chase Anderson	21:40
Scott Kazmir	HOU	6	8	6	4	7	OAK	Sonny Gray	22:05
Clayton Kershaw	LAN	10	4	6	5	5	LAA	Andrew Heaney	22:05
Jonathan Gray	COL	7	4	5	4	7	SD	Colin Rea	22:10
Cole Hamels	TEX	9	8	7	4	10	SEA	Taijuan Walker	22:10

* = Fewer than 10 IP, NERD at discretion of very handsome author.