One Night Only!
Actually, Loverboy, not everybody’s working for the weekend — or working at all, in fact.
(NERD scores in parentheses.)
San Diego (10) at St. Louis (3) | 8:15pm ET
Starting Pitchers
Padres: Mat Latos (10)
166.2 IP, 9.40 K/9, 2.43 BB/9, .262 BABIP, 44.7% GB, 8.6% HR/FB, 3.28 xFIP, 3.6 WAR
Cardinals: Kyle Lohse (3)
71.0 IP, 5.07 K/9, 3.17 BB/9. .375 BABIP, 42.4% GB, 5.9% HR/FB, 5.07 xFIP, 0.7 WAR
Notes
• I don’t particularly care about Kyle Lohse one way or the other. I’m sure he’s not someone whose starts — all things being equal — whose starts I’d actively seek out. But the way he’s rendered fictionally by Dan Moore of Viva El Birdos actually makes him considerably more interesting in reality. (There must be a cultural critic who’s written on this phenomenon, no? Jean Baudrillard much? Umberto Eco? Someone?)
• Also notable is that tonight’s game represents a battle between two saints: Didacus of Alcalá (ca 1400 – 1463) and Louis IX of France (1214 – 1270). A brief look at their respective Wikipedia pages reveals that Didacus is, conclusively, a way better saint.
• Mat Latos at 3.6 WAR seems low. You can look at the pitching WAR leaders for yourself, but here are some names I wouldn’t have expected, anecdotally, to see ahead of him: Anibal Sanchez (3.9 WAR, 172.0 IP), Jason Hammel (3.9, 165.2), Gavin Floyd (4.3, 187.1). Those guys are good — I’m not debating that. I’m just saying I wouldn’t have expected them to be there. Really, it’s probably almost entirely due to run environment. The run environment is so deflated at San Diego that you have to really bring it in order to scale the WAR charts.
If I Had My Druthers
• Matt Stairs or Chase Headley or someone would experience ecstasy before the cross.
Other Notes
Cleveland (3) at Kansas City (1), 8:10pm ET
• Carlos Carrasco is (a) pitching tonight and (b) doing this through 20.2 IP: 6.10 K/9, 2.61 BB/9, 66.7% GB, 3.67 xFIP.
Detroit (4) at Chicago Americans (5), 8:10pm ET
• This game features Max Scherzer (8) versus Edwin Jackson (8), who either were or weren’t traded for each other this past offseason. In any case, I know for a fact that they’ve both been Diamondbacks recently. And Tigers. And men among men.
Gridiron Football
• I, Carson Cistulli, have also written about two of this weekend’s gridiron match-ups over at Advanced NFL Stats.
Also Playing
These games are very likely playing at some kind of sporty channel near you.
*Note: As reader Dave has pointed out, Roy Oswalt is listed as an Astro still. That could be a mistake, sure. But then again, it could be a sign that HE’S STILL AN ASTRO AT HEART.
But it’s probably just a mistake.
pNERD = Pitcher NERD
tNERD = Team NERD
Game = Time and Average NERD for Game
* = Estimated NERD
Carson Cistulli has published a book of aphorisms called Spirited Ejaculations of a New Enthusiast.
You have Oswalt as an Astro still. Understandable mistake, but you may want to fix it.
I’ve taken care of this — not by fixing the mistake, but by turning it into a semi-hilarious note.
I think this teaches all of us a lesson. I don’t know what lesson exactly, but something pretty significant probably.
Ti voglio bene, Cistulli.
Weaver of Baskets and Words
Mat Latos’s WAR numbers bug me. He’s thrown significantly more innings on the road than at home, and his FIP is better on the road than at home. His WAR should be higher.
Ouch the Astros have a team nerd of 0. C’mon I know they’re not very good and don’t really have any superstars but can’t you atleast throw them a bone and give them a 1? Also is there a reason Milwaukee’s score is a 9? I know they got guys like Braun and Fielder but they’re still a 4th place team that obviously has no shot at the playoffs. Outside of Brewers fans and/or Brewer players fantasy owners who really wants to tune in to watch them?
Astros have been playing a lot better recently I think they’re probably not a 0. Actually I think almost every team is fun to watch except for maybe the Red Sox when a certain pitcher pitches.
Having watched the Mariners everyday all season, I can assure you Carson, that they deserve a nerd of 0.
This guy Cistulli’s columns are awful; he’s the only writer on FanGraphs whose work I don’t like. The quality of the insight is lacking, and the irreverent tone is either silly or in this case, just plain offensive.
He writes “Matt Stairs or Chase Headley or someone would experience ecstasy before the cross,” and then posts a religious picture next to it – c’mon, man, have some respect. I read this site because the posts on it are usually written by extremely intelligent, gifted individuals who offer amazingly insightful (and sometimes withering) critiques of players and team management.
This writer doesn’t measure up to the standards that his colleagues have set.