Joseph D'Amico

Baseball: First Half Roundup by Jim Feist

162 games is a long season. Every year teams sprint out of the gate in April and May with October dreams, only to come back to the pack by July. It’s not a sprint, of course, but a marathon, where a strong balance of pitching, defense and offense carries the best teams into the postseason. Injuries, too, are key, as well as trades made before the July deadline. Teams have figured out their strengths and weaknesses now and are beginning to look for pieces to add before the deadline, while others are figuring out whom to dump. Here’s a look at some recent baseball surging and slumping teams.

Indians: Cleveland was projected to be a last place team, then shot out of the gate like Secretariat with a 30-15 start in late May. Then this young team came back to earth, struggling on the road as the offense slipped considerably, which results in their batting coach being fired. Indians outfielder Shin-Soo Choo has a broken left thumb and will miss two month, as manager Manny Acta has been creative with lineups because of injuries and slumping players.
Despite the erratic offense, the pitching staff has been the glue behind their surprising season, ranked 13th in team ERA. The bullpen has been outstanding and the staff allows the third fewest walks in baseball. The under is 15-4-2 in Indians last 21 on grass. All eyes will be on the Cleveland management this month: Spend some bucks to bring in a quality bat or frontline starter? Or become sellers in the market, which would be a huge let down to their fans.

Phillies: The Phillies were expected to be the dominant team after the acquisition of free agent Cliff Lee in the winter. They have been, with the top record in baseball and tops in pitching ERA behind Roy Halladay, Lee and Cole Hamels. However, there are concerns. Starter Roy Oswalt has back problems and has been on and off the DL and the offense hasn’t been as good as expected.
After ranking seventh in runs and homers last season, Philadelphia has dipped to the middle of the pack in 2011 in both categories. They had been a dominant road team in recent years, but have been close to .500 away from home this season. There is some age, both with the staff and the offense, something to keep an eye on in the second half of the season. By the way, the under is 11-4 in Lee’s last 15 starts as a favorite.

Brewers: What a fascinating young team. No National League duo has more than the combined 37 homers and 127 RBI than Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun. They’re both hitting better than .300 and are leading MVP candidates. The pitching staff might not be as deep as the Phillies, but what an outstanding trio of starters in Yovani Gallardo, Zack Greinke and Shawn Marcum, the latter two new to the team this season. The Brewers are 15-7 in their last 22 against a team with a winning record, though they took it on the chin in the Bronx last week. Their weakness are poor road play and a below average bullpen, so look for this team to go heavy for any quality relief pitching available this month.

Cardinals: After a fast start the Cardinals have faded due to injuries. The offensive talent on this team is sensational, one of the top teams in baseball in runs, batting average, on base percentage and slugging. The over is 35-16-2 in the Cardinals last 53 road games. The Cards are built on two strengths, their starting pitching and the Albert Pujols/Matt Holliday combination in the middle of their batting order. Ace Adam Wainwright had Tommy John elbow surgery in late February, gone for the year, and Pujols is out a month with a recent wrist injury. Throw in a slew of other injuries and you wonder if 2011 just isn’t the Cardinals year. Is there help from the minors? Their farm system ranks 24th in the majors by Baseball America.

Diamondbacks: The young team that won’t go away! The Diamondbacks were supposed to be rebuilding under new manager Kirk Gibson, but this no-name group has been surprising good. The offense talent doesn’t really impress, outside of the only thing that matters: results. They are in the Top 7 in runs scored in baseball and winning despite a team ERA in the bottom 12. They’ve assembled a starting staff by stealing from other teams, with a rotation of Daniel Hudson (White Sox), Joe Saunders (Angels), Ian Kennedy (Yankees), Zach Duke (Pirates) and Armando Gallaraga (Tigers). This is a tough week for Arizona, a 10-game road trip leading to the break. The Diamondbacks are 21-10 in their last 31 games versus a right-handed starter.

Gaming Today, July 12, 2011 (Tuesday)

Baseball: Second Half Surges
by Jim Feist
The first half of the 2011 baseball season is in the books. There were surprising winners, such as the Indians, Marlins, Reds and Brewers, a lack of hitting league-wide, and some surprises such as the defending champion Giants playing close to .500 baseball. With the surprises out of the way, here’s a look at some teams that might be active at the trading deadline and primed to make a second half surge.

Mariners: You can make the argument that pitching is the key to a sustained second half run. If so, the Mariners could be a fun team to watch. Who wouldn’t want a rotation anchored by Felix Hernandez, Michael Pineda, Jason Vargas and Eric Bedard? Pineda is just 22 years old and flew through their system with ace potential – and has been just as dominant at the big league level.
The offense, however, has been feeble, with little power. They are best playing National League-style ball, being aggressive on the base paths with Ichiro Suzuki. Getting Chone Figgins out of a funk would help the Mariners improve in steals. Would you deal one of their great arms for a big bat?

Tigers: Detroit was a disappointment much of the first half before making a June run, with a team ERA near the bottom of the league and an offense that scores runs but has not been able to manufacture any because of the slump of speedy centerfielder Austin Jackson. The 24-year old is only in his second year, so there are growing pains (he hit .293 with 27 steals last season).
However, there is plenty to like about this team, starting with: Austin Jackson! He could get hot in the second half, which happened a year ago when he hit .314 in July, his best month. Plus there is plenty of pop on offense with Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez and Jhonny Peralta. The starting staff has a rare ace in Justin Verlander. They would like some consistency out of righties Max Scherzer and veteran Brad Penny, otherwise the Tigers might be shopping for an arm before the trade deadline in what looks like a wide-open AL Central.

Giants: Speaking of wide-open races, the NL West is. The Giants were the early season pick to run away with it, but the Rockies and surprising Diamondbacks are all in the mix, plus the San Francisco offense has been worse than last season. There are four reasons to believe the Giants won’t go away, though: Lincecum, Cain, Sanchez and Bumgarner. San Francisco has an NL foursome to rival the Phillies which keeps away losing skids. While most teams will be shopping for pitching before the trade deadline, the Giants will be looking for bats and have arms to deal.

Red Sox: Boston spent much of the first month of the season trying to get out of fourth place in the AL East because of a horrible 2-10 start. However, they began to turn it around in May as the offense played up to its talent and the return of former staff ace Josh Beckett. Beckett is off consecutive lost seasons because of injuries, but has been healthy and sensational in 2011.
Teamed with young aces Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz, this rotation is built for October. The offense has balance, with star power, on-base percentage and speed with Jacoby Ellsbury and newcomer Carl Crawford. The defense is outstanding, especially in the outfield, which also helps the pitching staff. They had an injury-prone June, however, and struggled on the road.

Rockies: Speaking of aces, when is Colorado going to get something out of the 27-year old arm of Ubaldo Jimenez? A year ago at this time he was the ultimate stopper, anchoring the rotation, but he’s lost command this summer. This is a fascinating starting staff with 23-year old Jhoulys Chacin and 30-year old Jorge De La Rosa and Jason Hammel.
De La Rosa is off Tommy John surgery while Hammel started off hot and cooled off. This offense should be much better with Todd Helton, Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitski, the latter two who have been streaky. They could be in the market for a bat or arm before the trade deadline. This could be a wild NL West race to the finish.

Rays: Everyone lamented all the talent (Matt Garza, Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena) they lost over the winter, but Tampa Bay has hung in there with speed, defense and pitching. That’s why their road record has been so impressive. This rotation of David Price, Wade Davis, James Shields and potential young ace Jeremy Hellickson is as good as any in the AL. Would you like to face that in October? If they can get there, that is.

 

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