.As we all know by now, Felix Hernandez threw a perfect game against the Rays yesterday. Some interesting factoids about the game…
-Hernandez got 26 swinging strikes on 113 pitches, good for 23%. Aroldis Chapman, the most dominant reliever in baseball, is getting whiffs on just 19.3% of his pitches. Also, that 23% more than doubled Hernandez's whiff rate of 10.4%
-This is the third no-hitter at Safeco Field this year, and the second thrown by a Mariners pitcher
-This is the second perfect game this season involving the Mariners, after Phil Humber threw a perfecto against them in April
-Hernandez is actually having the best year of his career thusfar, with career best strikeout, walk, and homer rates, along with a career-best FIP and ERA and xFIP numbers that are lower than his career norm
-The Rays have now been on the losing end of three of the last six perfect games, and have been no hit four times in the last four seasons
So kudos to the King, one of the best pitchers of his era, finally getting some mainstream recognition as a world-class ace.
Game of the Day: Rockies 7, Brewers 6. The season has gone south quickly for the Brewers, and it ended with a bullpen problem…again. After a Nyjer Morgan single gave Milwaukee a 6-5 lead in the seventh, the Brewers went to finish the game off in the ninth with new closer Jim Henderson on the mound. He struck out Jonathan Herrera to start the inning, and then it all unraveled. Wilin Rosario singled, and that was followed up with a single by Eric Young Jr to bring up Tyler Colvin. Colvin hit a bleeder of a double to right and both Rosario and Young scored to end the game and give the Rockies a huge win.
Pitching Lines of the Day, non-perfect game edition: Mike Leake threw a complete game in the Reds' 6-1 win over the Mets, allowing one run on four hits, walking none while striking out four. Max Scherzer threw seven shutout innings as Detroit beat Minnesota 6-1, giving up four hits and striking out ten, walking just two.
Hitting Lines of the Day: The Cubs beat the Astros 7-2, and David DeJesus went 4/4 with three RBI, a walk, and a pair of homers. His teammate Starlin Castro went 3/4 with two runs, two RBI, a double, and a homer. The Yankees beat the Rangers 3-2, but Josh Hamilton went 2/4 with a pair of solo homers. Todd Frazier paced the Reds offense in that win over the Mets, going 3/4 with two runs, a double, and a homer. The Marlins crushed the Phillies 9-2, and former Phillie Greg Dobbs went 3/4 with two RBI and his fourth homer of the year.
Other Games: Aaron Cook no-hit the Orioles through five, but lost his gem (and the game) in the sixth, with Boston losing 5-3 in Baltimore. Stephen Strasburg outdueled Tim Lincecum in a 6-4 Nationals win. The White Sox offense went ham on the Blue Jays, winning 9-5. Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers diced up the Pirates 9-3. The Royals edged the A's 3-2. Dan Uggla continued to heat up in a 6-1 Braves win over the Padres. Roberto Hernandez's return to the majors was a disaster, as his Indians were pounded by the Angels 8-4. The Cardinals beat the Diamondbacks 5-2.
Today's Games: Joe Blanton and AJ Burnett duel in Pittsburgh. Clay Buchholz starts for the Red Sox in Baltimore against Chris Tillman. Matt Harvey and Homer Bailey will duel in Cincinnati. Francisco Liriano starts for the White Sox in Toronto. Kris Medlen starts for the Braves against former Braves prospect Jason Marquis, now of the Padres. Dan Straily continues looking for his first major league win, and will aim to get it against Luke Hochevar and the Royals. David Price takes on Dan Haren in Anaheim. Cliff Lee starts for the Phillies in Milwaukee. Trevor Cahill will take on Kyle Lohse in St Louis.
Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.
