Troy Tulowitzki is a freak right now. After a 3/5 night against the Rangers on Tuesday, he’s hitting an otherworldly .421/.522/.794 this season. His 242 wRC+ is nearly 50 points ahead of his closest competitor, Jose Bautista of the Blue Jays, and is better than the marks that Barry Bonds put together in three of his four unreal seasons from 2001-2004. His .549 wOBA is 90 points better than Bautista, and smashes everything that Bonds did during that four-year stretch. Tulowitzki has also amassed 3.3 fWAR in just 32 games – only Mike Trout is within one win of that mark, and only Trout, Giancarlo Stanton, Brian Dozier, Andrew McCutchen, and teammate Charlie Blackmon are within 1.5 wins. Not bad, Tulo…not bad. Just stay healthy.
Game of the Night: Yankees 4, Angels 3. Oh, the poor Angels bullpen…Mike Scioscia tried to wring every last drop of effectiveness out of C.J. Wilson on this Tuesday night, and he did, as Wilson three runs on seven hits in eight innings, capped off by allowing the go-ahead Yankees run in the eighth after hitting a batter, allowing a single, a fielder’s choice, and another single. Luckily for the Angels, Joe Girardi was trying to do the same thing with Hiroki Kuroda, who exited after allowing a triple to Mike Trout in the bottom of the inning. Shawn Kelley gave up an RBI single to Albert Pujols to tie the game at three, but the Anaheim bullpen reared its ugly head once again – after retiring the first two hitters in the ninth, Ernesto Frieri gave up a solo homer to Brian Roberts to once again put New York in front. David Robertson pitched a perfect bottom of the inning, and the Angels fell once again because of their shoddy bullpen.
Pitching Lines of the Night: In Miami’s 3-0 win over the Mets, Henderson Alvarez threw a six hit shutout, striking out seven without a walk. Charlie Morton allowed one unearned run on three hits in eight innings in Pittsburgh’s 2-1 win over the Giants, walking two and striking out three, but the big story in Pittsburgh was the Pirates’ walk off challenge win. Tim Hudson pitched very well in the loss for the Giants, allowing two runs (one earned) on five hits in 8 2/3 innings, striking out five and walking one. Jeremy Guthrie pitched well for the Royals in their 3-1 win in San Diego, allowing one run on four hits in eight innings, walking one and striking out two. Edwin Jackson turned in a nice performance for the Cubs in their 5-1 loss to the White Sox, giving up one run on six hits in seven innings, punching out nine without a walk. Hiroki Kuroda turned in a gem for the Yankees in their win over the Angels, allowing three runs (one earned) on five hits in 7 2/3 innings Clayton Kershaw’s first start stateside was excellent in the Dodgers’ 8-3 win in Washington, allowing nine hits over seven scoreless frames, striking out nine and walking none.
Hitting Lines of the Night: The Tigers pounded the Astros 11-4, and Miguel Cabrera looked like the two-time MVP he is, going 4/5 with a double, a homer, two runs, and four RBI. In Philadelphia’s 5-4, ten inning loss to Toronto, Cody Asche went 4/4 with a double and a grand slam. Colorado thrashed Texas 12-1, thanks in large part to Carlos Gonzalez going 5/5 with a double, two runs, and three RBI. Drew Stubbs also chipped in by going 3/5 with a double, a homer, three runs, and a stolen base. Paul Goldschmidt helped the Diamondbacks beat the Brewers 7-5, going 3/5 with a double, a homers, two runs, and two RBI.
Other Games: The Indians topped the Twins 4-2 thanks to a solid start from Josh Tomlin, his first of 2014. Gavin Floyd also made his first start of 2014, and he helped lead the Braves to a 2-1 win over the Cardinals. The Orioles beat the Rays 5-3. The Red Sox earned a 4-3, 12 inning win over the Reds. The Mariners beat up the A’s 8-3.
What You Missed: The most exciting walk offs of the week. David Price got drenched at the MLB Fan Cave. The Yankees have more issues than Derek Jeter.
Today’s Games: Tim Linecum and Gerrit Cole will face off in Pittsburgh. Zack Wheeler starts for the Mets in Miami. Dan Haren and Stephen Strasburg will duel in Washington. Wily Peralta and the Brewers host the Diamondbacks. Felix Hernandez starts for the Mariners in game one of a doubleheader with the Athletics. James Shields and the Royals will take on Andrew Cashner and the Padres in San Diego. Adam Wainwright starts for the Cardinals in Atlanta against Mike Minor and the Braves. Cliff Lee and Mark Buehrle will battle in Toronto. Rick Porcello and the Tigers host the Astros. Mike Leake and Jake Peavy face off at Fenway. Travis Wood starts for the Cubs against the White Sox.
National TV: Dodgers-Nationals (1 PM, MLB Network), Diamondbacks-Brewers (1 PM, MLB Network), Cubs-White Sox (8 PM, ESPN)
MLB.tv Free Game: Orioles vs Rays (7 PM)
Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.
