Ohtani Time
It’s clear that Ohtani is the best player in baseball right now but he added another notch in that proverbial belt on Sunday as he was most of the offense for the Angels. A double, triple, and a three-run home run gave him a remarkable stat line on the day. He’s been arguably the best pitcher in the AL to this point of the year and he’s going hit-for-hit with Vlad Jr. as a DH as well and even without Mike Trout in the lineup, Ohtani has been able to keep the Angels near .500 and within sniffing distance of the AL Wild Card spot.
Vintage Kershaw
Was it Throwback Thursday (but on a Sunday), to take a segment from America’s Funniest Videos, in LA last night? Kershaw looked like his vintage self as he posted the best start he’s had in a while going eight innings and striking out 13 Cubs. The only run that crossed the plate was a Javier Baez solo homer to go with the four total hits he spread over eight frames. With all of the pitching woes the Dodgers have had this year, it’s a good sign for them to get a boost from their co-ace to go along with the best offense in the NL.
Cole The BP Pitcher
Alright so it’s hard to call him a true batting practice when he still has a 2.66 ERA even after allowing five earned on Sunday to Boston, however, it’s been rough the last several starts. In April, Cole had six starts posted eight or more Ks in each along with four double-digit outings compared to five starts in June with one being over eight Ks and each of the last three seeing him post six or fewer. He’s also given up five earned runs in three of his last eight starts with two of those coming in June. It’s clear that the sticky stuff crack down has hurt Cole but it’s also the lack of offense the Yankees are producing in general that’s giving him zero room for error.
Streakin’ In San Diego
The Padres finished off a 9-1 homestand with a rally on Sunday to beat the Diamondbacks. The problem though is that they’re still 4.5 games behind the Giants in the NL West and in third place. San Francisco has been hot at the same time going 8-2 in the last 10 for their part. Once again Fernando Tatis Jr. was the main part of the offense but he’ll need more help and more consistent pitching efforts in order for San Diego to make the march back up the standings to contend in the division like most thought they would prior to the season.
Perfect Debut
Max Kranick made his MLB debut on Sunday for the Pirates and the 26th-ranked Pirates’ prospect went five perfect innings against the Cardinals but even though he was at 50 pitches through those five spotless frames, his day ended due to an hour and four minute rain delay. The 23-year-old righty has been building up one level at a time in the Pittsburgh system and learning to pitch with his average to above-average stuff. It’s the time for the Pirates to see who can be helpful to them and so Kranick has a shot to stick in the rotation for a while but he’s also a pitcher who’s better in reality than fantasy as he just doesn’t miss enough bats to be all that valuable in a fantasy realm.
Today’s Slate
Monday is a busier day than usual for MLB with 11 games on the schedule and nine games on the main slate. Nearly half of the games on the slate are division rivalries with five of them. Five high-powered arms are on the bump as well with Bauer, Peralta, Giolito, Greinke, and Hendricks which could make for a tough day at the plate for those opposing offenses as well.
Betting Favorites
Milwaukee Brewers -155 - The Cubs are at Milwaukee and coming off a bad series against the Dodgers in LA without an off day and having played late on Sunday. Peralta has been fantastic this year and with the Cubs striking out quite a lot over the last two weeks, it sets up well for Peralta to have a good day and the Brewers to remain in first in the NL Central as they start a series against their rivals at home.
Colorado Rockies -118 - The Rockies are at home and facing a pitcher in Tyler Anderson that just hasn’t been good on the road and is a lefty. The Rockies have been very good against southpaws with a higher batting average, OBP, SLG, and OPS against them and half as many homers as versus righties, but in 2.5 times fewer at bats.