Thursday, June 4, 2015

Thursday Morning Hot Links

With the win last night, coupled with losses by the Mariners, Angels, and Rangers, FanGraphs gives the Astros a 48.1% chance of winning the AL West and a 70.9% chance of making the post-season. Both are season highs, and taking these three games against the Orioles have increased the division odds by 10.6% and the postseason odds by 9.3%.

*The Masked Marvel has the recap of last night's game.

*Lance McCullers joins Kerry Wood (1998), Dwight Gooden (1986), and Ismael Valdez (1995) as the only pitchers to throw a complete game with 10K+ and 0BB at Age 21 or younger. You might remember that Kerry Wood game.

*Hinch, on McCullers:
He sees opportunity and wants to grab it. Every time he's gone out, there's an approach that is impressive for a brand-new guy at this level and a 21-year old that looks like he's in total control of the game.

Hinch talked about leaving McCullers in to face Chris Davis in the 9th:
I went out wanting to leave him in and asked him how much he had left in his tank, and he said he had plenty. I told him 'Good,' because this was his hitter to get, this was his game to get. He had earned it. It was going to be a good step for him, because I wanted him to shake hands after that at-bat. He looked me dead in the eye and said, 'I'm good to go.'

*Chris Carter is over the Mendoza Line and is hitting .389 in his 11-game hitting streak. Carter has 11 multi-homer games, 5th-most in Astros history.

*Dwight Howard: The best.

*Pat Neshek has the 2nd-longest stretch (20.2IP) in MLB history to open a season without allowing a walk. And he has a stress fracture in his foot.

*ESPN asks if Sonny Gray is a better pitcher than Chris Archer and Dallas Keuchel.

*Carlos Correa reached for a chopper with his bare hand, but decided to let it go:
I do have to think about those things. I'm down here to play hard, but I also have to play smart.

*2013 3rd Round pick Kent Emanuel had Tommy John surgery:
*2013 8th Round pick Jason Martin, on adjusting to professional baseball.

*FanGraphs unveiled a sortable 2015 draft board.

*Jordan Lyles underwent season-ending surgery to fix a ligament in his big toe.

*The Mariners panicked and made a trade for Mark Trumbo.