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CSNwashington.com
Record: 4-3
Runs per game: 4.1
Opponent runs per game: 3.1
Batting average: .272
Batting average against: .232
Team ERA: 3.08
HOT:
Stephen Strasburg, SP – 1-0/1.13 ERA/8 IP/5 H/9 SO
Hot/Not looks at performances over seven days, but sometimes it’s worth looking at things in the larger picture. After losing April 24 against the Cardinals, Stephen Strasburg was 1-4 with a 3.16 ERA. But with his dominant outing Sunday against the Phillies, Strasburg is now 3-5 with a 2.49 ERA and he’s given up just three runs in his last 28 innings.
Jordan Zimmermann, SP – 1-0/2.57 ERA/7 IP/6 H/1 SO
Zimmermann earned his eighth win of the year Friday against the Phillies, putting him atop the leaderboard with Arizona’s Patrick Corbin and Tampa Bay’s Matt Moore for the league lead in wins. Zimmermann has now thrown 26 2/3 innings without giving up a walk, and has six consecutive quality starts.
Adam LaRoche, 1B – 9-23/3 HR/7 RBI/.462 OBP/1.418 SLG
In May, Player A is putting up a .267/.360/.413 line with three home runs and nine RBI. Player B has put up a .341/.422/.648 slash with seven home runs and 19 RBI. Player A is Michael Morse, and Player B is Adam LaRoche. It’s just one month, but the second-guessing of the Nationals’ decision to keep LaRoche seems to have quieted down as Morse has cooled off some after his scorching start. With two more home runs last night, LaRoche continues to be a force at the plate while providing excellent defense at first base.
Tyler Clippard, RP – 1-0/0.00 ERA/4 IP/4 SO/0.50 WHIP
After a rough April in which he gave up five earned runs in 10 1/3 innings of work, Clippard has been brilliant in May. Over 10 2/3 innings, Clippard has struck out twelve and he’s yet to give up a run, lowering his ERA to 2.14 in the process. Through two months, Clippard has held opponents to a .130/.247/.188 slash line.
Steve Lombardozzi, IF – 6-20/2 2B/4 RBI/.400 SLG
Lombardozzi has played well in Danny Espinosa’s absence, and was an offensive force during the Nationals’ series against the Phillies, going 5-for-12 with two doubles and four RBI. On the year, Lombardozzi is hitting a solid .281 with runners in scoring position.
NOT:
Gio Gonzalez, SP – 0-1/6.35 ERA/5.2 IP/8 H/4 BB/2.12 WHIP
In his Memorial Day start against the Orioles, Gio was solid through the first three innings, giving up one hit and two walks but no runs. But the fourth inning proved to be troublesome, as he gave up four hits and three runs. The fourth inning continues to be a taxing time for the lefty, as he now sports an 8.18 ERA in that frame.
Ian Desmond, SS – 4-22/1 XBH/4 SO/.227 SLG
After putting up a .301/.318/.524 slash line in April, Desmond has cooled off considerably in May, as he’s hit .211/.263/.367 in 90 at-bats. Over his last 12 games, he’s just 6-for-43 with only two extra-base hits and 11 strikeouts.
Drew Storen, RP – 0-1/4.91 ERA/3.2 IP/5 H/4 SO
Storen took the loss in Saturday night’s affair against Philadelphia, when he came into a tie game and gave up two runs to give the Phillies a 5-3 lead. Though he’s pitched two consecutive scoreless innings against the Orioles, he’s given up a hit in both and his WHIP now stands at an unsightly 1.62 on the year.
52 comments:
on the Not Hot with Gio. I think if his curveball is working he will do well and if its not working it will be a long night with high pitch count and lots of walks. Kind of like what we saw in the playoffs.
FWIW, baseball-reference has Morse's WAR as -0.5; and a +0.7 for LaRoche.
I'm starting to worry about Gio. His K rate is down a full strikeout a game even though strikeouts league-wide are trending up. He's getting fewer ground balls, and his control issues have returned. His BABIP is .254, so he's actually been pretty lucky on balls in play. If the Nats have any chance of catching the Braves, they need him to pitch like 2012 Gio, not 2010 Gio.
bowdenball I was worried about Gio in the playoffs. Gio just isnt good in stressful situations.
Chris Young to the AAA disabled list.
In his first start this yr, Purke goes 4 innings on 62 pitches, allowing 7 hits on 2 runs (both runs in the 1st inning), striking out 6 for Hagerstown...
bowdenball,
I think we need to come out of these next 5 games no worse than 5.5 games out and It'l be a challenge. I would be pleasantly surprised if Toronto wins 1 of 2 in Atlanta and I would take 1 of 2 in Baltimore in a heart beat.
I don't feel that Atlanta is invincible; I don't love their rotation and I think we can take off a bit once we get our regulars back but we can't let them increase the spread too much.
CN,
Really good news to see Purke on the mound again and actually pitching effectively for the 1st time out.
The encouraging part of Purke's start was after getting roughed up in the first inning, where he allowed a few hard hit balls, including a HR blast, he struck out the side in the second. He was able to scatter hits allowed in the 3rd & 4th innings to come out unscathed. At that point, it was the Suns were up 8-2.
I listened to the game via the Asheville Tourists audio. They apparently have a hitter's park, so there is another plus about Purke's start.
JD, I would take 1 of 2 from Baltimore and 1 of 3 in Atlanta. That would leave us no worse than 6.5 out, hopefully 5.5 or better. of the ten playoff teams last year, Atlanta, Detroit, Oakland, St. Louis and San Francisco were all 3 games over .500 or worse on June 2. I think with our schedule over the last half of the season we could be in that group in 2013. I don't know about the division, but I did notice that Atlanta has only been a .500 team since April 16.
CN,
At the end of the day this level is too low for Purke and he should move up quickly if he's healthy. I expect both him and Sammy Solis to end the year at Harriburg.
JD, agreed that Purke is the elder statesman in low-A. However, this is only his 4th professional game, so it's not as if he's developing slowly, just had that pesky shoulder injury.
I don't know if Purke can elevate to Harrisburg by season's end, but it would be great if he was.
bowdenball, I agree 100% about sitting just above .500 and 5.5 - 6.5 back being a reasonable position. Someone -- I think Boz -- recently said that the 105 games after our series in Atlanta is far easier than everything up through that series.
If that's true, than a few games above .500 actually isn't too bad. Especially since we've been playing hobbled almost since day 1.
Indeed, it was Boswell.
Washington Nationals’ schedule is getting easier, giving reason for hope
Nice thanks...I actually missed that article...I think I just saw some comment he made in his recent chat.
I don't agree with the Gio in the Not-Hot, at least if you are talking about May. Gio's been "average" on the rotation.
Here is our rotation in May. 1 JZ, 2 SS, 3 GG, 4 DH 5 RD
Nats Rotation in May
http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=pit&lg=all&qual=0&type=8&season=2013&month=5&season1=2013&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=10131,7448,4505,1757,2859
I believe Hot/Not-Hot covers only the last week (with Stras being the acknowledged exception this week).
Morse day-to-day with a strained quad.
Morse suffered the injury while rounding third base during the fourth inning. He was thrown out at the plate and was clearly grimacing as he finished his unsuccessful journey home.
Morse is day-to-day, and is unlikely to join the Mariners in San Diego,
Morse
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/05/29/michael-morse-strained-his-quad/
NatsLady,
I think it's a weekly analysis but all in all I have to agree with Bowdenball that Gio is worrisome.Specifically because the K's are down the HR's are up and the control is really spotty.
Gio has pitched some really nice games and he does have some bulldog in him where he refuses to melt down when things are tough such as the nice recovery in Pittsburgh but he's not pitching consistently as well as he did last year.
Eric, OK. so he had one very good start (SFG) and one below average start in the last 7 days, and that's enough for him to be NOT-HOT? I need some criteria here. That's some harsh grading.
NatsLady said...
"I don't agree with the Gio in the Not-Hot, at least if you are talking about May. Gio's been "average" on the rotation.
Here is our rotation in May. 1 JZ, 2 SS, 3 GG, 4 DH 5 RD"
I doubt he defines these by month since a new one is posted every week. But even so, Gio doesn't look very good over the month. His xFIP is fourth among starters, and his K/BB ratio is a hair under 2.0. That definitely qualifies as "not hot" for any #2 starter, let alone a guy who finished third in the Cy Young race last season.
Pittsburgh is one reason why I'm not overly worried...I think he'll get there.
Gio was amazingly consistent last year, with only three below average games (if you use game-score). It would be great if he could do that again, agree. He's had four below average games this spring. I think that with the warm weather he will get in his groove. (BTW, is he in the clear, do you think, on the Biogenesis thing? Haven't heard many rumblings recently after all that noise in Spring Training).
NatsLady, it looks like the Giant's start isn't included?
"Gio Gonzalez, SP – 0-1/6.35 ERA/5.2 IP"
Kind of odd since you'd have to count today to exclude that start...so, I'm with ya ;).
Eric--sorry, I missed something. Pittsburgh?
The Biogenesis thing does nag at me given his rocky start...and the inconsistencies between his statements and the evidence.
Not sure about the status of the inquiry...
Eric, I just use Fangraphs, which has a "last 7 days" feature, along with a "last 14 days" "last 30 days" and month by month, etc. Last 7 days is not the best because some starters have 2 games and some only 1.
>Eric--sorry, I missed something. Pittsburgh?
JD referenced his recovery in the first inning in Pittsburgh. That recovery is a big part of why I think he'll be OK overall this season.
He wasn't even that good in San Francisco. The result was good, but he got very lucky on balls in play and with his strand rate. He only had five strikeouts, and two of them were the opposing pitcher.
BTW, I went back and looked at the best deburs. Juan Marichal had the best debut since 1916. Those guys pitched 300 innings some years. Marichal had a sixteen year career (though tailed off at the end). Really different philosophy nowadays.
Sorry, debut.. On fangraphs you can do that. Interesting to see who had a great debut and then was never heard of again. Strasburg's is like No. 5 overall (depending on the criteria you select). It was pretty good.
When he starts putting baserunners on, Gio's head spins like Chuckie's. I think the "pink cream" was probably adderall in a gel.
"I think the "pink cream" was probably adderall in a gel."
If a) he was involved in something shady and b) it involves some form of speed and nothing else, that might explain why this hasn't utterly blown up in his face.
Bottom line is, I think one week is too small a sample size for the starters--even though I do it myself every week ;). It's probably ok for the hitters and relievers, especially the regulars, because even a week-long slump has impact on the team.
I agree that a week isn't really a fair measure of a starter. I think it's safe to say, though, that Gio has not been hot compared with what we know he can do...whether he should be on a "not-hot" list, though, is definitely debatable.
If nothing else, it gives us a chance to talk more baseball. Can't argue with that. Lineups should be coming up soon!!
Go Nats!
Theophilus T. S. said...
"When he starts putting baserunners on, Gio's head spins like Chuckie's. I think the "pink cream" was probably adderall in a gel."
Gio' strand rate is within 2% of what it was last year- for all intents and purposes it's the same. His current 72% better than Strasburg's and Haren's this season, and is acceptable for a major league starter. He does give up more walks, but also gives up fewer extra base hits, which is exactly what you'd expect a pitcher to do when they're being extra-careful with men on base. Basically there is NO indication that he struggles with men on base either this season or generally.
Is it really that hard to take 30 seconds to look up statistics to see if they back your claim?
I think the league has adjusted to Gio and Det as you saw in the Atlanta series and sat on their fastballs. Both pitchers have to adjust back with more off-speed. This game is about executing and making adjustments.
How come "the league" adjusts to our pitchers, but our hitters can't seem to adjust to the league's pitchers? Last night excepted, of course.
Ghost, good point on the league adjustments.
Bowdenball,
'Is it really that hard to take 30 seconds to look up statistics to see if they back your claim?'
Well the danger in that is that the numbers will refute your claim. No fun in that; right?
Ghost,
Gio was not a rookie last year and he doesn't really have any trick pitches. Of course there are always adjustments and readjustments but I don't think that this is Gio's story this year. I think he's just not pitching as well. I don't know if it has anything to do with the Bio-genesis stuff or the WBC or whatever I just see that the results aren't as good.
I took the Gio adjustments point to refer to his switching from AL to NL, but maybe I missed something.
I can't believe we're rehashing the biogenesis thing with Gio. His selection for the Baseball Classic completely put that to rest. He has been cleared and it's over.
So what's the problem with his pitching this year. Remember, it started in the playoffs last year. I attributed that to cold weather. I simply think the Miami boy doesn't pitch as well when the mercury drops -- and this year has been the coldest spring in recent memory. My prediction. He'll get better by mid-June, do well for the rest of the reg season. But if we make the playoffs, watch out.
Sonny, thanks! I agree with NCNatsie on the Biogenesis rehash. Turn that page people.
The BioGenesis investigation is not over, NCNatsie.
"The lawsuit also seeks documents that MLB thinks can help it build cases against players who may have been supplied performance-enhancing drugs by the clinic."
It's not being rehashed, the first round is still playing out. Gio passed a drug test, which is probably why he was invited to the WBC.
PS - that story is from last week. If MLB gets those documents Gio very well may have to deal with this all over again...unless all references to Gio and/or "his dad" have already surfaced.
I tend to wonder if Gio's has some slight nagging injury that's not bad enough for the DL (especially given our other starter options) but that's throwing him off. He's not been bad in May (his ERA before the last start against Baltimore was under 2 for May and is still only 2.48 for the month), he's just been inconsistent and occasionally loses control. It's possible that's physical.
(I tend to think the same with Haren - his back does not seem right, from watching him try to field, and that's probably leading to inconsistency. And Detwiler - who, we now know, was dealing with back tightness as well. But I suspect they're DLing Det rather than Haren because they have one for several more years and want to protect their resource and really only have to consider the short-term for the other.)
It's also possible that's Gio's just regressed a bit this year, but will still be a very good pitcher. Just not quite finalist-for-a-Cy-Young good. It's the rare pitcher that can do that consistently every year; not everyone can be Kershaw.
Bowden, et al --
I made no claim about statistics. I made a statement about his body language. If your statistics were worth a damn he wouldn't be 3-3 with a near-4 ERA. Something is pushing those runs across the plate and it ain't no XLS file.
"I tend to think the same with Haren - his back does not seem right, from watching him try to field"
Not to mention run! ;)
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