Another full card on Wednesday will usher in eight games where left-handed pitchers take the mound. Putting this situation in perspective, the eight southpaws who will see action at mid-week have a combined 11-18 record, while a makeshift 5.79 ERA has been far from impressive.
Is there any value in these contests? How does the opposition perform against these lefties and is there anything else that stands in between making away with profits? Let’s attempt to unmask these selected matchups.
Boston (J. Lester) at Baltimore (D. Cabrera) – 3:05 p.m. EDT
The Red Sox slid through a four-game series with the Twins, dropping three of four. Can lefty Jon Lester (2-2, 4.06) get his Boston club back on track? Lester is coming off a no-decision contest against Minnesota (5.1 innings, eight hits and five runs given up). The 24-year-old slinger is giving up almost one run per game this season to right-handed hitters and has held this side of the plate to a .263 BAA. However, out of all the starting slingers in the Red Sox rotation, Lester is receiving the least amount of run support (currently standing at 4.1 runs per game).
The Orioles are at the bottom of the barrel with 27 runs scored off lefties. A .261 BA with a .330 on base percentage hasn’t been all that bad (ranked in the middle of the pack), but without a consistent supply of runs, these numbers are just fluff. Baltimore is just 2-4 at home (2-2 at home during the evening) versus southpaw slingers. The O’s can just hope that Ramon Hernandez and Adam Jones continue there success, as a combined .335 BA and a .805 OPS against left-handers can be considered a success run.
Atlanta (T. Glavine) at Philadelphia (B. Myers) – 7:05 p.m. EDT on ESPN
It was in August of last year that Atlanta’s starter Tom Glavine (0-1, 4.03 ERA) worked for his 300th career win, becoming the 23rd player to do so in Major League history. But in his 21st year in the big leagues, Glavine has been snubbed in some tight games this season (every loss has come from three runs or less). While right-handed batters are hitting .272 with five RBIs in 81 at bats versus Glavine, fellow southpaw sluggers are swinging for a .360 BA with six RBIs and two long balls. Atlanta must be concerned that Philadelphia will be ready to field lefties such as Ryan Howard (19 RBIs, 7 HRs), Chase Utley (.327 BA, 28 RBIs) and Jimmy Rollins (.283, 9 RBIs). All three of these Phillies have combined for 22 RBIs against southpaw hurlers (although Howard continues to struggle for contact with a .171 BA).
And while the Braves’ Glavine has received 5.8 runs of support per game, this number can become twisted with two games packing scores of 25 runs combined. Glavine’s last three starts have seen an average of six hits, 3.3 earned runs and a total of 10 base on balls sacrificed. In the last three years of pitching versus Philadelphia, the Atlanta veteran has crafted a 4-3 record with a 3.88 ERA in 11 total starts.
The Phillies are 8-6 versus lefty pitchers, going 5-3 at home and 3-1 at home during the evening.
Oakland (J. Blanton) at Cleveland (C.C. Sabathia) – 7:05 p.m. EDT
It might be a rebuilding year for the A’s but how’s about a 3.29 ERA, tops in both leagues? Oakland is up +871 units on the money line and a 5-2 record in the last seven has helped the club retain first place positioning in the AL West for the time being.
The Indians’ ace C.C. Sabathia (2-5, 6.55) has been attacked this year by both left and right-handed hitters (.353 BAA against righties and .286 against lefties). Since throwing a gem in Kansas City (six innings, giving up four hits and zero runs), Sabathia has gone 2-2, while lowering his high ERA from a high 13.50 to a current 6.55. Cleveland has improved its offense in the last five wins, crossing the plate for 5.8 runs per game.
The A’s are 7-7 versus southpaw hurlers this season, going 2-4 on the road and 2-2 at night (at home).
San Diego (J. Peavy) at Chicago Cubs (T. Lilly) – 8:05 p.m. EDT
Chicago’s Ted Lilly (3-4, 5.24) might not own the most impressive record this year, but a .231 BAA with a .682 OPS versus right-handed batters has given his team plenty of opportunity to wrangle up some much needed ‘Ws’. And Lily has been effective in his last four starts, tossing a total of 26 innings and giving up a skimp 1.8 runs per game. The Cubs are 19-7 in their last 26 home games but squaring off against San Diego’s Jake Peavy (4-2, 2.47) should provide enough challenge in itself.
Peavy has been stellar by allowing just 1.9 runs per game in eight starts this season. But not all is well on the Bay with the Padres sitting in last place in the NL West. The team is scoring just 3.3 runs per game in the last 10 (averaging a league worst 3.4 runs per game on the season) and having the bats in the lineup swinging through pitches for a dreaded .233 BA has been counterproductive. The Padres are 2-9 versus lefty pitchers this season and are 2-5 on the road.
San Diego is 13-7 in its last 20 versus the Cubs and is 6-3 in the last nine played in Chicago. The Padres are 3-8 in 11 played in Game 3’s this season.
Houston (B. Moehler) at San Francisco (P. Misch) – 10:15 p.m. EDT
When the Giants send lefty starter Patrick Misch (0-0, 5.63) to the mound on Wednesday, their hoping that a fired up Astros club hitting .301 with 44 RBIs can be contained over the course of nine-plus innings. Houston has been smoking hot in May with a 9-1 record. Not only has Houston raked in a fifth best 61 runs in May, but a 3.43 ERA with a .239 BAA has only highlighted a balance of chemistry.
Since becoming a major leaguer in 2006, San Francisco’s Misch has been hammered for a .325 BA with 24 RBIs and an .855 OPS in a total of 120 at bats. While only starting in four of his last 10 appearances, the Giants have an incredible 8-1-1 record on the ‘over’ when Misch does log time on the hill (eight of the ‘over’ platys have all come in consecutive order when Misch has been penned into the game).
Joshua Jacobs can be reached at jacobs@vegasinsider.com.
