There aren’t any real compelling story lines in the American League on Tuesday. I guess you could watch the Angels beat up on Baltimore, or hope for a good outing from Philip Hughes against the Blue Jays. Maybe Alex Rodriguez will hit another homer or three.
Moving to the league that isn’t afraid to let its pitchers hit…
National League

Rockies at Phillies, 4:05 p.m. PT — Both teams are fighting for a wild card berth, although Colorado remains a long shot. Franklin Morales and his 6.23 ERA go up against Adam Eaton, MLB’s worst pitcher this year, so if too many runs …read more

I made that last one up. There are no big leaguers I’m aware of named Gesundheit. But I could be wrong…
American League

Mariners at Yankees, 4:05 p.m. PT — I’m contractually obligated to pimp the Yankees game, because no-one else will. Philip Hughes gets the start for New York. He’s coughed up five runs in each of his past three starts, but whatever. Outfielder Wladimir Balentien is up for Seattle. In addition to the great name, Balentien has some of the sickest power I’ve seen in the minors. Dude hit some serious shots when he was in the California League. Big …read more

I hope y’all had a good weekend. Mine would have been better if the Padres hadn’t been so busy losing a series at home to Houston, but oh well. Here are your games for Monday…
American League

Mariners at Twins, 5:10 p.m. PT — How in the world can Horacio Ramirez have a 7-4 record despite a 7.38 ERA? If his performance doesn’t convince you that won-loss record is a terrible way to evaluate starting pitchers, then nothing will. Opponents are batting .341/.407/.518 against the southpaw; that’s roughly what Joe Mauer did last year. Right-hander Matt Garza (2-3, 2.05 ERA) starts for …read more

You are wondering which games to watch on Wednesday. Not a problem, I’ve got your back:
American League

Orioles at Yankees, 10:05 a.m. PT — Intriguing pitching matchup here between Erik Bedard and Philip Hughes. Over at Mr. Irrelevant, Jamie Mottram ponders Bedard’s chances of reaching 300 strikeouts this season. Meanwhile, Carlos Gomez at Hardball Times (full disclosure: I am a contributor to THT) analyzes Hughes’ delivery and compares it to that of fellow pinstripe prospect Joba Chamberlain.
Tigers at Indians, 4:05 p.m. PT — The Tigers prevailed in round one of the AL Central showdown. Wednesday sees Fausto Carmona and his improving …read more

So many games to choose from on a Friday. What to do…
American League

Red Sox at Orioles, 4:05 p.m. PT — Not that the Red Sox need my help in the hype department, but a battle between Daisuke Matsuzaka and Erik Bedard could be a lot of fun to watch. Bedard has emerged in a big way this season. He’s fourth in the American League in ERA, first in H/9, first in K/9 (11.20!), and first in strikeouts. With all due respect to perennial favorite Johan Santana, Bedard and Oakland’s Dan Haren have to be the front-runners for this year’s Cy …read more

So the other day we’re talking about Philip Hughes’ delivery. Then Hughes is on his way to tossing a no-no for the Yankees but is forced from the game due to injury. Then he’s out 4-6 weeks due to a strained left hamstring. Now strength coach Marty Miller has been fired.
You with me? Good.

New York Yankees uberprospect Philip Hughes made his big-league debut last week. It didn’t go so well, but that happens. What’s fascinating is this breakdown of Hughes’ delivery by Carlos Gomez at The Hardball Times (full disclosure: I contribute to THT).
In a nutshell, Carlos looks at video of Hughes as a minor leaguer last year and compares it side-by-side with video from his Yankees debut. Carlos mixes in some still shots so we can see where Hughes is during various points of his windup.
Among many other things, Carlos has determined that Hughes’ arm slot is a little higher this season …read more

At the risk of straining something while patting myself on the back, I called Wednesday’s Jake Peavy/Brandon Webb matchup the one to watch. Although the outcome wasn’t quite what I’d hoped for, the game was tremendous. Peavy fanned 16 batters and nearly tied Tom Seaver’s record of 10 straight strikeouts. Only a questionable call on a check swing to start the fourth fifth inning kept that from happening. Still, it was fun to watch, and Webb pitched a fine game himself.
But that’s in the past now. What do we have going on today? If you’re a fan of offense, I’ve …read more