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Time to see how the best and worst of the NL stack up against the Amercan League's performances we've looked at.
The Cardinals received some bad news coming into the 2011 season. They lost Cy Young candidate Adam Wainwright during spring training and also began the year without slugger Matt Holliday. The Cards began the year losing 5 of their first 7, scoring a measly 2.6 runs a game. While they are going to be without Wainwright for the year, they were able to get Holliday back in the lineup. Holliday plays second fiddle to all-world performer Albert Pujols, but since Holliday has returned to the lineup the Cardinals have gone 8-3 and scored 7.5 runs a game. Holiday is this week's NL offensive stud, hitting for a .524 batting average and a 1.439 OPS. Holliday has managed to make it on base at a rate of .630 due not only to his hitting but also his ability to draw 6 walks this week. The Cards hope that Holliday and the offense can keep up this current level of production.
With the return of Holliday the Cards lineup has gone from stagnant to stupendous
My NL offensive dud of the week was having a great start to the 2011 season, coming into the week hitting .391. As the week progressed, Marlon Byrd saw his average fall rapidly; from .353 to .297. At the end of the week, Marlon Byrd’s average is down to .267. That's what a 2 for 24 week will do to you. Byrd struck out 5 times and was unable to draw a walk or collect a hit for extra bases this past week, leaving is OPS at a confounding .167. The Cubs hope Byrd can get back on track and quickly forget about this past week.
Byrd hopes this past week is the exception and not the rule
Be sure to check back later today for the National League's best pitchers from last week.
There was a little reshuffling in my top 5 this week, with one team dropping off the list. The 4 that remain from last week change slots, and the World Series champs make the cut for this week's top 5. It's still very early and there are some other teams with solid records, but it's hard to compare wins and losses when teams are still rounding into regular season form. With that I felt like I had a little explaining to do with my choices.
The Cleveland Indians share the best record in baseball with the Colorado Rockies, but the Indians did not make the cut. They only have played in one full series against a team playing at least .500 baseball and they lost that series to the Angels. Their pitching has been lights out but it's still too early for me to tell if this streak is due to scheduling or a legitimate turnaround. Two other teams that I seriously looked at for spots on the list were the LA Angels and Cincinnati Reds; maybe next week guys.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phils look forward to Utley's return
The top team was not as clear this week as last, but I have to choose one and I'm going with the one that has four aces. The Phillies finished up their NL East tour with the Marlins this weekend, splitting a rain shortened set against Florida. They took the tough loss Monday in extras against Milwaukee; the Brewers taking advantage of the Phillies starting someone not named Cliff, Roy or Cole. There have been positive Chase Utley sightings and people are getting more optimistic about his return. The big question mark going forward for the Phillies will be their bullpen.
Colorado Rockies
The Rockies are currently sharing the best record in baseball with the Cleveland Indians. They are 8-2 over their last 10 games and had a great week last week. They went into New York and swept the Mets and then took 2 of three from the Cubs. Monday night they ran into the wall that is Tim Lincecum. The Rockies have been lead by their bats, but their pitching looks to get a boost Tuesday night with the return of Ubaldo Jimenez. Colorado will look to get back on the winning track against San Fran before heading to Florida and Chicago next week for three game sets against the Marlins and Cubbies.
Texas Rangers
The Rangers have been reeling since Hamilton's injury
The Rangers were my number 1 team last week after a 9-1 start. Last Tuesday Texas was faced with the unfortunate news that MVP Josh Hamilton would be missing considerable time due to a broken arm. The Rangers have been on a slide since that game Hamilton went down, going 2-4 over their last 6. They ended up losing series to the Tigers and Yankees last week. CJ Wilson was able to right the ship for a night against the Ranger's AL West foes the Angels. Hamilton is not someone that is replaced, but I think the Rangers have the depth to work around his injury for the time being. They play their best ball at home (7-0) and welcome the Angels, Royals and Blue Jays in over the next week.
New York Yankees
The Yankees just made my list last week and were able to move up a spot after a 2 game sweep of the Orioles and series win versus the Rangers. New York found out that it is losing Phil Hughes for some time, but that may be more of a blessing with Hughes' 13.94 ERA. Nonetheless, he was slotting in as their 3rd starter, so the questions marks are still following this Yankee rotation. The hitting has been there, but if this team looks to improve they are going to need more consistency from their starters.
San Francisco Giants
Cain and Lincecum lead the Giants
The Champs are here. San Francisco comes in at number 5 for me this week. They had a solid past week, taking series from the Dodgers and Diamondbacks. They started off this week on a good note, with their ace almost no-hitting the leaders of their division. Cain and Lincecum have started the year pitching lights out and Jonathan Sanchez has had a good early showing. While their pitching has been the story, the bats are also carrying their weight. The Giants have a bit of a tough stretch coming up as they finish their series against the Rockies and then head home and welcome in the Atlanta Braves. With Lincecum and Cain sitting at the top of the rotation, the Giants should hang around the top all season.
Monday brought its share of dominant pitching performances. Yesterday alone, seven pitchers went at least 7 innings and gave up no more than 1 earned run. This stat isn't even including the Pirate's Kevin Correia who threw a complete game against the Reds, only surrendering 2 earned runs.
Red Sox find hope in Monday's outing
The Red Sox Daisuke Matsuzaka started off the day holding the Blue Jays to only one hit over seven innings. Matsuzaka only needed 89 pitches to get through his 7 innings of work, in which he struck out 3 and walked 1.
As the day turned into night, MLB's evening schedule began, and the strong pitching continued. David Price shut out the offensive force of the White Sox over 8 innings, giving up only 4 hits while striking out 9.
Price helps Rays continue hot streak
C.J. Wilson of the Rangers faced off against the team's AL West rival Angels. While his counterpart Ervin Santana did not add to the list of performances, Wilson had a good night. He was able to scatter 9 hits and limit the damage, only allowing 1 earned run and striking out 9.
In a West vs. East battle, Ted Lilly led the Dodgers to a victory over Tim Hudson and the Braves. The Dodgers gave Lilly an early 3 run lead and that's all that he needed, going 7 scoreless innings. Lilly allowed only 4 hits and punched out 6 Braves.
While most games offered one strong pitching performance, there was one match up where both pitchers wanted to get in on the action. The Cubs faced off against the Padres and both sides pitched so well that extra innings was needed to decide the outcome. Both starters were very solid, Tim Stauffer of the Padres going 7 scoreless, allowing only 4 hits. However, Stauffer was bested by Cub’s enigma Carlos Zambrano, who struck out 10 over 8 scoreless innings.
Lincecum has been dominant
While these were certainly some great match ups and performances, Monday saved its best show for last. The Freak Tim Lincecum faced off against the red hot Colorado Rockies. The Rockies and Coors Field were no match for the former Cy Young winner as Lincecum held the Rockies hitless over 6 innings. Colorado was able to get to Timmy in the 7th but they only managed one run. Lincecum finished the night going 7.2 innings; he allowed a single run and struck out 10.
On Monday, pitching was king. We will see what Tuesday brings, if the pitching continues or if the offense controls the night.
Raymond Mencke Jr's Blogs
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