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Baseballs start flying early Thursday with nine of 10 games going in the afternoon or early evening. Monkey Knife Fight has contests for all of them to give you more chances to win.
There are some premier pitching matchups on the docket.
- The Houston Astros send Lance McCullers to the mound against Gerrit Cole and the New York Yankees.
- The Milwaukee Brewers have Brandon Woodruff on the bump against Zack Wheeler and the Philadelphia Phillies.
- Also notable: Hyun Jin Ryu is pitching for the Blue Jays in Oakland after leaving his last start with a strained glute.
Here are some more angles to consider when playing Thursday’s MLB Star Shootout action on Monkey Knife Fight.
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HOUSTON-N.Y. YANKEES
MORE OR LESS
Gerrit Cole MORE THAN 8.5 STRIKEOUTS
Cole has hit double digit strikeouts in four of his six starts this season, averaging 10.3 per game overall. The question is whether his former Houston Astros teammates can make contact against him since the Astros have one of the lowest road strikeout rates (20.7%) in all of baseball.
Michael Brantley LESS THAN 1.5 HITS + WALKS
Although Brantley does have favorable on-base percentages against right-handed pitchers (.385) and on the road (.423), it is not like Cole is some average right-handed pitcher. To this point in the season, he has been one of the top few pitchers in the game and a pitcher with a 0.72 WHIP is tough to pick against.
Alex Bregman LESS THAN 1.5 TOTAL BASES
There is a bit of a conflict in Bregman’s splits for this particular matchup. He is slugging .396 against right-handed pitching though he is slugging .625 in road games. He has at least two total bases in seven of 12 road games but, again, Cole is not an average pitcher.
DJ LeMahieu 1.5 HITS + WALKS
While LaMahieu has not been hitting at an elite level he is still getting on base. He has a .373 on-base percentage at home and .389 against right-handed pitching (Houston has Lance McCullers on the mound). Given that he is at the top of the Yankees batting order, LeMahieu should get at least four plate appearances and maybe five and, given his percentages, that nudges this towards the higher number. He has reached base multiple times in nine of 16 home games.
Giancarlo Stanton 1.5 HITS + WALKS
The Yankees slugger has been heating up and his on-base percentages are strong, .393 at home and .381 against right-handed pitching. He has reached base multiple times in eight of 14 home games and seven of the past eight games overall.
ARIZONA-MIAMI
MORE OR LESS
Pablo Lopez MORE THAN 5.5 STRIKEOUTS
Even though Lopez had just two strikeouts in seven innings in his last start, that snapped a streak of four straight starts with at least six strikeouts. Facing a Diamondbacks lineup that is right around league average in road strikeout rate (24.6%) should get Lopez back to at least six Ks.
Madison Bumgarner MORE THAN 4.5 STRIKEOUTS
When Bumgarner was struggling early in the season, he was still picking up strikeouts and has at least five strikeouts in five of his six starts. He goes against a Marlins lineup with a better than average strikeout rate at home (22.5%) and against left-handed pitching (23.5%).
David Peralta LESS THAN 1.5 TOTAL BASES
A steady but not spectacular hitter, Peralta is slugging .478 against right-handed pitching and .443 on the road. Considering how well Lopez has pitched this season, posting a 2.34 ERA and 1.10 WHIP, it’s tough to side with the hitters.
TAMPA BAY-L.A. ANGELS
MORE OR LESS
Andrew Heaney LESS THAN 6.5 STRIKEOUTS
While the Rays have around an average road strikeout rate (24.9%), they have the second highest strikeout rate against left-handed pitchers (31.3%) and for whatever inconsistencies he has, Heaney can miss bats, with 34 strikeouts in 24 innings. Therein lies the challenge, though, because Heaney has had trouble getting deep into games which makes it difficult to count on at least seven strikeouts, a threshold he has reached in two of five starts.
Randy Arozarena LESS THAN 1.5 RUNS + RBI
Although Arozarena is more effective against left-handed pitching, which should give him an edge against Heaney, he also has just 10 runs plus RBI in a dozen road games.
Mike Trout MORE THAN 1.5 TOTAL BASES
The Angels superstar is slugging .780 at home. Given his overall numbers, it still might be easier to believe in Mike Trout even if he has multiple total bases in six of 13 home games.
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