BringInTheLefty
Pretty much a regular
Cards at Braves
The fact that Dickey has been able to go 3-2 with a 3.94 ERA with his new team despite not having his signature pitch working consistently may be the most encouraging part of the 42-year-old's success.
Dickey has had to deal with a sore calf. He's battled through as his knuckler came and went. He gave up two homers on fastballs during his most recent start, a victory over the Mets.
"The thing about a knuckleball is you have to live with it inning by inning," Dickey said."
Dickey is 3-1 with a 4.09 ERA in seven games against the Cardinals, but his last victory came in 2012 his Cy Young season.
Dickey was traded to Toronto and had mixed results in the American League. The right-hander signed a one-year deal with the Braves over the winter and it has meant a transition time for the team, who is 11-17 with a team ERA of 4.91.
Dickey is coming off consecutive wins against the Mets. While he allowed a combined five earned runs and nine hits in 11 innings, the Braves also scored 16 runs in those games.
In contrast, Michael Wacha has seen his curveball regain its bite after he slumped to a 5.09 ERA last season after going 17-7 with a 3.38 ERA the previous year.
Cardinals manager Mike Matheny described Wacha's curveball as the best it's ever been after his last outing, a no-decision against the Milwaukee Brewers Monday.
Wacha is 2-1 with a 3.23 ERA and has gone at least six innings in each of his five starts. He has given up two or less runs in three of those games and has held opponents to a .095 average (2-for-25) with runners in scoring position.
Wacha, 25, didn't pitch against the Braves last year and this will be only his second career start against them. In three appearances versus Atlanta, the 6-foot-5 right-hander is 0-1 with a 3.12 ERA.
The Cardinals (15-14) have won the first two games 10-0 and 5-3 against the Braves (11-17). They and have won five straight in Atlanta dating back to Turner Field last season after losing nine of the previous 11 games.
St. Louis has a long injury list, with outfielder Jose Martinez (left groin injury) the most recent to go down.
The Cardinals have kept going, though, thanks to solid starting pitching and the recent hot hitting of shortstop Aledmys Diaz and first baseman Matt Carpenter.
Carpenter hit two-run homers in each of the first two games in the series, while Diaz was 7-for-8 with five RBIs.
Nats at Phillies
Hellickson will face the Washington Nationals as the Phillies look to avoid a three-game sweep on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park.
Right-hander Tanner Roark will take the ball for the Nationals, who are in search of their fifth straight win.
Hellickson surrendered just six earned runs in his first four starts of the season, but that number doubled in four tumultuous innings at Wrigley Field on Tuesday. Three of the Cubs' eight hits were homers - including a three-run shot by Kyle Schawrber - and it was the first time this season Hellickson didn't pitch at least five innings.The right-hander was much sharper in a start against the Nationals on April 15. Hellickson gave up four hits and two runs in seven innings in a 4-2 win.
Roark also opposed Hellickson during that April 15 game and had nearly an identical line. The 30-year-old went seven innings and allowed two runs and four hits, but the Phillies got the win against the Nationals' bullpen.
Roark was charged with his first loss of the season in his last outing. He had a season-best eight strikeouts but gave up four runs and six hits in six innings against Arizona. Roark threw a career-high 125 pitches in the six innings. He has averaged 105.5 pitches per outing this season.
At 21-9, the Nationals are surging, largely in part to a hot offense led by Ryan Zimmerman. The first baseman homered in both of the first two games of the series and has 10 in his last 16 games, though Baker said Saturday night that he probably will give Zimmerman the day off Sunday.
"We have to watch him. I'll give him days off from time to time to make sure he doesn't tire, because when you tire, you end up getting hurt sometimes," Baker said. "With his history, we have to keep him healthy."
Zimmerman hit his 13th home run of the season on Saturday night, which extended his current hitting streak to 13 games. Zimmerman, who leads the majors in multiple categories including average and OPS, tied Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge for the MLB home run lead.
Bryce Harper has missed the first two games of the series for the Nationals because of groin tightness. It's unclear if he will return to the lineup in the series finale, though Baker told reporters it was a possibility.
The Phillies and Nationals will play three more games next weekend in Washington, but in between both will face interleague opponents. Washington will face four games (two on the road, two at home) with beltway rival Baltimore. Philadelphia will host Seattle for games on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Yankees at Cubs
While the Yankees are trending upwards, the defending World Series champions are 16-14 and 3-3 in May after falling to New York 11-6 Saturday.
The Yankees have a chance at their fourth series sweep of the season after Starlin Castro and Aaron Hicks were a combined 7-for-9 with six RBIs. Castro hit a three-run home run against his former team while Hicks hit a two-run shot and both players are hitting well over .300.Left-hander Jon Lester (1-1 3.67 ERA), who is well acquainted with the Yankees, will start for the Cubs.
He is 13-6 with a 3.78 ERA in 29 career starts against New York, all while he was with the Red Sox. But Sunday will be his first appearance against the Yankees since June 28, 2014.
While Lester has a 6.06 ERA on the road this season, he owns a 1.50 ERA at home. He earned his first victory in his last start, allowing three runs (two earned) in five innings against the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday.
Lester began the season with four consecutive no-decisions and a loss.
"Jonny Lester overall has been throwing the ball really well," Maddon said.
Overall, the Cubs are looking for more quality starts from their pitching staff, especially after Brett Anderson recorded just one out Saturday before departing with low back tightness. The starters are 11-8 with a 4.79 ERA.
"I'm not seeing dramatically a whole bunch of difference to what we saw last year," Maddon said. "(They're) pretty patient. These guys have got to get on those one or two nice consecutive good starts in a row, and then all of a sudden it starts morphing into what it's supposed to look like."
For the Yankees, right-hander Luis Severino (2-2, 3.86) is scheduled to make his first career start against the Cubs.
He is 4-5 with a 3.20 ERA in 14 games when pitching against an opponent for the first time. He has given up three earned runs or fewer in three of his last four starts.
In his last start, Severino allowed two home runs and a season-high five runs in 5 2/3 innings during a 7-1 loss against the Toronto on Monday.
"I thought he was just a little off," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "He was behind in some counts. It looked like he was just missing."
Yet in his previous start, Severino threw seven scoreless innings against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.
Girardi said he was looking to start Matt Holliday at first base Sunday for his first action on defense this season. Holliday is 9-for-24 (.375) with one home run and five RBIs in his career against Lester.
Right-handers are batting .295 off Lester, while lefties are hitting .214.
Outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury could also return to the starting lineup. He has not made four straight starts due to an elbow injury sustained when crashing into the wall in the sixth inning Monday.
The fact that Dickey has been able to go 3-2 with a 3.94 ERA with his new team despite not having his signature pitch working consistently may be the most encouraging part of the 42-year-old's success.
Dickey has had to deal with a sore calf. He's battled through as his knuckler came and went. He gave up two homers on fastballs during his most recent start, a victory over the Mets.
"The thing about a knuckleball is you have to live with it inning by inning," Dickey said."
Dickey is 3-1 with a 4.09 ERA in seven games against the Cardinals, but his last victory came in 2012 his Cy Young season.
Dickey was traded to Toronto and had mixed results in the American League. The right-hander signed a one-year deal with the Braves over the winter and it has meant a transition time for the team, who is 11-17 with a team ERA of 4.91.
Dickey is coming off consecutive wins against the Mets. While he allowed a combined five earned runs and nine hits in 11 innings, the Braves also scored 16 runs in those games.
In contrast, Michael Wacha has seen his curveball regain its bite after he slumped to a 5.09 ERA last season after going 17-7 with a 3.38 ERA the previous year.
Cardinals manager Mike Matheny described Wacha's curveball as the best it's ever been after his last outing, a no-decision against the Milwaukee Brewers Monday.
Wacha is 2-1 with a 3.23 ERA and has gone at least six innings in each of his five starts. He has given up two or less runs in three of those games and has held opponents to a .095 average (2-for-25) with runners in scoring position.
Wacha, 25, didn't pitch against the Braves last year and this will be only his second career start against them. In three appearances versus Atlanta, the 6-foot-5 right-hander is 0-1 with a 3.12 ERA.
The Cardinals (15-14) have won the first two games 10-0 and 5-3 against the Braves (11-17). They and have won five straight in Atlanta dating back to Turner Field last season after losing nine of the previous 11 games.
St. Louis has a long injury list, with outfielder Jose Martinez (left groin injury) the most recent to go down.
The Cardinals have kept going, though, thanks to solid starting pitching and the recent hot hitting of shortstop Aledmys Diaz and first baseman Matt Carpenter.
Carpenter hit two-run homers in each of the first two games in the series, while Diaz was 7-for-8 with five RBIs.
Nats at Phillies
Hellickson will face the Washington Nationals as the Phillies look to avoid a three-game sweep on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park.
Right-hander Tanner Roark will take the ball for the Nationals, who are in search of their fifth straight win.
Hellickson surrendered just six earned runs in his first four starts of the season, but that number doubled in four tumultuous innings at Wrigley Field on Tuesday. Three of the Cubs' eight hits were homers - including a three-run shot by Kyle Schawrber - and it was the first time this season Hellickson didn't pitch at least five innings.The right-hander was much sharper in a start against the Nationals on April 15. Hellickson gave up four hits and two runs in seven innings in a 4-2 win.
Roark also opposed Hellickson during that April 15 game and had nearly an identical line. The 30-year-old went seven innings and allowed two runs and four hits, but the Phillies got the win against the Nationals' bullpen.
Roark was charged with his first loss of the season in his last outing. He had a season-best eight strikeouts but gave up four runs and six hits in six innings against Arizona. Roark threw a career-high 125 pitches in the six innings. He has averaged 105.5 pitches per outing this season.
At 21-9, the Nationals are surging, largely in part to a hot offense led by Ryan Zimmerman. The first baseman homered in both of the first two games of the series and has 10 in his last 16 games, though Baker said Saturday night that he probably will give Zimmerman the day off Sunday.
"We have to watch him. I'll give him days off from time to time to make sure he doesn't tire, because when you tire, you end up getting hurt sometimes," Baker said. "With his history, we have to keep him healthy."
Zimmerman hit his 13th home run of the season on Saturday night, which extended his current hitting streak to 13 games. Zimmerman, who leads the majors in multiple categories including average and OPS, tied Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge for the MLB home run lead.
Bryce Harper has missed the first two games of the series for the Nationals because of groin tightness. It's unclear if he will return to the lineup in the series finale, though Baker told reporters it was a possibility.
The Phillies and Nationals will play three more games next weekend in Washington, but in between both will face interleague opponents. Washington will face four games (two on the road, two at home) with beltway rival Baltimore. Philadelphia will host Seattle for games on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Yankees at Cubs
While the Yankees are trending upwards, the defending World Series champions are 16-14 and 3-3 in May after falling to New York 11-6 Saturday.
The Yankees have a chance at their fourth series sweep of the season after Starlin Castro and Aaron Hicks were a combined 7-for-9 with six RBIs. Castro hit a three-run home run against his former team while Hicks hit a two-run shot and both players are hitting well over .300.Left-hander Jon Lester (1-1 3.67 ERA), who is well acquainted with the Yankees, will start for the Cubs.
He is 13-6 with a 3.78 ERA in 29 career starts against New York, all while he was with the Red Sox. But Sunday will be his first appearance against the Yankees since June 28, 2014.
While Lester has a 6.06 ERA on the road this season, he owns a 1.50 ERA at home. He earned his first victory in his last start, allowing three runs (two earned) in five innings against the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday.
Lester began the season with four consecutive no-decisions and a loss.
"Jonny Lester overall has been throwing the ball really well," Maddon said.
Overall, the Cubs are looking for more quality starts from their pitching staff, especially after Brett Anderson recorded just one out Saturday before departing with low back tightness. The starters are 11-8 with a 4.79 ERA.
"I'm not seeing dramatically a whole bunch of difference to what we saw last year," Maddon said. "(They're) pretty patient. These guys have got to get on those one or two nice consecutive good starts in a row, and then all of a sudden it starts morphing into what it's supposed to look like."
For the Yankees, right-hander Luis Severino (2-2, 3.86) is scheduled to make his first career start against the Cubs.
He is 4-5 with a 3.20 ERA in 14 games when pitching against an opponent for the first time. He has given up three earned runs or fewer in three of his last four starts.
In his last start, Severino allowed two home runs and a season-high five runs in 5 2/3 innings during a 7-1 loss against the Toronto on Monday.
"I thought he was just a little off," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "He was behind in some counts. It looked like he was just missing."
Yet in his previous start, Severino threw seven scoreless innings against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.
Girardi said he was looking to start Matt Holliday at first base Sunday for his first action on defense this season. Holliday is 9-for-24 (.375) with one home run and five RBIs in his career against Lester.
Right-handers are batting .295 off Lester, while lefties are hitting .214.
Outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury could also return to the starting lineup. He has not made four straight starts due to an elbow injury sustained when crashing into the wall in the sixth inning Monday.
