Arthur Rhodes- SEA- Cold- Rhodes showed a lack of control in more ways than one during his appearance against the Rangers last night. Besides the angry flare up that got him ejected, he also tossed a ball in the direction of umpire Paul Nauert, but the umpires did not see that or he would likely get a suspension. It wasn’t anything that would have caused injury, but wasn’t acceptable. While the ball was in play Rhodes also had control issues as he has recently. In his last 3 appearances, covering 2-1/3 IP he has walked 5 and thrown 30 of his 58 pitches for balls. He may be traded, but the team getting him may not be getting prime relief material.
Aubrey Huff- BAL- Hot- Huff is riding a 9-game hitting streak, 7 of which have been of the multi-hit variety. He is batting an even .500 in that span. Huff is hitting .302 for the season despite battling a .219 BHIPx. He is looking like the player who closed last season with a big push, hitting .309 after the All-Star Break.
Garrett Anderson- LAA- Hot- More often than not over the course of his career, Anderson has had better performances in the second half of the season. He is continuing that trend this year. After a hideous June in which he hit just .188, Anderson has turned it around this month, batting .358 for July, with one game left to go, and has been even hotter since the All Star Break, hitting .386 with 3 homers and 13 RBI in 12 games.
Alexei Ramirez- CHA- Hot- The rookie went 2-for-5 with a homer yesterday continuing his impressive season. With a BHIPx of .282, he has benefited from luck. Combining that with a Batting EYE of only .24, there are certainly concerns. However, he has posted two consistent months of high batting average, .355 in June and .356 in July. With no minor league record to track, it’s hard to tell if he is in the mode of Howie Kendrick, but the longer he keeps this up, the more likely it is.
Cliff Lee- CLE- Cold- Lee got battered a bit yesterday, giving up 6 runs on 10 hits in 5 IP. He did not walk anyone (for the third straight start) and recorded 5 strikeouts. Lee has had a tough time after extended outings and with him throwing 108 and 109 pitches in his previous two starts, there may have been a little fatigue at work here from a combined effect. Yesterday’s start lasted only 88 pitches so the odds are he will bounce back the next time out.
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