Roy Halladay- PHI- Cold- Halladay got lit up for the first time in 2011, allowing 6 runs on 10 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3 in 6.2 IP. He got hit hardest in the 7th inning and ended up throwing 112 pitches, after tossing 123 in his last start and 113 the time before that. Halladay hasn’t been used this much this fast before in his career. Keep an eye on him in his next start to see if this pace is too much.
Prince Fielder- MIL- Hot- When we last discussed Fielder on April 7th he was just getting hot, having gone 3-for-4 but yet to homer. Since then he has added three more 3-for-4 games and slugged 3 homers. Fielder is definitely getting some positive luck (.352 BABIP) which is helping his .338 average. He is also hacking away like crazy. Fielder is swinging at over half of the pitches he sees, including 39.7% of pitches outside the strike zone. That is way above his career percentage of 27.8%. He is making contact with the pitches inside the zone at a phenomenal 96.7% rate. This lack of discipline has dropped his BB% down to 6.8%. Fielders K% is also a low 12.3% but that is a result of that contact rate, which is less sustainable. While Fielder’s numbers look good right now, regression to the mean could get ugly unless he gets more selective.
Armando Galarraga- ARI- Hot- Galarraga picked up his first quality start in his 3-0 season. Most importantly he struck out 6 batters in his 6 IP, giving him a K/9 of 7.00 for the season. That is well above last season’s 4.61 and more in line with Galarraga’s minor league numbers. If he can keep up that pace Galarraga could be a pleasant surprise this season.
Brandon Phillips- CIN- Hot- Phillips went 2-for-4 with a double in his first game back from a groin injury, raising his average to .365. That is being supported by a very lucky .400 BABIP, so expect Phillips’ average to drop, even if there are no lingering effects from the injury.
Chris Iannetta- COL- Stats- Iannetta has been content to be a spectator at the plate so far this season. He has only swung at 36.3% of the pitches he has seen. This has resulted in a BB% of 25.0% and also a K% of 37.5%. Although his BABIP has gone up from last year’s horrendous .212 to .261 the better luck hasn’t translated into a higher average. Iannetta’s .200 batting average is only a hair better than the .197 he had in 2010. His .429 OBP is a huge difference, though. When Iannetta has hit the ball, it has gone up, as evidenced by his 52.0% FB% and has resulted in 2 homers already, compared to the 9 he hit all last season. His numbers are so extreme right now, though, that it’s hard to project what he will do. There is a lot of statistical noise there and it’s difficult to tell whether Iannetta will finally fulfill his potential or end up as a disappointment again. Almost none of his peripherals are sustainable and it all depends on how things shake out.
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