Michael Pineda (SP-NYY)
Michael Pineda returned to the mound today for his first start of the season since 4/23. He did not factor in the decision but pitched well giving up only 1 run and two hits while striking out 4 in 5 innings. The early returns before his April injury seemed particularly promising as a he had a 2-2 record with a 1.83 ERA. The pine tar incident notwithstanding, it was good to see him back on the mound again after various arm and muscle injuries cost him the two prior seasons. As we try to figure out what kind of performance we might expect from Pineda the remainder of the season, we should take note of an immediate issue. The velocity on his fastball in 2014 at 91.4 mph was almost a full 3 mph slower than in 2011. Pineda was a bit lucky in April with a .267 BABIP and an 86% LOB rate. On the plus side, he showed an improved changeup and good movement on his slider that did produce a 10.1% swinging strike rate in the early going. When you factor in his injury history, I think there are too many questions here to be confident that Pineda will pay big dividends, but he is certainly worth a speculative add in mixed league play.
Alex Rios (OF Texas)
Alex Rios returned to the Texas lineup today after problems with a sore ankle. This season has seen the decline of a player coming off an outstanding season where he batted .304, hit 18 HR's and stole a career high 42 bases. In addition to the precipitous decline in SB's this season, Rios's power has completely disappeared. He has only 4 HR's this season in almost 450 PA's. He has never been a big slugger but Rios has hit over 20 HR's 3 times and contributed as many as 114 runs batted in. He would be lucky to bat in 65 runs this season. At the core of his batting issues is an increased K% to a career high 18% and a drop in walk percentage to 4.5%. His batted ball numbers are not that bad and in fact he has the highest LD% of his career. While his contact % is at the lower end of his normal range it is not that alarming. It just seems that this decline in plate discipline has had a greater impact on his performance than you would expect. Rios had a year like this in 2011 when he hit .227 and popped just 13 HR's but he could blame that year on a very low .267 BABIP. No such excuse this year as he has an elevated .350 BABIP that does not bode well for his numbers the remainder of this season.
Desmond Jennings (OF- TB)
Desmond Jennings was not in the lineup today with a sore shoulder although he was available off the bench. Jennings is having a season that somewhat mirrors last year's disappointing performance. He is batting .241 with 10HR, 61 Runs, 35 RBI's and 14 steals. His slugging % is actually down to .384 after a .414 in 2013. His GB rate is approaching 50% and that will put a cap on his power numbers. Of additional concern is his 16.6% line drive rate which is his 2nd year in row of decline in that area. At 27 he is supposed to be entering his prime so it very disappointing to see him regress further. Luckily his plate discipline has remained fairly steady but there is nothing in his recent performance to indicate a turnaround is expected.
Trevor Bauer (SP-Cleve)
Trevor Bauer rebounded from a poor performance in his last start to pitch a strong game today going 8 innings and striking out 9 while scattering 4 hits and 2 runs for his 4th win of the year. This game dropped his ERA to 4.35 and his xFIP of 4.08 points to the possibility of some moderate improvement. Just 23 years old, Bauer was a former top 3 pick in the 2011 June Amateur Draft. In addition to a good 94 mph fastball he has a nice curve and an average change. There have been some improvements in his control which has never been a strong point and has been the reason for his inconsistent performance. If he can continue to make improvements in this area he has more than enough weapons to be a top of the rotation starter.
Brian McCann (C-NYY)
Brian McCann will be activated from the 7 day concussion DL this weekend. It has been a very disappointing season for McCann who is batting .238 and has a pedestrian .384 slugging percentage. This kind of performance is especially troubling for a hitter with a .274 career average and a .466 slugging mark. The move to the friendly confines of Yankee Stadium was supposed to be a major boon for the lefty catcher considered one of the premier performers in baseball. McCann's 6.5% BB rate is the lowest of his career but everything else including his contact rates seem to be in line. While he has hit 11 HR's at Yankee Stadium he has been totally powerless on the road with 2 HR's in 183 AB's. This would somewhat diffuse the argument that maybe he is trying too hard in front of his new hometown fans. Surprisingly, McCann has hit better against lefties than against righties this season. But this has been a surprising year all around for McCann who was supposed to be a spark in the Yankee lineup this season and has turned out to be anything but.
@stevietheshu
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