Is the knuckler a good bet this week with two starts?
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The Two-Timers
National League
National League East
Atlanta Braves: Jo Jo Reyes, vs. Florida and vs. Milwaukee; John Smoltz, vs. Florida and Milwaukee
Florida Marlins: Byung-Hyun Kim, at Atlanta and vs. New York; Daniel Barone, at Atlanta and vs. New York
New York Mets: Mike Pelfrey, at Washington and at Florida; John Maine, at Washington and at Florida
Philadelphia Phillies: Kyle Kendrick, at St. Louis and at Washington; Cole Hamels, at St. Louis and at Washington
Washington Nationals: Tim Redding, vs. New York and vs. Philadelphia; Joel Hanrahan, vs. New York and vs. Philadelphia
National League Central
Chicago Cubs: Rich Hill, vs. Cincinnati and vs. Pittsburgh; Carlos Zambrano, vs. Cincinnati and vs. Pittsburgh
Cincinnati Reds: Bronson Arroyo, at Chicago and at San Francisco; Aaron Harang, at Chicago and at San Francisco
Houston Astros: Matt Albers, vs. Milwaukee and at St. Louis; Woody Williams, vs. Milwaukee and at St. Louis
Milwaukee Brewers: Yovani Gallardo, at Houston and at Atlanta; Ben Sheets, at Houston and at Atlanta
Pittsburgh Pirates: John Van Benschoten, at San Diego and at Chicago; Tom Gorzelanny, at San Diego and Chicago
St. Louis Cardinals: Kip Wells, vs. Philadelphia and vs. Houston
National League West
Arizona Diamondbacks: Brandon Webb, vs. San Francisco and vs. Los Angeles
Colorado Rockies: Jeff Francis, vs. Los Angeles and at San Diego
Los Angeles Dodgers: Chad Billingsley, at Colorado and at Arizona
San Diego Padres: Greg Maddux, vs. Pittsburgh and vs. Colorado
San Francisco Giants: Kevin Correia, at Arizona and vs. Cincinnati; Jonathan Sanchez, at Arizona and vs. Cincinnati
American League
American League East
Baltimore Orioles: Daniel Cabrera, at New York and at Texas; Jon Leicester, at New York and at Texas
Boston Red Sox: Tim Wakefield, at Toronto and at Tampa Bay
New York Yankees: Phil Hughes, vs. Baltimore and vs. Toronto
Tampa Bay Devil Rays: Edwin Jackson, at Los Angeles and vs. Boston
Toronto Blue Jays: Dustin McGowan, vs. Boston and at New York
American League Central
Chicago White Sox: Gavin Floyd, at Kansas City and at Minnesota; Javier Vazquez, at Kansas City and at Minnesota
Cleveland Indians: Paul Byrd, vs. Detroit and vs. Oakland; Jake Westbrook, vs. Detroit and vs. Oakland
Detroit Tigers: Kenny Rogers, at Cleveland and vs. Kansas City; Justin Verlander, at Cleveland and vs. Kansas City
Kansas City Chiefs: Kyle Davies, vs. Chicago and at Detroit; Gil Meche, vs. Chicago and at Detroit
Minnesota Twins: Kevin Slowey, vs. Texas and vs. Chicago
American League West
Los Angeles Angels: Kelvim Escobar, vs. Tampa Bay and vs. Seattle; John Lackey, vs. Tampa Bay and vs. Seattle
Oakland Athletics: Dan Haren, vs. Seattle and at Cleveland
Seattle Mariners: Miguel Batista, at Oakland and at Los Angeles
Texas Rangers: Edinson Volquez, at Minnesota and vs. Baltimore; Kevin Millwood, at Minnesota and vs. Baltimore
You Want These Guys…
On the senior circuit, three aces stick out – Smoltz, Hamels, Sheets, and Zambrano. Sheets and Zambrano have been iffy of late, but I will give both the benefit of the doubt here, as they should step up now when their teams need them most. Aaron Harang probably does not belong in that group yet, but he has had a very nice season for a pretty lousy team.
On the American League side of things, other than Escobar, Lackey, and Haren, there is a whole lot of risk involved with just about everyone else.
The Top Five:
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Cole Hamels
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John Smoltz
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John Lackey
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Aaron Harang
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Ben Sheets
Eh, Not So Much…
Like we said above, there are way too many risky pitchers this week getting two starts. Van Benschoten is a shell of what he looked like years ago when he was a hot prospect. The same holds true for Edinson Volquez. Kyle Davies never was, nor never will be, a prospect. Reyes will be good someday, but someday is not today. Tim Redding has not even made it past the fifth in any of his last three, and not even to the fifth in two of those. And every Matt Albers start shows how badly the Astros screwed up last offseason.
The Bottom Five:
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John Van Benschoten
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Matt Albers
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Edinson Volquez
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Tim Redding
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Kyle Davis
The Schedule Advantages
In the National League, only the Cubs, Diamondbacks, Rockies, and Dodgers have a day off this week. The Rockies and Dodgers make up for that though with a doubleheader on Tuesday.
In the American League, there are a few more with days off, with only the Orioles, White Sox, Royals, Angels, Mariners, and Rangers playing all seven days.
That wraps up this week – next week, we preview the final week of the season!
Questions and comments may be sent to markhaverty@sportsgrumblings.com
