Gage Workman hits for the cycle, while Riley Greene stays hot for Erie
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Toledo Mud Hens (7-10)
Matt Manning has had a home run ridden start to his 2021 season. Through four starts, he’s already allowed nine long balls, and while many of them were somewhat cheap, there have been plenty of hard contact and deep fly balls as well. Manning is still striking out more than a batter per inning with a nice walk rate, but he really hasn’t had much consistent command of either his curveball or particularly his changeup, putting too much pressure on the fastball.
Let’s lose two! White Sox 3, Tigers 1; White Sox 11, Tigers 0
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Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
The Detroit Tigers dropped a pair of games to the Chicago White Sox on Thursday evening: a close 3-1 loss in Game 1, but a blowout, 11-0, in Game 2. A rainout on Wednesday necessitated a pair of seven-inning contests on Thursday, a decidedly nicer day and evening, weather-wise. The somewhat unusual start time (4:10 pm CDT) made for some strange shadows at the start of the twin-bill.
Game 1: White Sox 3, Tigers 1
Carlos Rodón came into Game 1 with a 0.47 ERA, a 3-0 record, a sparkling 0.684 WHIP, and a no-hitter in his three starts so you just know he was champing at the bit to face the light-hitting Tigers lineup. Now, I know a few of you you are wondering, “Wait, Rodón? Wasn’t he a relief pitcher the Tigers had a couple of years ago?” Well, no, that’s another guy, Bruce Rondón. Hope this helps.
0.3
Last time out against the Oakland Athletics, Matt Boyd threw a quality start that was unfortunately wasted on a 3-2 loss en route to a four-game west coast sweep. The veteran lefthander threw 7
1⁄
3 innings allowing four hits and two earned runs including his first home run allowed this season along with just one walk issued against five strikeouts on just 94 pitches. That level of production and efficiency will give the Tigers a chance to win every time.
As the season wears on and the sample size increases, it has become more and more apparent that Boyd’s new approach that relies less on the strikeout and more on pitching to contact is a winning formula. Taking a look at Baseball Savant’s numbers, he has been able to excel in a few important areas of concern, including average exit velocity and barrel percentage both important indicators that his home run suppression tendencies this season could be real and not just a mirage.