Weekend Wrap-up | Week Ahead (By Jake Reagan)
Welcome to the First Edition of Weekend Wrap-up & Week Ahead. In this weekly article, there will be a quick peak back at the weekend’s most notable action, and a look forward towards the games during the work week. Enjoy!
Wrap-up:
The Houston Astros defeated the San Diego Padres 1-0 on the least heroic walk-off hit possible. Alex Bregman came to the plate with a runner on second in the bottom of the 10th with two outs; he promptly shot a ball straight up in the air. The ball miraculously dropped between the first baseman Eric Hosmer and bullpen arm Robbie Erlin as the winning run crossed home. Lost in the weirdness, was a masterful first start with the Astros by Gerrit Cole. He threw 7 strong innings, punching out 11 and only allowing 5 baserunners.
On Sunday, Jamison Taillon and Gregory Polanco continued to make the Pittsburgh Pirates look dangerous. Taillon threw possibly the best game of his career, a complete game shut-out. He punched out 7 Reds, walked 2, and allowed only a single hit which was quickly wiped off by a double play. Gregory Polanco looks as if he may be taking over the star role once held by Andrew McCutchen. He launched another homerun, good for 2 RBI and his third dinger of the year.
In the final game of the weekend, the Mets topped the Nationals 6-5 in 12 innings. Bryce Harper continues to mash the baseball, hitting his 6th homerun, which leads the Majors. Adrian Gonzalez of the Mets showed that there’s still life in his bat, smacking a grand slam. It was a back and forth contest but Yoenis Cespedes’ broken bat single in the top of the 12th completed the Mets first sweep of the Nationals since 2015.
Week Ahead:
On Monday, the Atlanta Braves, led by ace Julio Tehran, travel to Washington (-245) to face off against the National and Steven Strasburg. The Braves have been a surprise this year, currently with a 6-3 record and the best run differential in the Majors. Strasburg has electric stuff and was masterful in his first start against Cincinnati, but allowed 5 earned runs in his last time out, against the Mets. Will Strasburg turn in another elite performance as the Nats try and bounce back from an extra inning loss to New York, or will the Braves offense keep rolling?
On Thursday, the Cubs host the Pirates in Wrigley. Chicago will send Kyle Hendricks to the hill to face off against Trevor Williams. The Pirates have been a surprising team thus far, carrying a 7-2 record. The talent-laden Cubs, on the other hand, are only 5-4. Williams has been lights out to start the year. He is 2-0 with a microscopic 1.59 ERA in 11.1 innings. Hendricks, like the Cubs, has struggled. He has a 4.09 ERA in 11 innings; he’s also allowed 13 hits and 4 walks, bringing his WHIP up to 1.55.
On Saturday, the Phillies will play game two of a three game set against the hapless Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays have managed to win only one game heading into the week, and it was on Opening Day. The Phillies took a series from the Marlins over the weekend, scoring 20 runs in the second game. This matchup will feature Chris Archer and Jake Arrieta, two established aces who are fiery on the mound and have power stuff. Arrieta, in his first start with the club, went only 5 innings before Phillies manager Gabe Kapler pulled him. Archer has been fanning hitters so far, striking out 18 in only 14.1 innings of work. However, he’s also allowed quite a few runs, saddling him a 5.65 ERA.
This has been the Weekend Wrap-up & Week Ahead. It may be Monday, but at least there’s another week of baseball ahead.