6/8 ML Gameday Thread: 3 left-handers pitching today

I can absolutely guarantee Trey Ball will have more than 4 strikeouts today.

The wheels have fallen off the Cheek-Key-Knee singles machine.

Betts and Shaw have actually done a decent job since their promotions.

Seems like when pitching is on, hitting is off and vice versa.

I wouldn't mind the Sox trading Breslow and giving Layne a shot in Boston.

Seems like the Sox have to solve the Butler/Vasquez catching situation before Swilhart can get as shot at Pawtucket.

We need to move a starting pitcher or two (Workman needs to be that dependable righty in the pen) and give Renauldo and/or Webster/Barnes a chance to show their stuff. Plus Owens and Couch have already proven they need a promotion, I'm guessing Johnson will too by late July.

Awesome.

PawSox lead 2-0, end 6th

Hernandez is having a very good day. Leaning on the cutter.

edit: no hitter broken up by Votto to lead off the 7th

LOL, then I was watching McGrath yesterday not Gunkel. Then McGrath is the widebody. Had the sound off because I was listening to other games.

Gunkel pitched great today according to the box but now I missed it and haven't seen Gunkel .



Coyle with another day, 2/4 with a 2B & HR. Game tied 4-4 in the ninth.

Got to see 3 batters by Gunkel. He's also a big guy. He was likely tired, his longest outing. Flyout to left on a 3-2 pitch, 3-2 walk then a bloop single to right. For the very short time I watched, his FB was well located but his slider was not commanded well but has a ton of movement. Looking at the box, I doubt if the command was the case for the game. The two runners he left on base scored.

PawSox won. Great line for Hernandez. Mookie 1/3 with 2 BB.

Portland won on a 10th inning walkoff single by Gibson. Marrero and Coyle 2/4.

Kendrick Perkins makes everyone else look like little people.

LOL, Weems has long stride wheels.

Just saw they gave Rider the error last inning on the throw but it was an easy one hop throw to Witte, no way he shouldn't have had that easy. Was a brain fart error, he seems decent enough in the few games I've seen.

Drive lost on a walkoff HR.

What's wrong with Ball?


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Add Rich Hill to the worthy promotions list: 3.09 ERA and a .191 BA.

I like Breslow, but could see him getting moved.

Miller's just much, much better than Breslow. I'm just not confident that Breslow can maintain his shiny ERA, while Miller has elite swing-and-miss stuff combined with an above-average ground ball rate. Miller's the kind of guy you want to re-sign, if possible-- a dominant lefty reliever who also gets righties out, is relatively young (only 30 next year), and has closer/set-up man potential.

You don't have to point out all the positives on Miller to me Jmei, am well aware of his transformation and have been a fan of his since his UNC days. I also have little faith in the team extending/resigning him with how they approached the resign last season when Miller was looking for 2.1m and the team wouldn't budge past think it was 1.8m. The FO should have gone after a LT deal then, a somewhat minor foot injury wasn't going to hurt him and the timing was perfect for a discount.

Edit:

Didn't intend for that post to sound grouchy, but after coming back after a few hours and reading it here it looks kind of that way that way.

No intention of offending you Jmei. Only attempting to point out that Cherrington had his best chance last offseason, or over last summer of getting a deal on Miller and spent the winter low balling him instead.

sorry if this is the wrong thread, but the listed started on Portland's MILB website for the next 3 games are Johnson, Couch and Pena - skipping Owens.
Is this just a turn off? Johnson was skipped last turn for Doubront. I was planning on driving up to Altoona.

The issue isn't who's better, Miller or Breslow. The issue is how much it would cost to resign Miller versus the fact that Breslow is cost controlled with a team option of $4 million for 2015. The way salaries have exploded for left handed middle relievers combined with the fact that Miller has been relatively reliable for three seasons now, it's not out of the realm of possibility that he receives an offer approaching 3 years / $20 million. Miller's rep will probably comp him to Boone Logan who got 3 years / $16.5 million from the Rockies this last offseason. John Henry's player valuation algorithm will spit out a resounding "Does not compute" in response to that reality.

Well I think it helps that his last two outings have been starts. Started all three years in college, and pretty much every level since. Though his overall numbers out of the pen this season aren't bad. He will never be a big K guy, but if he does get strikeouts, he becomes a very good pitcher on the mound. But I do expect his K-rate to drop back down, unless they changed something specifically when he was moved back to the rotation after Rubby's promotion.

Unfortunately for him, he will prob head right back to the bullpen whenever Pawtucket needs another rotation spot, and he will be stuck there until he ends up in another organization. If he continues to pitch well as a starter, I still contend he could get snagged by another club in the Rule 5 if they don't have much to lose