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Around SBN: The Most Dangerous Division in Sports

4/20/11 GDT: Chicago White Sox vs. Tampa Bay Rays

ST PETERSBURG, FL - APRIL 15:  :  Pitcher Wade Davis #40 of the Tampa Bay Rays pitches against the Minnesota Twins during the game at Tropicana Field on April 15, 2011 in St. Petersburg, Florida.  (Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images)

From SB Nation Tampa Bay:

Wade Davis has started off the season strong for the Rays, posting a 3.26 ERA / 3.32 FIP during his first three starts. However, while his results have been mostly good, his strikeout rate is much lower than last season (3.7 K/9) and he's only generating whiffs on about 4% of his pitches (which is extremely low). Davis has traded in some velocity this season for better pitch location, but it seems as though this decreased velocity is hurting his overall ability to get strikeouts. His improved results simply aren't sustainable with such a low strikeout rate, so he'll need to find some sort of middle ground if he wants to keep performing well going forward.

Philip Humber (3.46 ERA, 2.98 FIP) takes the hill for the White Sox for his second start of the season against the Rays. In his previous start, he shut down a slumbering Rays offense very effectively, going 6 innings while only allowing 4 hits and 1 run. Even with the Rays' weakened lineup, they should be able to do better against Humber this time around; Humber has been a minor league pitcher for most of his career, and his 4.37 FIP in Triple-A last year doesn't suggest that he should continue to succeed in the majors.

Lineup after the jump.

Star-divide

Rays' lineup, courtesy of Marc Topkin:

Fuld lf
Zobrist 2b
Joyce rf
Lopez 3b
D. Johnson dh
Upton cf
Kotchman 1b
Jaso c
Brignac ss

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Lineup's numbers vs Humber:

Fuld: 3 AB, 1 H, 1 K
Zobrist: 4 AB, 1 H, 1 2B, 1 BB, 1 K
Joyce: no data
Lopez: 7 AB, 2 H, 1 3B, 1 K
D. Johnson: 2 AB, 1 BB
Upton: 2 AB, 1BB, 1 K
Kotchman: 2 AB
Jaso: 2 AB
Brignac: no data

@ptSuttery

by Suttree on Apr 20, 2011 5:36 PM EDT reply actions  

LOL @ MLB taking over the dodgers

Aye, business is business and money is money i never said we were friends.

by 4QB on Apr 20, 2011 6:08 PM EDT reply actions  

From 'do Rays need power thread'

Apparently Friedman doesn’t think so

Why else give 1B to a guy who’s only MLB success was 2007, and Russ Branyan was sitting out there?

follow me on twitter @sternfan10

by sternfan1 on Apr 20, 2011 6:19 PM EDT reply actions  

you realize Branyan sucks too right

I’m pretty sure if we had Branyan at 1B you would be on here bitchin and moanin about having a poor mans Carlos Pena with the bat that can’t field 1B if he was playing kick ball.

by Dbullsfan on Apr 20, 2011 6:22 PM EDT up reply actions  

wasn't Branyan a Ray for a while?

2006, with a .740 OPS in 60 some odd games? wow, what a performance.

Of course he ended he season with a .971 OPS in about 30 games with SD.

by tampa_edski on Apr 20, 2011 6:33 PM EDT up reply actions  

They both suck and Johnson was cheaper

I don’t know if getting Branyan would have hurt our chances with Damon/Manny but I would take the 2 we got over Branyan any day. Branyan got off to a hot start, 35 yr olds don’t magically become good hitters unless they are on something.

by Dbullsfan on Apr 20, 2011 6:41 PM EDT up reply actions  

coming into this years Branyans career highs

Batting Avg .257
Home Runs 31
RBI 76
OPS (.925 in a 50 game season) .867 in a full season (or as full as Branyan gets)

by Dbullsfan on Apr 20, 2011 6:26 PM EDT up reply actions  

you can't imagine he is going to outperform his career highs or even equal them at a ge 35

unless you want him to be faced with the Ramirez retirement. The guy is 35 and has hit 20 Home runs in a season 4 times.

by Dbullsfan on Apr 20, 2011 6:32 PM EDT up reply actions  

WTF?
In a 1920 court deposition the Chicago History Museum recently put on its website, Cicotte said “the boys on the club” talked about how a Cub or a number of Cubs were offered $10,000 to throw the 1918 Series they lost 4-2 to the Boston Red Sox.

Aye, business is business and money is money i never said we were friends.

by 4QB on Apr 20, 2011 6:25 PM EDT reply actions  

I look over to the yahoo sports bar......

“Buster Posey’s sister knows her way around a batter’s box”

If we had drafted Posey I wouldn’t make this joke:
That’s not the only thing she knows her way around!

@dobbertweets

by blackraven on Apr 20, 2011 6:38 PM EDT reply actions  

Thanks slowski you ass

The caller said the boy, after removing the bulb from its socket, left the building and threw the bulb on the ground. When the bulb broke, the caller said the boy screamed "rape trial program substances"

by Top Gun Numba 1 on Apr 20, 2011 6:55 PM EDT reply actions  

Gah! Sorry Toppah.

Close this and open the other one. We can hide this one from the front page.

I love Casey Fossum. Now try and take me seriously. -- @steveslow

by Steve Slowinski on Apr 20, 2011 6:58 PM EDT up reply actions  

People already in this thread

The caller said the boy, after removing the bulb from its socket, left the building and threw the bulb on the ground. When the bulb broke, the caller said the boy screamed "rape trial program substances"

by Top Gun Numba 1 on Apr 20, 2011 7:00 PM EDT up reply actions  

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