Brad Penny- LAN- Hot- Penny absolutely dominated the Marlins, striking out 14 Fish while holding them scoreless through 7 innings on 5 hits and no walks. This ran his record to 4-0 and lowered his ERA to 1.39. Penny has had a tendency over his career to start fast. He was a combined 13-5 in April and May from 2004-2006 and his ERA in each of those months was below what he ended up with for that season. In other words, he will be a prime "sell high"candidate.
Mike Jacobs- FLA- Inj Update- It is looking like Jacobs' sore thumb is still bothering him. In the past two games, he has gone 0-for-7 with 6 strikeouts. Last night he let go of the bat twice in swings that didn't connect. Since his second game back after missing a week to the injury, Jacobs has gone 6-for-32 and posted a Batting EYE of .10. A pinch hitter batted for him in the 9th inning and manager Fredi Gonzalez said that Jacobs would probably be rested today against lefty Mark Hendrickson.
Doug Davis- ARI- Caution- Davis recorded his 6th quality start in 7 games by allowing 2 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks in 6 IP while striking out 4. His ERA now stands at 2.36. That ERA is artificially low, however, as 6 of the 17 runs Davis has allowed have been unearned. His WHIP of 1.62 is more indicative of how he has pitched. Davis' main problem has been locating the strike zone. He has allowed 22 walks in 42 innings because only 56% of his pitches have been strikes. A very high strand rate (.88 before last night) has also helped to mask just how poorly Davis has pitched. Prior to last night's start, his expected ERA was 4.85, far above the 2.25 he took into the game. The law of averages is looming out there for Davis and it will smack hard when it catches up.
Anthony Lerew- ATL- Rookie- The big question regarding Lerew heading into this season was whether he had regained the control that seemed to evaporate in 2006. After yielding only 8 walks in 26-1/3 IP at AAA Richmond, he has been deemed to have found it. With an ERA of 1.37 and WHIP of 1.06 in 5 minor league starts, the Braves are ready for Lerew to start at the major league level. His stock has dropped a bit since 2005, but he still has the potential to be an above average starter.
Albert Pujols- STL- Cold- After looking like he was snapping out of his funk, Pujols has gone hitless in his last 3 games. The 0-for-10 has cut 25 points from his batting average. A bright spot yesterday was that Pujols did walk twice, so this may be just a little dip in his recovery from early season woes.
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