Dontrelle Willis, of the Florida Marlins, is a first half pitcher and that is no secret. Over his career Willis is 42-24 in the first half and 23-25 in the second half so it should come as no surprise that Willis is 0-3 with an 8.78 ERA, 2.63 WHIP and .444 BAA since the All-Star break this season. Well, it may not be a surprise that he is struggling but it is a surprise that he is pitching as badly as he is right now. Don't expect Willis to go on an extended hot streak and don't make a move to acquire him but he should get better than he is right now.
John Smoltz, of the Atlanta Braves, may have a slightly injured right shoulder but you certainly couldn't tell by looking at his statistics in his last two starts. Since coming off of the disabled list on July 18th Smoltz has thrown 14 innings and allowed one run on twelve hits and four walks while fanning 15. Although Smoltz will face the red hot Arizona Diamondbacks he should pitch well. Smoltz is currently 10-5 with a 2.78 ERA, and a WHIP of 1.22.
Chris Capuano, of the Milwaukee Brewers, will start game two of a double-header with the St. Louis Cardinals today. The Brewers have lost all 11 of Capuano's last 11 starts and Capuano has recorded the losing decision in six of those games. Although Capuano is having a miserable year he hasn't deserved to go winless since May 7th. Capuano does not have good numbers against the Cardinals (10 GS, 4-3, 5.14 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, and a .262 BAA) so don't be surprised if the losing streak continues. Capuano is currently 5-6 with a 4.64 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP.
Greg Maddux, of the San Diego Padres, will face the Houston Astros today. Maddux has not recorded a win since June 27th when he beat the San Francisco Giants. Maddux is 0-3 over that five game stretch. Despite the winless streak Maddux has only allowed two runs in his last two starts (11 IP) and he has a WHIP of 0.82 in those two games along with eight strikeouts. Maddux is 26-13 with a 2.75 ERA against the Astros over his career so don't be surprised if the winless streak ends today.
On June 9th of this season Jorge Sosa, of the New York Mets, improved to 6-1 on the year and lowered his earned run average to 2.64. Since June 9th Sosa is 1-5 with a 8.40 ERA after losing again on Friday night. Sosa showed us polar opposites in 2005 and 2006 and it now appears he is showing us both versions in the same year. Get rid of Sosa if you have him and don't even think about picking him up if you don't.
