SHL Expansion Three: Jays Stake Early Lead With Group Effort

One look at the Toronto Blue Jays’ home page is all it takes to understand why the Jays sit atop the Expansion Three division with a 12-6 record and a two game edge over the Arizona/Coloroda D-Rox.

Each of the Triple Crown categories is led by a different player in both hitting and pitching.  Lloyd Moseby* is pacing the team with a .373 average, Carlos Delgado leads the team in home runs with four, and George Bell has driven in a team-high 18 runs.  On the mound, Jimmy Key has a team-high three victories, Roy Halladay a team-best 1.32 ERA, and Roger Clemens paces the mound corps with 38 strikeouts.  But if one were looking for the primary reason the Blue Jays are in first place, one need look no further than the pitching staff.

The Jays rank among the top 10 in all but one category—strikeouts, where they’re 15th.  Their 3.33 ERA is the SHL’s sixth best, and they’re holding opponents to a .250 average, which also ranks sixth.  Their starters, led by Halladay (2-2, 1.32) and Clemens (2-1, 1.77), boast the league’s fifth-best ERA (the bullpen ranks eighth at 3.24), and Hallady and Clemens rank second and eighth, respectively. Key is 3-1 with a 3.19 mark, but Pat Hentgen (1-1, 7.11) and Dave Stieb 1-1, 10.13) are struggling.  Most of Hentgen’s troubles came in his first start against the A’s, before he rebounded and pitched well in a 6-4 win over the Senators/Twins.   Stieb was also the victim of a severe butt-kicking at the hands of the Indians in his first start, and though he’s rebounded in his last two, he’s still not pitching up to his abilities.

With the exception of Duane Ward (1-0, 11.12), the bullpen has been fantastic.  Tom Henke is 6-for-6 in save opportunities and hasn’t allowed a run in his first seven appearances of the season.  Scott Downs (0.00 in 3 innings pitched), Doyle Alexander (1.29 in 7 IP), B.J. Ryan (2-0, 1 SV, 2.25), and Paul Quantrill (4.26 in 6.1 IP), have been very good in a support role.

That Halladay and Clemens are only a combined 4-3 despite boasting a composite ERA of 1.57 doesn’t bode well for this team, though. In Halladay’s losses, the team scored a grand total of two runs, and the right-hander actually lost his last start despite tossing a complete game two-hitter.  And Clemens is lucky to have any wins at all.  Four times he’s allowed only one run, but has only two wins to show for it (the other two one-run games resulted in no-decisions).

Toronto’s batters are struggling, ranking among the bottom three in AVG (.248), OBA (.304), OPS (.664), and strikeouts (171), and in the bottom five in slugging, hits, and extra-base hits.  In fact, the only thing the Jays do well on offense is steal bases, where they rank third with 35, and they’re very efficient at it, succeeding in their attempts more than 81% of the time.  They’re getting production from the top of the order—Moseby (.917 OPS), Roberto Alomar (.307/.358/.387, 9-for-11 in SB attempts), and Delgado (team-leading .554 SLG) have formed a formidable 1-2-3 punch—and Tony Fernandez (.288/.377/.407, 6-for-6 in steals) is flourishing in the nine hole in Toronto’s Tony LaRussa-like batting order (the pitcher bats eighth for the Jays).  But the four through seven spots aren’t producing much at all (Jesse Barfield was recently demoted to AAA due to his struggles) and it may not be long before guys like Rance Mulliniks and Joe Carter start to see more action.

* Editor’s Note: Lloyd Moseby had hits in all four of Monday night’s contests and extended his hitting streak to 21 games.

Will the Real D-Rox Please Stand Up (Please Stand Up, Please Stand Up): Combining two franchises can have a schizophrenic effect on a club and the Arizona/Colorado D-Backs/Rockies are a perfect example of that.  Coming into the season the D-Rox expected their Rockies hitters to lead the offense and their D-Backs pitchers to pace the mound staff.  But, frankly, no one is really doing much of anything and it’s too difficult to say who will emerge as the leader of this team.  It’s all just a muddled mess right now, making the team’s 10-8 record all the more amazing.

The team ranks in the bottom 10 in nine different offensive categories, including OPS where they’re 24th with a mark of .690, yet they rank ninth in runs scored, averaging six a game.  They also rank in the bottom 10 in eight pitching categories, but are fourth in strikeouts with 125 (6.9 per game) and third in walks with only 41 (2.3 per game).  Not only are D-Rox hurlers overpowering hitters, but they’re doing it without sacrificing control.

The batters are led by Luis Gonzalez, who is hitting .382 with four homers and 11 RBIs in only 34 at-bats.  Gonzalez platoons with Matt Holliday, who is batting only .240 with no home runs and two runs batted in, making one wonder when Gonzalez will be given a full-time job.  Ellis Burks is hitting .343 and Steve Finley .340, but neither is slugging better than .400.  The rest of the lineup is batting .228 and slugging less than .400.

Curt Schilling is leading the pitching staff with a 2-2 record and a 3.94 ERA and he has a fantastic 6-to-1 K/BB ratio, but the rest of the starters have been disappointing.  Miguel Batista (2-1, 5.21), Brandon Webb (2-2, 5.30), and Randy Johnson (2-0, 5.33) are a combined 6-3, but with a 5.29 composite ERA and a .299 OPP AVG.  Johnson has already allowed five home runs and 11 extra-base hits in four games.  Add Danny Haren to the mix and the numbers get even worse.  Haren is 0-1 with a 9.28 ERA, and batters are hitting .420 and slugging .580 against him.

The bullpen has its bright spots—Jose Valverde is 4-for-4 in save situations with a 0.79 ERA, and has fanned 14 batters in 11 1/3 innings while walking only two, and Taylor Buchholz is 1-0 with a 2.53 ERA and an 8-to-1 K/BB ratio—but most of the relief corps is getting battered around.  Max Scherzer (0-1, 4.50, one blown save), Chad Qualls (10.80), and Brian Fuentes (16.20) aren’t doing the starters any favors.

The D-Rox have some potential help down on the farm, however.  Jeromy Burnitz is tearing up AAA pitching to the tune of a .333 batting average with 10 homers and 16 RBIs and is tied with Sacramento’s Mark McGwire for the league lead in circuit clouts.  And Brandon Lyon (1.59), Gregg Olson (2.16), and Bruce Ruffin (1-0, 1.04) are potential candidates for a call-up to the bigs.

There’s More Than One L in Seattle: It’s still early, so it’s too soon to panic about a 5-13 record and seven-game deficit, especially in a division that should be up for grabs, but Mariners fans can be forgiven for not hanging around into May to watch this sinking ship.  Whereas the Jays and D-Rox have lights at the end of their respective tunnels and strengths that can lead them there, the M’s have neither.  Except for being second in the SHL in strikeouts, thanks in large part to Randy Johnson’s 33, the Mariners don’t have much to brag about.  They’re not very good at home (5-9), they’re winless on the road (0-4), they stink against righties (2-10), and they’ve been especially bad in their last 10 games (2-8).  Otherwise things in the Emerald City are just peachy (unless you’re an NBA fan).

Not surprisingly, Alex Rodriguez has been the teams’ best hitter (.361/.400/.508) but he has yet to hit a home run, he’s scored only six times, and he’s walked only four times.  The team’s other superstar, Ken Griffey Jr. is hitting a respectable .303/.378/.439 with two homers and five RBIs, but at that pace, he’ll knock in only 43 runs on the year, and that’s not enough.  Ichiro is batting .341/.341/.341, which means all of his hits have been singles and he has no walks.  On the other hand, he’s 6-for-7 in SB attempts, so it’s not a stretch to call six of those singles doubles.  Ken Phelps is hitting only .241, but with a .380 OBA and .534 SLG, and he’s easily leading the team in homers with 5 and RBIs with 19 (Jay Buhner is hitting only .216/.256/.432, so take that, Frank Costanza).  And in an odd twist, Edgar Martinez is batting only .254/.311/.358, but has committed only one error at third base in 42 total chances (we thought we were sacrificing defense to get Edgar’s bat in the lineup; who knew?).

The pitching staff has been solid, if unspectacular—Freddy Garcia (1-1, 3.24) and Erik Hanson (2-2, 3.99) have been good so far, and Jeff Fassero made a nice impression with his first start of the season after being called up from Tacoma over the weekend, especially considering Felix Hernandez’s struggles (Hernandez was farmed out after going 0-3 with a 10.13 ERA in four starts).  Jamie Moyer has been okay (0-1, 4.85), but the “Big Unit” has been anything but, going 0-4 with a 6.99 ERA in five starts, and allowing seven homers in 28 1/3 inning.

Arthur Rhodes has been spectacular in a set-up role (0 runs in 7 1/3 innings; 12 strikeouts and no walks) and may push J.J. Putz out of the closer’s role.  On the surface, Putz has been very good (3-for-3 in saves and a 3.00 ERA), but a closer look at the numbers shows a pitcher who’s been very lucky.  Opposing batters are hitting .364 and slugging .636 against him.  Compare that to Rhodes’ .154/.231 and you can see why a change may be in the offing.  Mike Schooler (0-1, 4.11), Kaz Sasaki (1-1, 4.50), and Norm Charlton (4.50) have been okay in support roles, but they need to get better.

There’s plenty of help in Tacoma if the Mariners decide to ask for it.  Tom Paciorek (.348/2/23), Paul Sorrento (.348/5/23), and Mike Blowers (.287/4/17) are all stinging the ball on offense, and Mark Langston (3-1, 2.75) and Enrique Romo (2.08) are ready to join the Mariners’ pitching staff when called upon.

A Fish Out of Water With Little Hope of Survival: That more or less accurately describes the Marlins/Rays, who sit at 2-16 after 18 games and are already 10 games off the pace.  Part of the reason the team has been so putrid thus far is that they’re 0-4 in one-run games.  Reverse that and they’re 6-12 and in third place with a more manageable six-game deficit.  Most of the reason, though, is the Marlins/Rays are just plain bad, which is to be expected of a team with only 27 years of combined history.

The offense is getting nice contributions from Hanley Ramirez, who is leading the team in the Triple Crown categories with a .368 average, four homers, and 16 RBIs, Gary Sheffield (.306/.405/.452), Aubrey Huff (.324/.360/.479), and Miguel Cabrera (.304/.351/.464), but the rest of the lineup is struggling badly and hitting only .212.  Only Sheffield has as many walks as strikeouts (10/10) and the team ranks second to last in whiffs and 22nd in walks.  Needless to say, they’re not a very disciplined group.

The pitching staff is a disciplined group—it ranks fifth in the SHL in strikeouts and ninth in walks—but that discipline hasn’t translated into success, at least not among the starters.  Kevin Brown is 1-2 with a 2.84 ERA and a 3.75 K/BB ratio, and has yet to allow a homer; otherwise no other starting pitcher has an ERA below 4.00.  Josh Beckett is 0-2 with a respectable 4.34 ERA; Dontrelle Willis went 0-2 with a 6.00 ERA while filling in for an injured Scott Kazmir, and was promptly shipped back to Durham upon Kazmir’s return.  Kazmir is 0-3 with a 7.15 ERA and was diagnosed with a tender shoulder on Opening Day, which is obvious cause for concern; A.J. Burnett is 1-3 with a 7.77 ERA, and Brad Penny is 0-1 with a 10.24 ERA in two starts.

Fortunately the bullpen has been much better so far, although there are issues with closer Bryan Harvey.  Danys Baez (0 runs in 4 2/3 innings pitched), Robb Nen (0-1, 3.09), Roberto Hernandez (0-1, 3.09), and Antonio Alfonseca (3.14) have been very good to this point.  Kevin Gregg (6.35) is struggling in a set-up role, and Harvey is only 1-for-2 in save situations and sports a gaudy 9.64 ERA.  Of the eight hits he’s surrendered, four have gone for extra bases and opponents are slugging .667 against him.  The team is loaded with closers, however, and any of the relievers can step in as the stopper if needed.

If all else fails, the farm system has some help on the horizon.  Al Leiter (1-0, 1.29), Carl Pavano (3-2, 2.11), and James Shields (3-1, 2.43) are having success on the mound in Durham, and Fred McGriff (.421/1/4), Julio Lugo (.327/3/13), Edgar Renteria (.338/0/10), Randy Winn (.372, six steals), and Carlos Pena (.266/7/17) are providing plenty of firepower.