Guardians vs. Athletics Pitching Matchup & Game Preview

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00:009-67, 9-68 on the rotation, a 4-0-5 start today.

00:03Slade Ciccone will be on the mound here for the Guardians

00:05going up against J.P. Sears, the left-handed pitcher for the Athletics.

00:09You look at the total, Tom.

00:10Opened up at 9-1⁄2, still sits at 9-1⁄2.

00:13Double-digit runs possibly expected today

00:15and a slight favorite here for the Guardians.

00:17I don't know if either one of these pitches, but I tell you,

00:19Ciccone's got on my nerves quite a few times already this year.

00:22I thought instances he should have got hammered.

00:24He sort of slipped his way in and out of those games.

00:26I don't know if it happens today.

00:27I like this A's lineup, and I love that hitting environment once again.

00:32I do, too.

00:33The issue is the Guardians lineup doesn't have a ton of power.

00:38That's what it really comes down to.

00:39And, yes, the hitting environment is really strong today.

00:41Looking at J.P. Sears, when we're seeing, you know,

00:4317.7% striker rate on the season, 2.13 home runs per nine allowed,

00:48a 278 bat, but these are all terrible numbers,

00:50and a 50% fly ball rate.

00:52Absolutely terrible.

00:53But when we do specifically look at the Guardians since May 22nd

00:57versus lefties, not a single hitter has an ISO over 200, right?

01:03So, yes, the hitting environment's great.

01:05The pitcher is terrible, but the lineup doesn't necessarily bring what we want.

01:09And, again, we look to the other side.

01:11For the athletics lineup, Nick Kurtz, their young prospect,

01:15multiple game-winning home runs this past week,

01:16a 500 ISO since May 22nd in versus Fridays.

01:21A bidet at 292, Rooker, who I really like today for home, are at 250.

01:26I think the pieces are there.

01:28Again, I just don't know who to trust from each lineup.

01:30I think the game total or team totals would be better ways to go.