Scott Delaney
Scott Delaney Tuesday night ... 10-DIME ANGELS (WITH O'Sullivan and Chen) - Alright, it’s a re-write from last night’s Pay-After release that was rained out, as I am backing this kid Sean O'Sullivan, who has lived up to his hype and has rapidly opened eyes after his first four Major League starts. As I stated last night, this kid has done a great job in keeping his team in ball games against some very tough lineups, including Colorado and Texas. He’s displayed durability, he’s shown toughness and he’s provided resourcefulness for the American League West-leading Angels.
Sullivan has recorded 15 strikeouts against a mere six walks over 23-2/3 innings. He had his roughest start in his most recent appearance, on July 4, at home versus the Orioles, as the brawny right-hander was tagged for four earned runs on nine hits in 5-2/3 innings. He took a no-decision out of that one, and the Angels are a perfect 4-0 in his starts.
On the other hand, we’re going against Bruce Chen, whose numbers don't look so great, despite giving the Royals a chance to win in his first two starts, pitching at least six innings in both of them. It’s his last two starts that are suspect, as he lasted 4-2/3 innings and gave up seven runs against Detroit on July 7, and then surrendered three runs in three innings of his last start on July 12 against Boston. He’s 0-4 with a 6.86 ERA overall, and against a superior lineup, he’ll struggle.
After a hard-fought 1-0 win in Oakland on Sunday, the Angels have won nine of 12, so I believe they’ll most certainly be able to manhandle a Royals team that has now lost eight of nine.
5-DIME ASTROS (WITH Rodriguez) - I wasn’t necessarily a believer of Wandy Rodriguez until his last outing, in which he threw six scoreless innings against the Major League-leading Dodgers last Thursday. He extended his scoreless innings streak to 17 over three starts. He has a 0.41 ERA in his last three starts, allowing one earned run in 22 innings, and in his only appearance against the Cardinals this season he produced a quality start in giving up five hits and three runs in six innings.
And that was at Busch Stadium on April 12. This one is at home, where the southpaw is 1-0 in his last three starts there, having given up five earned runs over 22 innings for a stellar 2.04 ERA. Expanding the look at Rodriguez to his last five starts overall, he’s 4-0 with a stifling 1.54 ERA, while he’s recorded 33 strikeouts in those outings.
He’ll most certainly out pitch Todd Wellemeyer, who has had difficulty on the highway, as evidenced by his 5.90 ERA with a suitcase in hand. Trouble is for him tonight is left-handed hitters are crushing Wellemeyer with a .345 batting average and .604 slugging percentage.
This might seem like a hefty price to lay, but the Astros are 29-18 since losing a season-high seven in a row near the end of May, and they’re just three games behind the Redbirds, who have now lost four in a row at Houston dating to last season. Take the home team here.
