Streaking and Slumping Pitchers
Streaking
Jorge De La Rosa (Colorado Rockies)
No member of the Rockies has benefited more from the midseason managerial change to Jim Tracy than De La Rosa.
The lefthander is 9-2 in 11 starts since Tracy took over in late May. He has won his last seven outings, working at least 5 2-3 innings in all of them while allowing no more than three earned runs in any of them.
"He's dealing with adversity a lot better," Tracy told the team's web site. "He's not overthrowing the ball, not rushing, he can get his pitches in the strike zone. When he does that with the stuff that he has, he's a very tough guy."
During his unbeaten streak, De La Rosa has a 2.70 ERA despite making five starts in hitter-happy Coors Field. One reason for De La Rosa's prolonged success has been his ability to limit the long ball. He has given up just three homers in his last 46 2-3 innings as a starter after allowing four in his previous 15 innings.
Rich Harden (Chicago Cubs)
The right-hander is in his best stretch of the season, even though his win-loss record may not reflect it.
In his last four starts, Harden is 2-0 with a pair of no-decisions in which the Cubs managed just three runs. He has gone four straight starts without allowing three runs for the first time this season.
There's more. In addition to a 1.50 ERA, Harden has allowed just 18 hits and walks while striking out 32 in 24 innings, including a season-high 11 in just five frames in his last outing.
Among pitchers with at least 90 innings, Harden is second in the NL in strikeout ratio, averaging 10.56 per nine innings.
Returning
Joe Martinez (San Francisco Giants)
The rookie righty will face Houston in his first major league start. He pitched twice in relief in April but took a line drive to the forehead off the bat of Milwaukee's Mike Cameron. He suffered a concussion, three hairline skull fractures, internal bleeding and a black eye.
Martinez underwent multiple CAT scans and was hospitalized for several days. More than a week after the incident, he still had no memory of it.
After a period of inactivity and eight rehab starts at three different levels of the minor leagues, Martinez is back in the majors with the Giants still searching for rotation consistency behind Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain.
Martinez was 0-1 with a 3.35 ERA in 37 2-3 minor league innings. He was 10-10 with a 2.49 ERA for Double-A Connecticut in 2008.
Kyle Davies (Kansas City Royals)
Davies has not pitched since June 19, after getting sent to the minor leagues because a prolonged stretch of poor outings. Davies is taking the rotation spot of Sidney Ponson, who was designated for assignment.
In his last seven starts before his demotion, Davies was 1-6 with a 6.30 ERA and a 1.60 WHIP (walks + hits per inning). He allowed eight homers in that stretch, and his only win came in a contest where he pitched the minimum five innings.
In eight starts at Triple-A Omaha, Davies was 4-2 with a 2.14 ERA. He was sent to the minors to work on command of his fastball.
"We still want to see it be better," Royals manager Trey Hillman told the team's web site. "It's just time to get him back up here and ride it out, get him back in the rotation and, hopefully, he performs well."
Slumping
Sergio Mitre (New York Yankees)
Take a good look at the journeyman right-hander filling the fifth spot in the rotation. He is getting worse with every outing, which is not a good sign for a team already monitoring Joba Chamberlain's innings.
In Mitre's first start, he worked his way through 5 2-3 innings to get a win. In his next start, he gave up four runs and nine hits in just five innings but received no decision. In his last outing, he was roughed up for five runs and seven hits in three innings and took the loss.
The innings are shortening, the runs are growing and the price on Mitre is shrinking. Those are telltale signs of a slumping pitcher.
