Keys to the Game (5/4)

Keys to the game-

1.) Settle in early! Danny Salazar has really struggled with finding his command and control early on in ballgames. So far this season he has given up 3 home runs, all 3 coming in the first inning. He has given up 15 runs so far, 8 of those coming in the first inning. While his 13.03 strikeout ration per nine innings is the best in the league, he has a 4.34 ERA and a 2-2 record. The reason his ERA is so high is because of the runs given up in the very first inning of the game! The Detroit Tigers have the ability to offensively flex, so we need Danny Boy to work out those first inning jitters/kinks/mechanical issues during his pregame warm up and come out ready.

2.) Lock it down. So do you remember a couple of days ago when I said that our bullpen was ranked 2^nd in all of Major League baseball? Well, just within that short time… that has changed. We are now ranked 1^st. That’s right, we are the best. With a 1.91 combined ERA, our pen has only allowed 17 earned runs in 80 innings of work. They have also combined for 96 strikeouts. Just to put those numbers into perspective, the bullpen currently in 2^nd place is Boston (gag); they have a 2.12 combined ERA, have allowed 19 earned runs in 80 innings pitched, and have 78 strikeouts. Our bullpen not only maintains, they lock it down. Danny Salazar has had trouble getting to the 7^th inning, so chances are that we will need our bullpen to cover some innings today. We need them to keep dominating.

3.) Don’t let Fulmer settle in. Michael Fulmer is 2-1 on the 2017 season, with a 3.19 ERA. He has been struggling with the same issue that Danny Salazar has been struggling with, settling in. Out of the 11 runs he has allowed so far this season, 9 of those have come within the first three innings of the game. Scoring on him early will be our best opportunity to do damage. So be aggressive, make him throw a lot of pitches, mess with his rhythm. He is going to be making adjustment as he goes through the line up… so we must do the same.  This will be our first time facing him this season, lets get to him early and rattle him. Let’s split the series!