MLB Week (August 23-29, 2021)

Mazel tov

P Scott Effross (Cubs) became the first Jewish player this season to make his Major League debut. After a 6-year sojourn in Chicago’s farm system, the 27-year-old reliever was called up on August 28 and made his first appearance the following day. It probably wasn’t the most satisfying experience; Effross hit a batter, threw a wild pitch, and gave up a 2-run HR over 0.2 innings. But he hardly stood out among a Cubs pitching staff that gave up 13 runs that day. And Effross did record his first MLB strikeout, making 2B Cesar Hernandez (White Sox) swing and miss on a 90.8-mph sinker.
3B Alex Bregman (Astros) returned to play after two months on the injured list.

Stats to share

So far this season, Jewish batters are striking out less often than Major League batters overall (20.1% of all plate appearances versus 23.4%). But they are walking slightly less often, too (7.7% versus 8.7%).

Weekly overview

Jewish batters hit a combined .241 (14-for-58) last week, with 3 HRs, a double, 7 RBIs, a stolen base, 6 walks, 17 strikeouts, and a .338 OBP (on-base percentage). The performance kept their collective batting average steady at .241, versus the Major League average of .242.
Jewish pitchers went 0-0 with one hold and a 5.00 ERA last week, yielding 8 hits, zero walks, and 3 hit batters over 9 combined innings while striking out 8. The performance raised their collective ERA from 4.60 to 4.61, versus the Major League average of 4.08.

At the plate

SS Alex Bregman (Astros) returned to the lineup August 25 after two months on the injured list. For the week, he hit .357 (5-for-14) with a double, one RBI, an OBP of .471, and a .899 OPS (on-base plus slugging). No doubt Houston is happy to have Bregman’s glove back, with plays like this and this.
CF Kevin Pillar (Mets) hit .333 (3-for-9) with a .455 OBP and a 1.455 OPS. The highlight came on August 28, when he stroked 2 solo HRs, the second one a score-tyer. It was Pillar’s second double-HR game of the season and sixth of his career.
1B Rowdy Tellez (Brewers) hit .227 (5-for-22) with a home run, 3 RBIs, a .261 OBP, and a .625 OPS.
LF Joc Pederson (Braves) hit .100 (1-for-10) with an RBI, a .286 OBP, and a .386 OPS. He also sealed teammate Max Fried’s August 27 win over the Giants with a fantastic game-ending catch.
C Garrett Stubbs (Astros) struck out in his sole at-bat, on August 29.

On the mound

Max Fried (Braves) pitched six innings in an August 27 win but did not end up with the decision. He yielded 3 earned runs on 5 hits, zero walks, and a hit batter over 6 innings while striking out 5. Fried had won all four of his previous outings.
Richard Bleier (Marlins) earned a hold and maintained a 0.00 ERA over three appearances. In 2.1 combined innings, he yielded 2 hits and zero walks while hitting one batter and striking out 2.
Scott Effross (Cubs) tossed 0.2 innings of relief on August 29, yielding 2 earned runs on a hit, zero walks, and a strikeout.

Players to watch

C Andy Yerzy (Diamondbacks/Double-A/Hillsboro Hops) made the most of his Double-A debut on August 25, going 2-for-3 with a 3-run HR, 4 RBIs, and a walk. For the week, Yerzy hit .273 (3-for-11) with a hit-by-pitch and a remarkable 6 walks, giving him on OBP of .556.
C Mike Rothenberg (Tigers/Low-A/Lakeland Flying Tigers), a 2021 draftee, hit .385 (10-for-26) with a home run, 3 doubles, 5 RBIs, and an .892 OPS.
P Josh Wolf (Indians/Low-A/Lynchburg Hillcats) had quite a start on August 9. In 4 shutout innings, he limited the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers to 2 hits and 2 walks while fanning 9 batters, including 6 in a row. Kannapolis C Shawn Goosenberg went 0-for-2 against Wolf.
P Noah Davis (Indians/High-A/Spokane Indians) earned a win in pretty spectacular fashion on August, yielding 2 earned runs on 4 hits over 6 innings and striking out 11 with zero walks. Davis’s 104 strikeouts rank #5 among all High-A pitchers.
P Kyle Molnar (Angels/High-A/Tri-City Dust Devils) tossed 4.1 scoreless innings over 2 appearances, yielding 4 hits and zero walks while striking out 6.
P Zack Weiss (Mariners/Triple-A/Tacoma Rainiers) tossed 2 scoreless innings over 2 games, yielding one hit and no walks while striking out 5.
Two Jewish pitchers are among the Top 10 in High-A for strikeouts per 9 innings. Ben Gross (Minnesota/High-A/Cedar Rapids Kernels) ranks #3 at 11.63, while Noah Davis (Indians/High-A/Spokane Indians) ranks #9 at 9.68.

Transactions

Injured list

P Robert Stock (Mets), right hamstring strain, since July 21. Out for the season.

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