Mazel tov
- August 4 was a great day for Jewish pinch-hitters. Rowdy Tellez (Brewers) hit a 3-run home run in the 7th inning of an afternoon game to erase a 2-1 deficit and seal a 4-2 win over the Pirates. Later that night, Joc Pederson hit a 2-run double to pad Atlanta’s lead in a 7-4 win over the Cardinals.
- Ryan Sherriff (Rays) pitched a perfect 9th inning on August 4 to earn the second save of his career. Sherriff retired the side on just 8 pitches and preserved a 4-3 win for the 1st-place Rays.
Stats to share
- P Max Fried (Braves) is hitting .324 (12-for-37) this season — including a remarkable 3-for-5 as a pinch-hitter — and is leagues ahead of the #2 pitcher, Luis Castillo (Reds), who is hitting .206. Fried’s .780 OPS (on-base plus slugging) also dwarfs the competition.
- P Ryan Sherriff (Rays) has pitched just 10.1 innings this season — admittedly, not a huge sample size — but the difference in his performance at home versus away is pronounced. In 4 away innings, opposing batters have hit .429 against Sherriff. At home in St. Petersburg, the southpaw has tossed 6.1 scoreless innings and held opposing hitters to a paltry .095 average.
Weekly overview
- Jewish batters hit a combined .278 (15-for-54) last week, with 2 HRs, 3 doubles, 9 RBIs, and a .361 OBP (on-base percentage). The performance lifted their collective batting average from .242 to .244, versus the Major League average of .241.
- Jewish pitchers had a strong week, going a combined 2-0 with a save, a hold, and a 1.06 ERA. The trio yielded 16 hits and 3 walks over 17 innings while striking out 17. The performance chopped their collective ERA from 5.11 to 4.79, versus the Major League average of 4.12.
At the plate
- 1B Rowdy Tellez (Brewers) hit .300 (6-for-20) last week, with a home run, double, 5 RBIs, 2 intentional walks, and a .891 OPS. Tellez’s feats included a 10th-inning, walk-off single on August 6 that wowed the home-team crowd.
- LF Joc Pederson (Braves) hit .278 (5-for-18) with a game-tying home run, double, 4 RBIs, and an .881 OPS.
- P Max Fried (Braves) hit .500 (3-for-6), including a pinch-hit double. He had a hit in all 3 games he played.
- CF Kevin Pillar (Mets) hit .100 (1-for-10) with a hit-by-pitch and a .282 OPS.
On the mound
- Max Fried (Braves) won twice last week, yielding just one earned run over 12 combined innings on 11 hits, 2 walks, and 12 strikeouts.
- Ryan Sherriff (Rays) recorded a 3.00 ERA and earned a save over 3 appearances, yielding 2 hits and zero walks over 3 combined innings while striking out 4 and holding opposing batters to a .154 batting average.
- Richard Bleier (Marlins) tossed 2 scoreless innings and earned a hold over 3 appearances, yielding 3 hits and a walk while striking out one.
Players to watch
- An undrafted free agent signed out of college by the New York Mets in 2016, C Scott Manea (Astros/Double-A/Corpus Christi Hooks) is enjoying a breakout season. After going a combined 7-for-9 on August 6 and 7, the Massachusetts native is hitting .285 with 8 HRs, 34 RBIs, an impressive .390 OBP, and a .851 OPS. Behind the plate, Manea has a .992 fielding percentage and has thrown out 29% of attempted base-stealers.
- P Scott Effross (Cubs/Triple-A/Iowa Cubs) tossed 4 scoreless innings over 3 appearances last week and earned his first save since 2018, yielding a combined 2 hits and one walk while striking out 3. In 34.2 innings at the Triple-A level this season, Effross has struck out 39 batters and yielded a mere 0.95 walks/hits per inning.
- SS Shawn Goosenberg (White Sox/Rookie/ACL White Sox), who was chosen in the next-to-last round of the 2021 amateur draft, homered and drew a walk in his pro debut August 5.
Injured list
- P Robert Stock (Mets), right hamstring strain, since July 21. Out for season.
- 3B Alex Bregman (Astros), left quad strain, since June 17.
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