IT has been brought to our attention that some folks think that there's not enough "action" here at the blog; as we see it that's really a) a "carry-over metaphor" for the state of baseball itself, or b) an indication that we've gotten into the "hot weather" portion of the year and the red-blooded males who primarily make up our audience would like some titillation to go with their statistical diatribe.
Never let it be said that we aren't at least occasionally willing to oblige our readership. The young lady in question wishes to remain anonymous, however, preferring only to tell you that the flavor of the featured "fruit treat" is pineapple...
And of course you will forgive us when we segue into the NL data by noting that it is noticeably more "juicy" than yesterday's look at the AL...rim shot, please, and on to the NLC:
We missed a few green color-codes (possibly we were a bit...distracted?) but we trust you will be at least somewhat forgiving. The Reds leaped into first place in this scatter-brained division thanks to hot hitting and a bullpen that "did the right thing" (take a bow, Spike Lee...) at the right time. The chances of them winning at that June pace (18-9, .667) are not high, though, because their starting pitching resembles the still-reeling Cardinals.
The Cubs actually got 96% of their decisions from their starters this past month, which is clearly the anomaly of all anomalies; but their starting pitching has been consistently the best in the NLC, which might bode well for a surprise run in the second half.
Let's head east before we head west, shall we?
Three hot teams in this division during June: Braves, Phillies and the ever-surprising Marlins. If the Fish could get
Sandy Alcantara to pitch the way he did in 2021-22, they could make things really interesting.
The Braves' bats and their bullpen were the key to their hot run (we've covered their hot hitting month elsewhere). They won't have another 13-2 month from their starters with that type of ERA. The Phils had a nice run from their starters in June, but their bullpen has been just under league average for the entire year; they may need the Marlins to take a nosedive to return to the post-season this year.
Just take one quick look at the won-loss record of the Mets' bullpen in June...now, quickly--quickly--avert your eyes!
Unfortunately, the Nationals continue to look for a pitching staff on Hunter Biden's laptop.
OK, enough perfervid humidity, already: leftward ho!
NOTE that the Giants' bullpen has eight more wins (27) than the team's starters (19). We're not sure that something like this has been done over a full season--we'll check into it and get back to you. We'll also check that winning percentage discrepancy (.649 RP/.452 SP). Is any of this sustainable? For now, all we can be somewhat certain of is that Gabe Kapler's yoga mat seems to have burn marks all over it...
The Padres' bullpen is 3-13 since May, which suggests that things in the Border City are just as they've always been: snakebit.
Starting pitching is what's keeping the Diamondbacks from running away from the other teams in the division, and the Dodgers really need their injured pitchers to return sooner than later before they head into a more permanent form of mediocrity.
And once again, the Rox' bullpen is the only thing keeping them from getting underneath the performance of the AL stalwarts (A's, Royals) that they otherwise resemble.
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