MLB Power Rankings: Cardinals heating up, chaos in the AL West

FIP game strong

When browsing pitching data across the Web, FIP is the category I view most often. To help simplify things, FIP stands for Fielding Independent Pitching, which is based on outcomes that do not involve defense. There’s a long formula, but put simply, it’s a better judgment of a pitching standpoint as compared to ERA.

Anyways, the three clubs with the lowest FIP in the league are the Cubs, Mets and…the Philadelphia Phillies.

You heard that correctly. Sitting at a 3.10 FIP, the number is nearly a point below their team ERA of 4.05. Philly can thank Vincent Velasquez for that.

In two starts, the former Astro is 2-0 with 0.40 FIP. In other words, Velasquez has not allowed a run in 15 innings thus far. His success can be credited to his fastball, a foursean he has thrown 65 percent of the time in 2016, leading to batters whiffing on it 20 percent of the time.

In his masterful three-hit shutout against the Padres, Velasquez struck on 13 of 16 batters on his fastball, pinpointing it up in the zone to force hitters to chase.

In the San Diego series, 25-year-old Jared Eickhoff had a career day, striking out nine over seven innings with four hits allowed. He’s got a killer curveball with hard bite, dropping roughly 9.5 inches per pitch, plus the righty has walked just two batters.

Aaron Nola, the team’s “ace” entering the season, has gone 0-2 in his first two outings, but his, along with Jeremy Hellickson’s, numbers aren’t as poor as they appear. Nola’s 5.68 ERA looks atrocious, but his FIP is sitting comfortably at 3.24. Meanwhile, Hellickson has been a serviceable starter, which is all the Phillies are asking for in the rebuilding year.

Next: 20-11: AL West...?

Cover jinx?

Sports Illustrated is already feeling nervous about its World Series prediction.

The Houston Astros were a popular pick amongst experts leading into the regular season. Other than the Cubs, the Astros have the deepest young talent pool in the big leagues,

So, what’s the problem?

Dallas Keuchel, while not posting eye-popping numbers, has been solid, relying on groundballs outs with just one game of over five strikeouts. Maybe there’s reason to be concerned there, but it’s the backend of the Houston rotation which has been a wreck.

Collin McHugh, Mike Fiers and newly acquired Doug Fister have combined to allow 23 runs in 29 innings. Fiers, in particular, has gotten off a very tough start (6.55 ERA), with opposing hitting .463 on his fastball. His velocity is down just a bit from 2015, as evidenced by three homers given up to open the season. Once Lance McCullers returns from rehab stints, Fiers would be the guy to slide into the long relief role.

Offensively, the Astros have relied heavily on the top of the order as guys such as Carlos Gomez (.190, 0 HR), Luis Valbuena (.182, 0 HR) and Jason Castro (42 K%) have struggled. Thankfully, the emergence of Tyler White, who leads the team with a .395 average and four homers, has been a pleasant surprise.

Next: 10-1: NL Central clash awaits

Young Cards heating up

Despite a 7-5 record, the St. Louis Cardinals have the second-highest run differential in the majors (+35).

Sure, the Cardinals have played mediocre teams such as the Braves, Brewers and Reds to open the season, but 85 runs in 12 games is hard not to be impressed by. The majority of this courtesy of guys named Aledmys and Hazelbaker.

It’s the Cardinal way to find capable hitters to plug into the lineup, with Diaz and Hazelbaker being no exception. Diaz (.406, 2 HR) has been held hitless in a game just once this season, while the latter has been on a torrid pace, including a 4-for-5 outing against Milwaukee.

In that series, we were all reminded of how good Jaime Garcia can be on any given day. Garcia allowed just one hit over nine innings, striking 13 with one walk as the righty never threw more than 14 pitches in a frame.

Next: Your season is already over

But we’re also reminded of how dreadful the St. Louis defense can be without Jhonny Peralta at shortstop. The Cards have committed 12 errors, tied for second-most in the league, five charged to middle infielders Jedd Gyorko and Kolten Wong, combined.