Well, we’ve reached August – and with July’s games, the All Star Game, the Hall of Fame ceromonies and the trade deadine behind us, it’s time for Baseball Roundtable’s monthly wrap-up. So, let’s take a look at the MLB stats and stories that caught BBRT’s eye in the month of July, as well as BBRT’s Players and Pitchers of the month, the standings and 2018’s batting and pitching leaders. But first a look at the July connection between Kiké Hernández and Babe Ruth.
Kiké and The Babe … Sharing the Record Book
Regular readers know how BBRT loves an iconic or ironic coincidence. Well, on July 24, a truly “bad day at the office” for Dodgers’ utility man Enrique “Kiké” Hernández led to just that. So, Hernández will lead off BBRT’s July Wrap.
Hernández started the game (at home against the Phillies) at 2B , moved to RF in the 14th inning and ended up on the mound (as the Dodgers’ ninth pitcher of the game) in the 16th. The results? Hernandez went zero-for-seven at the plate – AND got the loss, giving up a three-run, walk-off home run to Trevor Plouffe, as the Dodgers went down 7-4 in 16 frames. That long ball made Hernández the first MLB full-time position player ever to give up a walk-of home run. (How often are position players on the mound with the game still on the line?)
So, what does this have to do with The Babe?
Only two players in MLB history have played the infield, outfield and given up at least three runs on the mound all in one game. Hernández and George Herman “Babe” Ruth (LF-1B-P on October 1, 1921).
Ironically, Hernández shares another record with the iconic Ruth. They are both among the 10 players top launch a record three-home runs in a post-season game. Babe Ruth (who did it twice) was the first – in Game four of the 1926 World Series. Hernández is the most recent – in Game Five of last year’s NCLS.
Side note: In that 1921 game, Ruth started in LF, later moved to 1B and then took the mound in the top of the eighth, protecting a 6-0 Yankee lead over the Philadelphia Athletics. The Bambino gave up a game-tying six runs in the eighth frame, but pitched a scoreless ninth, tenth and eleventh to get the win (7-6).
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Now it’s time to move on a look at BBRT Players and Pitchers of the Month.
AL PLAYER OF THE MONTH … Jose Ramirez, 3B Indians
Photo by Keith Allison 
It was a close contest for BBRT American League player of the month, but – appropriately – speed won the race. The Indian’s Jose Ramirez hit .322 for the month, bashed eight round trippers (fourth in the league), tied for second in July RBI (25) and was third in runs scored (21). The other two top contenders had similar number across all those categories, but did not match Ramirez in the speed department, as the Indians’ third sacker stole an MLB-tops 11 bases (12 attempts) in July.
Other contenders: A’s RF Khris Davis. Whoa. Where did that come from? The A’s Khri Davis came into July hitting just .231 (but with 20 home runs). Davis raked at a .323 pace for the month, launching nine (second in the AL) home runs and driving in an MLB-tops 29. Davis also scored 18 times. And he did all this while striking out in in nearly one of every three at bats (32 whiffs in 99 at bats). The Angels’ Kole Calhoun earned consideration by putting up a .322 average, an AL-leading ten June home runs, 25 RBI (second only to Davis) and 20 runs scored (fourth in the AL).
AL PITCHER OF THE MONTH … Chris Sale, LHP, Red Sox
Photo by Keith Allison
Chris Sale tossed 25 innings in four July starts – and gave up just one (yes, one) earned run. That amounted to an MLB-best (among qualifiers) 0.36 July earned run average. Sale won three games (no losses). In his one no-decision, he went six innings, giving up no runs on three hits and two walks while fanning ten. For the month, the dominating southpaw also fanned 43 batters, while walking just four. All of this made him a pretty easy choice for BBRT AL Pitcher of the Month.
Other contenders: Indians RHP Carlos Carrasco went 4-0 for July, with a 2.59 earned run average and 32 strikeouts in 24 1/3 innings. He started four games and even came on in relief for one appearance – a clean two-strikeout eighth inning against the Yankees on July 15 (that earned him a win). Also considered was Mariners’ closer Edwin Diaz, who saved nine games (tied for the AL lead); pitched ten innings (in ten appearances); fanned 19; gave up just two hits and two walks (one unearned run, which cost him a loss). Diaz now leads MLB with 40 saves; seven more than the next best (Craig Kimbrel).
NL PLAYER OF THE MONTH … Christian Yelich, CF, Brewers
You simply can’t ignore the fact that Brewers’ outfielder Christian Yelich hit at a .400 pace for the month of July (the highest average among players with at least 75 plate appearances). While he popped just four home runs, his 23 RBI tied for the most in the NL for the month and his 20 runs scored were the NL’s third-best. Yelich had an MLB-tops 42 hits in July, and he had 15 multi-hit games (out of 26). In the process, he raised his season average from .289 to .321. Yelich also swiped three bases in four attempts.
Cardinals’ 1B Matt Carpenter’s bat came alive in July. After hitting .259, with 15 home runs through June (76 games), Carpenter upped his game in July (in 26 contests). He hit .333 for the month and led the league in July home runs (11, which led all of MLB), topped the NL in runs scored (22), and was fifth in RBI (21). Nineteen of his 31 hits went for extra bases, and his .774 slugging percentage for the month led MLB.
Other contenders: BBRT also looked at Cubs’ 2B Javier Baez (.343-6-23, with six stolen bases) and the Rockies’ slick-fielding, hard-hitting 3B Nolan Arenado (.307-8-22).
NL PITCHER OF THE MONTH … Zack Greinke, RHP, Diamondbacks
Photo by jnashboulden
Zack Greinke went 4-0 in five July starts for the D-backs. He 1.60 earned run average was the lowest among NL qualifiers (at least one inning pitched for each game his team played) and his 35 strikeouts (33 2/3 innings) ranked fourth in the NL. He walked just five hitters.
Other contenders: Phillies’ RHP Aaron Nola only went 2-1 in five starts for the month, but he tied for fourth with 35 strikeouts (33 innings), while walking just seven and also put up a nifty 1.91 earned run average. BBRT also considered the Brewers’ Jhoulys Chacin, who went 4-0 for the month (five starts), with 27 strikeouts (30 2/3 innings) and a 2.64 earned run average.
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Let’s move on to bit of a July overview.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Nobody outplayed the Boston Red Sox in July, as they went an MLB-best 19-6 for the month – holding off the Yankees who had the league’s third-best record at 15-10. The A’s had the second-best month in the AL at 17-8.
The Red Sox scored the AL’s fourth -highest run total for July at 134 and gave up the league’s fewest runs (87). Their July offense was led by the likes of Mookie Betts (.330-5-15) and J.D. Martinez (.310-7-22); while Chris Sale (with his July ERA of 0.36) and closer Craig Kimbrel (with an AL-best nine saves) led the mound staff. The Yankees relied heavily on power, launching a league-topping 37 July home runs (scoring 140 times); while surrending the fifth-lowest AL run total (102). Surprisingly, despite leading the AL in home runs for the month, the New York squad had no one in July’s top-ten. Topping New York in home run sfor the month was Aaron Hicks with six, followed by Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge with five each. The A’s surrended the sixth-fewest runs in the AL, and scored the fifth most (133). Critical to the A’s success was Khris Davis with a .323 July average, nine home runs and an MLB-best 29 RBI.
Those closest races in the AL see the Red Sox out in front of the Yankees by 5 games in the East and the Astros, Mariners and A’s separated by five games in the West. The Orioles go into August 42 games off the pace in the tough AL East.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
In the NL, the Rockies and Pirates were July’s hottest teams, each winnnig 17 contests. (The Rockies lost just six gameS, the Pirates nine.)
Pittsburgh scored the fourth-most July runs in the NL, topped the league in home runs (36) and were second only to the Rockies in batting average (.275 to .278). Key to their attack were Starling Marte (.341-7-20) and Gregory Polanco (.301-8-18). The Rockies, as noted, led in batting average and popped the third-most July homers in the league (34). The Rockies spread the offense around, with three players at .345 or above for July – Trevor Story (.358-4-11); Charlie Blackmon (.351-7-14); and Carlos Gonzalez (.345-6-18) – and Nolan Arenado chipped in with .307-8-22. The Rocks also surprised with July’s second-lowest NL earned run average (3.16) – led by Jon Gray (2-0, 1.66 for the month); Tyler Anderson (1-0, but 2.16 in five starts); and Kyle Freeland (2-0, 2.54).
The NL West is the race to watch, as the D-backs, Rockies and Dodgers entered August separated by just 1/2 game. The Wild Card could also be a fight to the finish. We entered August with the Braves, Rockies and Cardinals basically tied for the final NL Wild Card spot.
The Least Successful Squads
The Padres had MLB’s worst July record, winning just five and losing 20. No other team in the NL won fewer than ten games. In the AL, four teams failed to win ten games in July: Rangers (8-17); Royals (8-16); Orioles (9-16); Blue Jays (9-15).
If the season ended July 31, your playoff teams would be:
American League: Red Sox, Indians Astros. Wild Cards: Yankees, Mariners.
National League: Phillies, Cubs, D-backs. Wild Cards: Brewers and Braves, Rockies or Cardinals.
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TROT INDEX … A REGULAR BBRT FEATURE
Through July 31, more than one-third (34.8 percent) of all MLB 2018 plate appearances have ended in a trot (back to the dugout, around the bases, to first base). We are talking about strikeouts (we’ve still seen more strikeouts than base hits this season), home runs, walks, hit by pitch and catcher’s interference – all outcomes that are, basically, devoid of action on the base paths or in the field (unless of course a hit batsman should charge the mound). Here’s the breakout: strikeouts (22.2%); Walks (8.6%); home runs (3.0%); HBP (1.0%); Catcher’s Interference (less than .001%).
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HOW ABOUT SOME TEAM STATS FOR JUlY?
TEAM STATISTICS (leaders) FOR THE MONTH OF JUlY
RUNS SCORED … MLB Team Average – 117
AL: Indians (153); Twins (142); Yankees (140)
NL: Nationals (140); Cardinals (131); D-backs (131)
The Mariners scored an MLB-fewest 77 runs (23 games) in July, while the Padres put up the fewest tallies in the NL (89 in 25 games).
BATTING AVERAGE … MLB Team Average – .255
AL: Indians (.284); Yankees (.281); Rays (.274)
NL: Rockies (.278); Pirates (.275); Nationals (.273)
HOME RUNS … MLB Team Average – 29
AL: Yankees (37); Indians (36); three with 35
NL: Pirates (36); Nationals (35); Rockies (34)
The Giants, with just 16 dingers, were one of only two teams with fewer than 20 long balls in July. (The Mariners had 19.)
STOLEN BASES … MLB Team Average – 12
AL: Indians (26); Red Sox (18); Rangers (17)
NL: Brewers (21); Pirates (19); Padres (17)
The Dodger did not do Maury Wills proud in July, swiping an MLB-low two bags in just seven attempts.
STRIKEOUTS … MLB Team Average – 207
AL: Rangers (257); Royals (230); Twins (227)
NL: Brewers (259); Phillies (251); Padres (247)
The Indians fanned the fewest timesin July at 139, while the Rockies were the most “on the ball” in the NL with a league-low 182 whiffs.
WALKS DRAWN … MLB Average – 81
AL: A’s (101); Yankees (97); Twins (91)
NL: Dodgers (109); Nationals (106); D-backs (102)
The Rays led in the “Ouch Factor,” with 24 hit by pitches – the next highest was 16 (Marlins) and the MLB average was 11.
EARNED RUN AVERAGE … MLB Average – 4.41
AL: Red Sox (3.36); A’s (3.88); Astros (3.95)
NL: Dodgers (3.01); Rockies (3.16); Phillies (3.26)
ERAs North of Five
The White Sox put up July’s worst team earned run average at 5.98. Five other teams were north of five: Royals (5.63); Rangers (5.54); Padres (5.46); Blue Jays (5.31); Marlins (5.03). The six teams mentioned went a combined 51-96 for the month.
STRIKEOUTS … MLB Average – 207
AL: Astros (263); Red Sox (245); Twins (232); Yankees (232)
NL: Dodgers (257); D-backs (239); Brewers (236)
The Astros had MLB best strikeouts per nine inning ratio for July at 10.94. Seven of MLB’s 30 teams recorded a strikeout or more per inning for the month,
SAVES … MLB Average – 6
AL: Red Sox (9); Yankees (9); Mariners (9)
NL: Dodgers (12); Cubs (8); Brewers (8); Rockies (10)
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A FEW JULY HIGHLIGHTS
Here arfe a few things that cuaght BBRT’s eye in July.
More #Why I hate the DH
On July 2, the Red Sox’ Rick Porcello was matched up in a pitching duel with Nationals’ ace Max Scherzer. Porcello not only went seven innings (Two earned runs on seven hits, two walks and five strikeouts) for the win, his bases-loaded, bases-clearing double in the second inning sparked the 4-3 Boston win.
Double-digit RBI
On July 7, Nationals’ 1B-3B Mark Reynolds became just the 15th major league player to drive in ten or more runs in a game – as the Nationals pounded the Marlins 18-4 n Washington D.C.
Reynolds’ five-for-five, two-homer, ten-RBI night at the ball yard went like this:
- Bottom of the second inning – Two-run home run
- Bottom of the fourth – RBI double
- Bottom of the fifth – Two-run single
- Bottom of the sixth – Three-run home run
- Bottom of the seventh- Two-run single
TEN OR MORE RBI IN A GAME
12 RBI IN A GAME
Jim Bottomley, Cardinals – September 16, 1924
Mark Whiten, Cardinals – September 7, 1993
11 RBI
Tony Lazzeri, Yankees – May 24, 1936
Phil Weintrub, Giants – April 30, 1944
10 RBI
Rudy York, Red Sox – July 27, 1946
Walker Cooper, Reds – July 6, 1949
Norm Zauchin, Red Sox – May 27, 1955
Reggie Jackson, A’s – July 14, 1969
Fred Lynn, Red Sox – June 18, 1975
Nomar Garciaparra, Red Sox May 10, 1999
Alex Rodriguez, Yabnkees – April 26 2005
Garret Anderson, Angels – August 21, 2007
Anthony Rendon, Nationals – April 30, 2017
Scooter Gennett, Reds – June 6, 2017
Mark Reynolds, Nationals – July 7, 2018
Pujols Move Up The Line
On July 25, as the Angels bested the White Sox 11-3, Angels’ 1B Albert Pujols hit his 17th home run of the season – which was also the 631st of his career – moving him past Ken Griffey, Jr. and into sixth place all time. Next up is Willie Mays at 660.
The Diamondbacks had three starters finish in the top four in the NL for strikeouts in July. Zack Godley (first); Robbie Ray (third); Zack Greinke (fourth).
An even dozen – just to get there.
It took Angels’ catcher Francisco Arcia a dozen seasons to get to the major leagues, but only two games to reach double-digits in RBI. And, that is significant. In fact, Arcia’s ten runs plated in his first two MLB games is a major-league record.
The 28-year-old left-handed hitter (throws right, he is a catcher, after all) went two-for-five with a three-run home runs and a run-scoring single in his first MLB game (a 12-8 Angels’ win over the White Sox on July 26) and then (after sitting out a July 27 game) rapped another three-run homer, as well as a pair of doubles – while driving in six runs – in four at bats in a July 28 Angels’ 11-5 win over the Mariners.
The record-setting outburst was hardly expected from Arcia, who put up a .244 average, with 25 home runs, over a dozen minor-league seasons (584 games). At the time of his call up, he was hitting .283-3-26 at Triple A Salt Lake (42 games). Arcia was originally signed by the Yankees , out of Venezuela, as a 16-year-old, in 2006 and granted free agency in 2015. He then signed with the Mariners, who released him after one minor-league season. The Angels picked him up in 2016, granted him free agency in 2017 and re-signed him in 2018.
It’s All About the Long Ball
On July 27, Nationals’ 19-year-old rookie right fielder Juan Soto joined some pretty heady company – rapping his 13th home run of the season and tying Mickey Mantle for sixth place in MLB history for home runs hit as a teenager. (It was also Soto’s third straight contest with a long ball.) Soto ended the month .313-13-36 on the season. .
The Red Sox’ Tony Conigliaro holds the record for MLB home runs as a teenager with 24. Bryce Harper is the only other player with at least 20 long balls as a teen – with 22.
Also on July 27, Oriole’s second baseman Jonathon Schoop hit his 16th home run of the season, as the O’s pounded the Rays 15-5. In the process, Schoop tied the record for consecutive games with a home run by a second baseman at five. The streak ended on the 28th, when Schoop (who hit 32 home runs in 2017) had a single in five at bats versus the Rays. In his five-game long-ball streak, Schoop went 11-for-24 (.458), with five home runs, 11 RBI and sevcn runs scored.
Zack Godley, who led the NL in July strikeouts with 34, kept batters loose – leading MLB in July hit batters with seven.
Or maybe it’s all about the strikeout
On July 27, Red Sox’ ace Chris Sale pitched six shutout innings, with three hits, two walks and ten strikeouts – as the Red Sox topped the Twins 4-3 (Sale got a no-decision). Notably, Sale recorded all three first-inning outs via the K – giving him 200 on the season and giving him (yes, another instance in which baseball counts everything) the record for the fewest innings pitched to reach 200 whiffs in a season (136). Of course, it wasn’t as momentous as one might think. Sale broke his own record of 141 1/3 innings, set just last season.
Photo by Corn Farmer
On the same night as Sale’s gem, Max Scherzer of the Nationals celebrated his 34th birthday by picking up his 14th win of the season (9-1 over the Marlins) The eleven K’s Scherzer notched in the game gave him 200 whiffs for the seventh consecutive season – tying him for the second-longest such streak in MLB history. (Walter Johnson and Roger Clemens also have seven straight 200K campaigns, pretty good company) Scherzer went eight innings, giving up just one run (unearned) on three hits, a walk,
Tom Seaver accumulated a record streak of nine straight seasons of at least 200 strikeouts).
Strong and Swift … and more “We count everything”
On July 31, Mike Trout belted his 30th home run of the season, joining Willie Mays as one of only two players to hit 30 home runs and steal 20 bases in three seasons before their 26th birthday.
Justin Verlander fanned 46 batters in 30 July innings – and walked just three.
A Moving Experience
A report from baseball analyst Scott Lindholm indicated more than 130 players changed MLB organizations in July – as we approached the MLB trade deadline. There is not space to look at all those moves, but here’s a few BBRT thinks are pretty significant (from the buyers point of view) in terms of the post-season.
- The Dodgers picking up Manny Machado and Brian Dozier – more than making up for the (injury) loss of Corey Seager.
- The Pirates adding starter Chris Archer and reliever Keone Kela.
- The Brewers adding Joakim Soria to bolster their bullpen and Mike Moustakas to add a little power to the lineup.
- The Red Sox adding Ian Kinsler (Dustin Pedroia injury); a starting pitcher in Nathan Eovaldi; and Ryan Pressley for late-inning relief.
- The Diamondbacks bolstering the infield and lineup with the versatile Eduardo Escobar.
- The Indians patching the outfield defense with Leonys Martin and the Mariners doing the same with the pickup of Cameron Maybin.
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—–LEAGUE LEADERS – TEAMS – YEAR-TO-DATE (through July)—–
RUNS SCORED ... MLB Team Average – 481
AL: Red Sox (572); Indians (547); Yankees (546)
NL: Cubs (531); Rockies (510); Dodgers (506)
The Royals scored the fewest runs through July at 388 – making them the only team to score under 400 tallies on the season. The lowest total in the NL went to the Padres at 405.
BATTING AVERAGE … MLB Team Average – .248
AL: Red Sox (.268); Indians (.259); Astros (.257)
NL: Cubs (.266); Braves (.261); Reds (.257)
The Mets had the lowest team batting average through July (.229); while the Orioles were at the bottom of the AL’s (.234).
HOME RUNS … MLB Team Average – 123
AL: Yankees (168); Indians (150); Angels (148)
NL: Dodgers (144); Rockies (138); Brewers (135); Cardinals (135)
Only four teams had fewer than 100 home runs through July: Tigers (87); Marlins (88); Royals (92); Padres (93).
STOLEN BASES ... MLB Team Average – 52
AL: Indians (84); Red Sox (82); White Sox (77)
NL: Brewers (84); Nationals (76); Padres (63)
The A’s swiped the fewest bases through July (25). The A’s also had the worst success rate at 58.1 percent (25 steals in 43 attempts). The Angels had the highest success rate at 83.1 percent (54-for-65).
BATTERS’ STRIKEOUTS … MLB Team Average – 910
AL: Rangers (1,047); White Sox (1,004); Yankees (936)
NL: Padres (1,043); Phillies (1,028); Brewers (1,000)
The Indians make a practice of putting the ball in play, recording the fewest batters’ whiffs through July at 802.
EARNED RUN AVERAGE … MLB Average – 4.15
AL: Astros (3.08); Red Sox (3.47); Yankees (3.56)
NL: Dodgers (3.47); Brewers (3.60); D-backs (3.65)
Two teams carried ERAs over 5.00 through July: the Royals (5.30) and the White Sox (5.03). Not surprisingly, those two squads finished July a combined 72 games under .500.
PITCHERS’ STRIKEOUTS … MLB Average – 910
AL: Astros (1,151); Red Sox (1,055); Yankees (1,050)
NL: Dodgers (1,039); Phillies (972); D-backs (959)
Through July, the Astros were averaging an MLB-high of 10.55 strikeouts per nine innings – the only team averaging 10 or more. Seven teams were averaging at least one whiff per inning.
SAVES … MLB Average – 28
AL: Mariners (42); Red Sox (36); Yankees (33)
NL: Dodgers (36); Rockies (36); Cubs (31)
BULLPEN AND STARTING STAFF ERAS
The best bullpen earned run average through July belonged to the Yankees at 2.91. The D-backs bullpen ERA was the NL’s best at 3.05. Bullpens putting up ERAs of 5.00 or higher included the: Royals (5.35); Rockies (5.12); Marlins (5.09); Mets (5.07); Indians (5.00).
The Astros put up the best ERA among starters (through July) at 3.03, while the Dodgers’ starters were the NL’s best at 3.35. Six starting staffs put up ERAs over 5.00 through July: White Sox (5.27); Rangers (5.26); Orioles (5.26); Royals (5.26); Reds (5.14); Padres (5.09).
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—INDIVIDUAL LEADERS FOR YEAR TO DATE (through June) —
BATTING AVERAGE (qualifiers)
AL: Mookie Betts, Red Sox (.338); Jose Altuve, Astros (.329); J.D. Martinez, Red Sox (.323)
NL: Christian Yelich, Brewers (.321), Nick Markakis, Braves (.319); Corey Dickerson, Pirates (.318)
The lowest average (through July) among qualifying players belonged to the Orioles’ Chris Davis at .157 (51-for-324). Just three more qualifying players had averages below “The Mendoza Line” (under .200): Joey Gallo, Rangers (.187); Logan Morrison, Twins (.193); Alcides Escobar, Royals (.197).
HOME RUNS
AL: J.D. Martinez, Red Sox (32): Jose Ramirez, Indians (32); Mike Trout, Angels (30)
NL: Nolan Arenado, Rockies (28); Matt Carpenter, Cardinals (26); Jesus Aguilar, Brewers (25);; Bryce Harper, Nationals (25)
The most at bats for any player without a home run is 130 –the Marlins’ J.B. Shuck. Honorable mention should go to the Mariners’ Dee Gordon, who has just one round tripper among his 403 at bats and 117 hits (98 singles). Side note: In 1972, The Twins; Rod Carew won the AL batting crown (.318) and had zero – yes, zero – home runs in 535 at bats.
RUNS BATTED IN
AL: J.D. Martinez, Red Sox (89); Khris Davis, A’s (84) Jose Ramirez, Indians (78)
NL: Javier Baez, Cubs (82); Eugenio Suarez, Reds (81); Nolan Arenado, Rockies (79)
Among players with at least 25 plate appearances with runners in scoring position, the Red Sox’ (former Blue Jay) Steve Pearce had the best average in those spots through July at .464 (13-for-28). The Padres’ Wil Myers topped the NL in this category at .406. Others hitting over .400 with RISP through July were the Twins’ Joe Mauer (.418) and the Astros’ Yuli Gurriel (.416).
RUNS SCORED
AL: Francisco Lindor, Indians (92); Mookie Betts, Red Sox (84); Mike Trout, Angels (82)
NL: Charlie Blackmon, Rockies (80); Ozzie Albies, Braves (77); Christian Yelich, Brewers (72)
HITS
AL: Jose Altuve, Astros (134) Jean Segura, Mariners (130); Eddie Rosario, Twins (128)
NL: Nick Markakis, Braves (130); Freddie Freeman, Braves (128); Scooter Gennett, Reds (123)
The Angels’ Mike Trout had an MLB-best .461 on base percentage (among qualifiers) through July; while the Reds’ Joey Votto topped the NL at .423. Just five players were at .400 or above.
STOLEN BASES
AL: Dee Gordon, Mariners (25); Jose Ramirez, Indians (25); Whit Merrifield, Royals (23)
NL: Trea Turner, Nationals (26): Sterling Marte, Pirates (25); Michael Taylor, Nationals (24)
War, Good God, What is it Good For?
Not a big fan of all the new stats, but I know some readers are. So, your leader in WAR (Wins Above Replacement) through July is the Angels’ Mike Trout at 7.9. The Brewers’ Lorenzo Cain leads the National League at 5.3.
BATTER’S STRIKEOUTS
AL: Joey Gallo, Rangers (144); Yoan Moncada, White Sox (141); Giancarlo Stanton, Yankees (138)
NL: Paul Goldschmidt, D-backs (126); Chris Taylor, Dodgers (125); Bryce Harper, Nationals (117)
Andrelton Simmons of the Angels drew an MLB leading 1.40 walks per strikeout through July (28 walks versus 20 K’s in 398 plate appearanes). Only seven players drew more walks than whiffs. After Simmons are: Jose Ramirez, Indians (1.37); Carlos Santana, Phillies (1.25); Joey Votto, Reds (1.15); Jesse Winker, Reds (1.07); Alex Bregman, Astros (1.03); Mike Trout, Angels (1.02).
WALKS DRAWN
AL: Mike Trout, Angels (98); Jose Ramirez, Indians (70); Shin-Soo Choo, Rangers (68); Aaron Judge, Yankees (68)
NL: Bryce Harper, Nationals (85); Joey Votto, Reds (82); Carlos Santana, Phillies (81)
Mike Trout led all MLB players through July in intentional free passes with 20 – six more than any other player.
PITCHING VICTORIES
AL: Luis Severino, Yankees (14-4); Rick Porcello, Red Sox (13-4); Corey Kluber, Indians (13-6)
NL: Max Scherzer, Nationals (14-5); Jon Lester, Cubs (12-3); Aaron Nola, Phillies (12-3); Zack Greinke, D-backs (12-5)
The Nationals’ Max Scherzer led MLB in quality starts through July at 19. The Astros’ Justin Verlander; Indians’ Corey Kluber; and Indians’ Trevor Bauer tied for the AL lead with 18 QS. each.
EARNED RUN AVERAGE (qualifiers)
AL: Chris Sale, Red Sox (2.04); Justin Verlander, Astros (2.24); Blake Snell, Rays (2.27)
NL: Jacob deGrom, Mets (1.82); Max Scherzer, Nationals (2.30); Aaron Nola, Phillies (2.35)
STRIKEOUTS
AL: Chris Sale, Red Sox (207 – 141 IP); Gerrit Cole, Astros (194 – 141 1/3 IP); Trevor Bauer, Indians (192 – 147 1/3 IP)
NL: Max Scherzer, Nationals (200– 148 2/3 IP); Patrick Corbin, D-backs (166 – 135 1/3 IP); Jacob deGrom, Mets (164 – 138 1/3 IP)
Among pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched through June, the Red Sox’ Chris Sale had the highest ratio of strikeouts per nine innings at 13.21. The only other hurlers above 12.00 were Gerrit Cole of the Astros (12.35) and Max Scherzer of the Nationals (12.11). Thirty-six qualifying hurlers struck out at least nine batters per nine innings.
SAVES
AL: Edwin Diaz, Mariners (40); Craig Kimbrel, Red Sox (33); Aroldis Chapman, Yankees (28)
NL: Wade Davis, Rockies (30); Kenley Jansen, Dodgers (30): Brad Boxberger, D-backs (25)
The Wins Above Replacement (WAR) leader through July (among starting pitchers) was the Phillies’ Aaron Nola at 6.7. The AL leader was the Red Sox’ Chris Sale at 6.4. Among closers with at least ten saves, the WAR leader was the A’s Blake Treinen at 2.6. The Nationals’ Sean Doolittle topped the NL at 2.2.
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