- \n
- One six-game winner (Max Scherzer) and one six-game loser (Aaron Sanchez).<\/li>\n
- One .400+ hitter (Charlie Blackmon).<\/li>\n
- A batter (Luke Voit) fanning 38 percent of the time, but still managing to hit .333 for the month.<\/li>\n
- A player (Charlie Blackmon) collecting a record 15 hits in a four-game series.<\/li>\n
- A record 13 home runs hit in a single game (Phillies\/Diamondbacks).<\/li>\n
- Two cycles in two days (Shohei Ohtani & Jake Bauers).<\/li>\n
- A three-game hitting streak (Wilkin Castillo) that took just over ten years to complete.<\/li>\n
- A team (Yankees) homer in every game of the month – and then some.<\/li>\n
- A pitcher (Louis Castillo) leading MLB in walks for the month (with 20 in just 28 2\/3 innings) and managing to go 2-2, with a tidy 2.83 earned run average. (He gave up just 16 hits in those 28+ frames).<\/li>\n
- A player (Freddie Freeman) drive in 33 runs in 28 games..<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Oh yes, and if you read on, you’ll find out why the Yankees versus Red Sox in London was not my cup of tea.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n
If You aren’t\u00a0 Familiar with …<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
![\"Jeffmac\"](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Jeffmac-209x300.jpg\")
<\/a>Jeff McNeil, you probably will be soon.\u00a0 The 27-year-old Met (who has played 2B, 3B, RF and LF this season) ended the month of June as MLB’s leading hitter – with a .348 average. It should be no surprise, McNeil – a 12th round draft pick in 2013 – has hit wherever he has played. In six minor league seasons, he put up a .311 average (.327 at Triple A; .315 at Double A and .296 at A\/High A).\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\nIn a July 2018 call up, he hit .329 with three\u00a0 homers, 19 RBI and seven stolen bases in 63 games.\u00a0 Thus far, in 2019, he is .348-6-34, with 37 runs scored three steals. Looks like he’s here to stay.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
<\/p>\n
Now, on to …<\/strong><\/p>\n
—-BASEBALL ROUNDTABLE PLAYERS & PITCHERS OF THE MONTH—–<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
National League Player of the Month \u2013 Charlie Blackmon, RF, Rockies<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
![\"cHARLIE](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/48010955306_fca5ccd7af_q_cHARLIE-bLACKMON.jpg\" "\\"Chuck")
Photo by Minda Haas Kuhlmann<\/a>
![](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-inject\/images\/cc.png\")
<\/a><\/small><\/p><\/div>\nOkay, I\u2019ve admitted in the past that (as was often said of the zany, but talented, Rube Waddell) I can be distracted by bright and shiny things.\u00a0 Well, in June, there were a couple of \u201cbright and shiny\u201d things that caught BBRT\u2019s eye as I considered my National League Player of the Month.<\/p>\n
They were the .412 June average (which led all qualifying hitters for June) put up by Rockies\u2019s RF and lead off hitter Charlie Blackmon<\/strong> and the MLB-leading 33 June RBI recorded by Braves\u2019 1B Freddie Freeman. Blackmon\u2019s .400+ average for the month \u2013 coupled with his ten home runs (MLB’s third-best), 25 RBI (sixth in MLB for June) and MLB-leading 30 runs scored took the day; but it was by a razor-thin margin.\u00a0 For the month, Blackmon had MLB\u2019s 38 hits (seven doubles, two triples, nine home runs). In his 22 games played (Blackmon missed the first six games of the month on the Injured List due to a right calf strain), Blackmon had 11 multi-hit games \u2013 at one point collecting 15 hits in a single four-game series. (See more on Blackmon\u2019s multi-hit achievement in the \u201cHighlights\u201d section of this post.) As a side note: On June 29, Blackmon became the first left-handed hitter ever to go yard off Clayton Kershaw\u2019s curve ball. (Another case of in baseball we track everything.<\/em>)<\/p>\n
Other contenders:<\/em> Braves’ 1B Freddie Freeman<\/strong>, who went .322, with nine home runs, 24 runs scored and an MLB-high 33 RBI in June \u2013 helping the Braves surge to first place (the Braves started the month three games behind the Phillies and ended it with a 5 \u00bd game lead); Brewers\u2019 RF Christian Yelich<\/strong>, who did a little bit (a lot, really) of everything \u2013 hitting .365 with power (eight home runs), driving in 18, scoring 20 and even swiping\u00a0 eight bases in eight tries.<\/p>\n
American League Player of the Month \u2013 DJ LeMahieu, 2B, Yankees<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
![\"DJ](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/27031829411_3b9bf9bd15_q_DJ-LeMahieu.jpg\" "\\"Colorado")
Photo by jenniferlinneaphotography<\/a>
<\/a><\/small><\/p><\/div>\nThe Yankees, beset by injuries all season, needed players like DJ LeMahieu<\/strong> to step up \u2013 and step up he did.\u00a0 In June, LeMahieu hit a robust .395 (second in MLB only to Charlie Blackmon’s .412), with six home runs, an AL-best 26 runs scored and an AL-high 29 RBI. \u00a0LeMahieu generated this offense while serving primarily as a lead off hitter and spending time at first base, second base and third base.<\/p>\n
Other contenders:<\/em> Blue Jay\u2019s 2B Lourdes Gurriel, Jr.,\u00a0<\/strong>who hit .337 for June, bashed MLB\u2019s third-most home runs (10), drove in 20 and scored 20;\u00a0 Angels\u2019 CF Mike Trout<\/strong> (isn\u2019t he always on this list), who went .320-9-23 and scored 24 times.\u00a0 Just a typical June for Trout.<\/p>\n
_____________________________________________________<\/p>\n
National League Pitcher of the Month \u2013 Max Scherzer, Nationals<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
![\"Max](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/30195625232_418608451b_q_Max-Scherzer.jpg\" "\\"Nationals")
Photo by apardavila<\/a>
<\/a><\/small><\/p><\/div>\nEasy call here. The three-time Cy Young Award winner got off to a slow start, going 2-5, 3.26 through May \u2013 but made up ground big time in June.\u00a0 He was MLB’s only six-game winner in the month, going 6-0 (in six starts),\u00a0 with a 1.00 ERA (five earned runs in 45 IP), just five walks and an MLB-high 68 June strikeouts. He average 7.5 innings per start and helped lead the Nationals to a 18-8 month.\u00a0 His 1.00 ERA for the month was the lowest among pitchers with at least 25 innings on the mound.<\/p>\n
Other contenders:<\/em>\u00a0The Rockies\u2019 Jon Gray<\/strong>, who went 5-1, with a 2.65 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 37 1\/3 innings (despite having four of his six June starts at Coors Field); Walker Buehler<\/strong>, Dodgers, who went 3-0 in five starts, with a 2.45 ERA and 46 strikeouts (versus just two walks) in 35 2\/3 innings.<\/p>\n
American League Pitcher of the Month \u2013 Lance Lynn, Rangers<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
![\"Lynn\"](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Lynn.jpg\")
<\/a>Okay, maybe I could have gone with big names and big swing-and-miss arms like Justin Verlander or Chris Sale, but (from BBRT\u2019s perspective) the Rangers\u2019 Lance Lynn put it all together in June.\u00a0 Lynn tied for the AL lead in June wins \u2013 going 4-0 in six starts, with a respectable 2.90 earned run average.\u00a0 He also fanned 48 batters in 40 1\/3 innings, while walking only four.\u00a0 (If only Lynn had pitched like this for my Twins.\u00a0 He went 7-8, 5.10 in 20 starts for Minnesota last season.)<\/p>\nOther contenders:<\/em> Luis Giolito<\/strong>, White Sox, who went 4-1, 2.50 and whiffed 46 batters in 36 innings (six starts); Mike Minor<\/strong>, Rangers, who went 3-0, 1.70 in five starts (30 strikeouts in 37 IP);<\/p>\n
\n
TROT INDEX … A REGULAR BBRT FEATURE<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
Through June,\u00a0 36.0 percent of all MLB’s 96,145 2019 plate appearances ended in a trot (back to the dugout, ar<\/strong>ound the bases, to first base). We’re talking about strikeouts, home runs, walks, hit by pitch and catcher\u2019s interference – all outcomes that are, basically, devoid of action on the base paths or in the field. Here\u2019s the breakout: strikeouts (22.7%); Walks (8.6%); home runs (3.6%); HBP (1.0%); Catcher\u2019s Interference (less than 1%). Personally, I’d like more action in the field of play.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
For the 2018 season, 34.8 percent of all MLB’s 185,139 plate appearances ended in a trot.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
________________________________________________<\/p>\n
THE BEST OF TEAMS, THE WORST OF TEAMS<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
![\"WonLost](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/WonLost-June.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nWe did see some movement in the standings in July.\u00a0 The Braves<\/strong> put up an MLB-best 20 June wins (versus just 8 losses) and went from\u00a0 three games back of the Phillies on June 1 to 5 1\/2 games up on Philadelphia on July 1.\u00a0 Two other NL teams with solid June results were the Dodgers<\/strong> (18-10), who extended their lead in the West from 8 1\/2 to 12 games – and the Nationals<\/strong>, who used an 18-8 month to move past the Mets (10-18) into third place in the East.\u00a0 The NL Central Division had a “blah” month, with no team playing better than .500 ball.<\/p>\n
The Braves offense fueled their 20 June wins, as they led MLB in runs scored (187) and home runs (56) for the month. Key contributors for the Braves were: Freddie Freeman (.322-9-33); Ozzie Albies (.317-6-22); Ronald Acuna, Jr. (.31-9-21); and Nick Markakis (.270-4-20).\u00a0 The Dodgers rode MLB’s best pitching (MLB-lowest 3.08 ERA in June) to continued success.\u00a0 Key mound work was provided by the likes of Rich Hill (3-0, 2.25), Walker Buehler (3-0, 3-0, 2.45), Clayton Kershaw (2-2, 2.93) and Hyun-Jin Ryu (1-1, 2.70). Their offense also contributed, scoring the NL’s fourth-most runs – led by the likes of Cody Bellinger (.272-7-15) and Max Muncy (.287-8-23)\/<\/p>\n
\n
IF THE SEASON ENDED TODAY – YOUR PLAYOFF TEAMS WOULD BE …<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:\u00a0 Yankees; Twins; Astros.\u00a0 Wild Cards: Rays; Rangers.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
NL: Braves;\u00a0 Dodgers; Cubs or Brewers. Wild Cards: Cubs or Brewers; Phillies or Rockies.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
YOU’LL FIND FULL STANDINGS – AS OF JULY 1 – NEAR THE END OF THIS POST.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Over in the junior circuit, the Rangers went 18-11, and gained two games on the Astros (but are still 6 1\/2 back)(.\u00a0 In the East, the Yankees went 17-9 and expanded their lead from 1.5 games over the Rays on June 1 to 7 games on July 1.\u00a0 The Indians were the other AL team with 17 June wins (nine losses),\u00a0 gaining 2 1\/2 games on the Twins, but still eight back. The Yankees pounded their opponents into submission, leading the AL in runs scored (176) and homering in every June game. By contrast, the Bronx Bombers June earned run average (5.46) was the third-worst in the AL.\u00a0 Lot of contributors to the Yankees’ surge. including: DJ LeMahieu (.395-6-29); Gleyber Torres (.333-5-17); Gary Sanchez (.255-6-21).\u00a0 Overall, power up and down the Yankee lineup.<\/p>\n
At the other end of won-lost spectrum, two teams failed to win even ten games in June – The Tigers (5-20) and the Orioles (6-20). Both of those squads had June earned run averages north of 5.00 and the Tigers also finished last in MLB in runs scored. The Orioles had the fourth-fewest runs scored in the AL – even after a pair of late-June games in which they outscored the Indians by a combined 26-0.<\/p>\n
_______________________________________<\/p>\n
—-LEAGUE LEADERS \u2013 TEAMS \u2013 MONTH OF JUNE —–<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
(Stats as of July \u00a01, 2019, a.m.)<\/strong><\/p>\n
RUNS SCORED … MLB Team Average – 134<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong> Yankees (176); Red Sox (159); Mariners (153)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Braves (187); Rockies (167); Padres (153)<\/p>\n
The Tigers scored an MLB-low 82 runs in June, while the Cardinals and Reds were at the bottom of the NL with only 92 tallies.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
BATTING AVERAGE … MLB Team Average – .255<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL: Red Sox (.291); Yankees (.286); Twins (.266)<\/p>\n
NL: Pirates (.288); Rockies (.280); Braves (.277)<\/p>\n
The Cardinals were the only team to hit under .230 for the month – at .223.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
HOME RUNS … MLB Team Average \u2013 38<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong>\u00a0 Twins (51); Blue Jays (48); Yankees (47); Mariners (47)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Braves (56); Mets (48); Dodgers (47)<\/p>\n
The Tigers\u00a0 hit only 20 home runs in June, the fewest of any MLB team.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
SLUGGING PERCENTAGE \u2013 MLB Team Average – .440<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong>\u00a0Yankees (.499); Red Sox (.488); Indians (.479)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Braves (.520); Dodgers (.479); Pirates (.478)<\/p>\n
STOLEN BASES … MLB Team Average – 13<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong> Rangers (25); Royals (25); Indians (19)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Cardinals (26); Brewers (18); Padres (18); D-backs (18); Nationals (18)<\/p>\n
The White Sox, Yankees, Twins and Marlins each stole an MLB-low four bases in June – with the Twins having the worse success rate at 40 percent (four steals, six thrown out stealing).\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
BATTERS’ STRIKEOUTS … MLB Team Average – 233<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong> Rangers (288); Mariners (273); Rays (273)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Rockies (260); Marlins (253); three with 250<\/p>\n
The Braves led MLB in June extra-base hits with 126, while the Cardinals were at the bottom of the list with only 62 extra-base knocks. Teams with at least 100 XBH for the month (after the Cardinals) were the: Red Sox (112); Dodgers (108); Pirates (107); A’s (106); Twins (104); and Rockies (100).<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
WALKS DRAWN … MLB Average – 84<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong> Mariners (120); Astros (107); Yankees (106)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong>\u00a0Brewers (103); Braves (100); Padres (98)<\/p>\n
_______________________________________<\/p>\n
EARNED RUN AVERAGE … MLB Average – 4.60<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong>\u00a0 Rays (3.92); Twins (3.95); A’s (3.99)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong>\u00a0 Dodgers (3.08); Cardinals (3.65); Reds (3.78)<\/p>\n
June was a tough month for pitching staffs, as ten teams put up earned run averages north of 5.00 \u2013 with the Orioles at the bottom (or top, depending how how you look at it) at 5.81. The Orioles were a close second at 5.80. Together, these teams produced 16 wins and 37 losses during June.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
BATTING AVERAGE AGAINST \u2026\u00a0 MLB Average – .256<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong> Indians (.231); Astros (.236); Rays (.239)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Dodgers (.217); Reds (.223); Nationals (.228)<\/p>\n
S<\/strong>TRIKEOUTS … MLB Average – 223<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:\u00a0<\/strong> Red Sox (304); Astros (282); Rangers (266)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Brewers (257); Dodgers (256); Mets (254)<\/p>\n
The Red Sox and Angels were the only teams to average ten or more strikeouts per nine innings – 10.80 and 10.01, respectively. A total of 11 teams averaged at least one K per frame for the month.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
SAVES … MLB Average – 6<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong> Twins (9); Yankees (9); Royals (9)<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Braves (10); Nationals (10); Brewers (9)<\/p>\n
The Reds had June\u2019s best save percentage at 100 percent (six saves in six\u00a0 opportunities).\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
FEWEST WALKS SURRENDERED … MLB Average – 84<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
AL:<\/strong> Rangers (74); Yankees (75); three with 77<\/p>\n
NL:<\/strong> Dodgers (60); Nationals (70);\u00a0 Padres (74); Cardinals (74)<\/p>\n
Only three mound staff surrendered 50 or more home runs in June: Astros (56); Phillies (54); Yankees (50). The A’s surrendered the fewest June long balls (27).\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
___________________________________________<\/p>\n
—–JUNE HIGHLIGHTS … THE STORIES —–<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
Sale’s Immaculate Innings – Keeping Company with Lefty Grove<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
![\"cHRIS](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/43097193725_c575832bf4_q_cHRIS-sALE-RED-SOX.jpg\" "\\"Chris")
Photo by Keith Allison<\/a>
<\/a><\/small><\/p><\/div>\nOn June 5, Boston southpaw Chris Sale<\/strong> was truly dominant versus the Royals, picking up his second win of the season with a complete game, three-hit shutout.\u00a0 In the contest, he did not yield a single walk and fanned a dozen.\u00a0 In the eighth, he\u00a0 tossed an \u201cimmaculate inning\u201d \u2013 fanning the three batters he faced (Kelvin Gutierrez<\/strong>, Nicky Lopez<\/strong> and Martin Maldonado<\/strong>) on nine pitches. It was Sale\u2019s second immaculate inning of the season (the first came May 8 against the Orioles), making him just the second major leaguer with two immaculate frames in a season.\u00a0 The other was Lefty Grove<\/strong> in 1928.\u00a0 As June closed, Sale\u2019s record on the season was 3-7, 3.82 – and he had fanned 148 batters in 101 1\/3 innings.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s Raining Baseballs<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n
On June 9, the Nationals loaded up on the Padres in San Diego – bashing back – to back\u2013 to back \u2013 to back home runs in the eighth inning of a 5-2 win. All the long balls \u2013 which broke open a 1-1 contest –\u00a0 came off reliever Craig Stammen. The homers were hit by PH Howie Kendrick<\/strong>, SS Trea Turner<\/strong>, RF Adam Eaton<\/strong> and 3B Anthony Rendon<\/strong>.\u00a0 It was only the ninth time in MLB history that a team had cracked four consecutive home runs.<\/p>\n
![\"Jeffmac\"](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Jeffmac.jpg\")
<\/a>Jeff McNeil, you probably will be soon.\u00a0 The 27-year-old Met (who has played 2B, 3B, RF and LF this season) ended the month of June as MLB’s leading hitter – with a .348 average. It should be no surprise, McNeil – a 12th round draft pick in 2013 – has hit wherever he has played. In six minor league seasons, he put up a .311 average (.327 at Triple A; .315 at Double A and .296 at A\/High A).\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n