Starters
Feldman, Feldman...where are we...ah, here we are! Feldman: 26-year old right-hander who made his debut with the Rangers in 2005. In some senses, Feldman's traditional stat lines are misleading. His FIP is higher, although not dangerously so, at 4.68. He doesn't strike out a lot of guys, and his track record for base runners isn't quite as pristine as the WHIP we see currently. From '05 - '07 he was a ground-ball pitcher, inducing grounders on around 58% of his balls in play. Over the last two seasons, when he's began to tally legitimate playing time, he's become more of a typical BIP results kind of guy: 19% line drives, 45% ground balls, 36% fly balls. That's a significant departure from his first two seasons. Feldman carries what's been charted as a relatively ineffective low-90's fastball, which acts more as a set-up for his cutter; his best pitch by far. He also throws a good curve, as well as an average slider and changeup. What's interesting is that he hasn't completed seven innings yet this season, yet he's lasted LESS than six innings just ONCE since May 1. Thing to watch: Feldman still gets a lot of his outs on the ground. If the Twins are getting lots of balls up, for line drives or even lots of fly balls, it means Scott is off his game.
Be wary of the longball. That's pretty much it. If Texas doesn't hit a home run, chances are they won't score more than one or two runs across Baker's seven or eight innings. Hell, even a solo blast or two might not make too much of a difference. It's the homers with runners on that blow you away, and Scott is very familiar with that scenario. Last season, all four of Baker's pitches were above average; this season, the slider and the fastball still are. It's the curveball that's average, and the off-speed pitch can't even be called that. Hopefully Baker can go a ways toward improving those ratings tonight.