MLB Notebook: Segura, Gomez quite the duo
Shortstop, center fielder putting up impressive offensive numbers for Brewers
In 1996, Seattle's shortstop-center field combination -- Alex Rodriguez and Ken Griffey, Jr. -- both finished in the top 10 in the American League in slugging percentage, OPS, runs scored, total bases, extra-base hits, RBIs, WAR (they were 1-2), weighted on-base average (wOBA), weighted runs created plus (wRC+) and OPS+, with Rodriguez posting a 161 and Griffey a 154 in that latter category.
Notably, these dual performances marked the first and only time that a team's shortstop and center fielder each qualified for a batting title and posted an OPS+ of at least 150. This bit of trivial information is brought to you by the 2013 Brewers of shortstop Jean Segura (who has an OPS+ of 164) and center fielder Carlos Gomez (176 OPS+).
On Tuesday, the Brewers lost to the Pirates, 4-3, with Segura going 1-for-6 with a home run and two RBIs and Gomez going 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI. Segura is sitting on a .359/.403/.592 line, while Gomez is at .368/.408/.632.
Milwaukee's dynamic duo
Here's how Gomez and Segura rank among their National League counterparts:
• Gomez is third and Segura is fifth in OPS+.
• Gomez is first and Segura is sixth in wOBA.
• Gomez is first and Segura is fifth in wRC+.
• Gomez is first in batting, fifth in OBP and second in slugging. Segura is second in batting, sixth in OBP and fifth in slugging.
CC hits mark for double-digit Ks
CC Sabathia struck out 10 in 6 1/3 innings in a 4-3 win over the Mariners, giving the Yankees left-hander 35 career double-digit strikeout games. That total is 30th most since 1916, and the ninth most for any southpaw since 1916.
Kershaw racking up Ks at a rapid rate
Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw fanned 11 and walked one, finishing one out shy of a five-hit shutout in a 2-0 win over the Nationals. Kershaw has 20 career double-digit strikeout games.
Kershaw's 20 such games have come over 160 career appearances. That total at this point ties him with Sid Fernandez for the sixth-most for any southpaw since 1916. Randy Johnson had 36 through his first 160 games, Sam McDowell had 34 and Herb Score, Frank Tanana and Mark Langston each had 26.
It was the ninth time Kershaw fanned at least 10 and allowed no runs. Since 1916, only one Dodgers pitcher has had more such lines: Sandy Koufax, with 17.
Here and there
D-backs left-hander Patrick Corbin allowed three hits in seven shutout innings, running his record to 6-0 and lowering his ERA to 1.52 in a 2-0 win over the Braves. Corbin became the fourth pitcher in the live-ball era to open a season with at least eight straight outings of at least six innings and no more than two runs allowed.
| Pitcher | Year | Streak | IP | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ubaldo Jimenez | 2010 | 12 | 87.1 | 0.93 |
| Fernando Valenzuela | 1981 | 8 | 72.0 | 0.50 |
| Kirk McCaskill | 1989 | 8 | 59.2 | 1.06 |
| Patrick Corbin | 2013 | 8 | 53.1 | 1.52 |
• Rays left-hander Matt Moore allowed three runs in six innings and improved to 7-0 as Tampa Bay defeated Boston, 5-3. Moore is the first Rays pitcher to open a season with wins in seven straight decisions.
• Down 2-1 entering the ninth, the Padres scored two runs against Baltimore's Jim Johnson and held on for a 3-2 victory. The rally ended Johnson's streak of 35 straight converted save opportunities. Perhaps making the comeback even more unexpected was that the Orioles entered the game with an 18-1 record when leading after eight innings, and the Padres were 0-18 when trailing after eight.
• The Blue Jays defeated the Giants, 10-6, with R.A. Dickey (six innings, two runs, 10 strikeouts) picking up his third win of the season. It was the first time this year Dickey reached double-digits in strikeouts, after having seven such games in 2012. His eight such games since the beginning of 2012 are the second most in the Majors, behind 12 by Texas' Yu Darvish.
• The Major League team leader in strikeouts, the Tigers, took on the Majors' top team in striking out, the Astros, with the final results falling logically into place. Tigers pitchers fanned 11 with no walks in their 6-2 victory, building on the historic pace each team has authored.
Houston has struck out 400 times in 40 games. When the 2010 D-backs set a Major League record with 1,529 strikeouts, they had 373 through 40 games;
Detroit's pitchers have recorded 378 strikeouts in 37 games. When the Cubs staff in 2003 set a Major League record with 1,404 strikeouts, they had 336 through 37 games.
• Cincinnati defeated Miami, 6-2, with right-hander Homer Bailey throwing a 10-strikeout six-hitter. Bailey is the first Reds pitcher since Tim Belcher, on Sept. 20, 1992, to have a complete game in which he recorded at least 10 strikeouts and no walks. No Reds pitcher has thrown a shutout with 10 or more strikeouts and no walks since Mario Soto in 1982.
Brandon Phillips drove in two runs to give him 33 RBIs -- the most in the NL. Phillips owns the most plate appearances (89) with runners on base in the NL, and in those situations he is batting .342. Among all NL players with at least 50 plate appearances with runners on base, that mark places Phillips 11th.
• Colorado's Carlos Gonzalez went 5-for-5 with a double and two home runs, drove in three runs and led the Rockies to a 9-4 win over the Cubs.
Gonzalez's 12 total bases were the most in a game by any Rockies player since May 30, 2012, when Gonzalez had 13 in a three-homer, four-hit game. The Rockies record for total bases in a game is 14, shared by Jeff Cirillo (June 28, 2000) and Larry Walker (June 25, 2004).
Gonzalez was the first Rockies player to have a five-hit game include three for extra-bases since Troy Tulowitzki hit for the cycle on August 10, 2009.
• Carlos Beltran hit his 10th home run of the season as part of a three-hit, four-RBI night as the Cardinals topped the Mets, 10-4. Beltran's all-time ranking among switch-hitters: sixth in home runs (344), ninth in RBIs (1,269), fifth in extra-base hits (837) and 12th in total bases (3,703).