MLB Gas Cans Of The Day For Friday, Sept. 2
Opposing offenses are in great spots
Matthew Horner - Sep 2, 2022, 9:27am EDTBoston Red Sox vs. Dallas Keuchel (8.84 ERA), Texas Rangers
THE RETURN OF THE KING. Dallas Keuchel is back, ladies and gentlemen, and he is primed and ready to fill our pockets like he did in the earlier part of 2022. Simply put, Keuchel's status as a two-time All-Star and former Cy Young Award winner may be the only reason he is still receiving MLB starts at this stage of his career, as he's shown little to nothing over the past two years to suggests he's worthy of a spot in a big-league rotation. Honestly, it is comical to me that anyone would, but here we are with the Rangers giving him a start.
Between stops with the White Sox, Diamondbacks and Rangers this season, Keuchel has produced an 8.84 ERA and 2.05 WHIP across 13 starts spanning 56.0 innings. Another terrible showing against the Red Sox might be enough for the Rangers to pull the plug on him and turn to another pitcher at the back end of the rotation. So enjoy this while you can, he will probably be gone from our lives yet again next week.
Colorado Rockies vs. Luis Cessa (5.36 ERA), Cincinnati Reds
The Rockies offense isn't the greatest thing ins the world to be putting our hard-earned money on, but when guys like Luis Cessa are on the mound, you almost have to bite the bullet and take them to start raking. C.J. Cron can put up some good numbers, and so can Jose Iglesias, so it isn't like this offense is completely devoid of star power. They should be able to put a decent amount of runs up on the board in this one against a terrible starter.
In his last start, Cessa allowed one run on four hits and no walks while striking out one batter over four innings in a no-decision against Washington. He didn't go deep enough to qualify for the win, but that was due to the fact that he's still working his way up to a starter's role after coming out of the bullpen for all but three games this season. Cessa could continue to stretch out as a starter given this effective performance, but his 5.36 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, and 6.6 K/9 point to Cincinnati finding someone else if he doesn't have a good outing here.
Cincinnati Reds vs. Kyle Freeland (4.88 ERA), Colorado Rockies
Both of the starting pitchers in this contest are primed to get lit up by their opposition. The Reds and Rockies both have rather stinky offenses that I normally wouldn't trust against a decent pitcher, but neither of the dudes taking the hill tonight are even close to decent. Kyle Farmer and the Reds offense can do damage in the right situation, and against Kyle Freeland, I think they have a shot to do just that. Runs should be scored in bunches in this game.
In his last start, Freeland took the loss versus the Mets, allowing two runs on four hits, a walk and two hit batters with two strikeouts in five innings. The Rockies' offense was limited to five hits and couldn't give Freeland any run support, unfortunately. He's had a bit more success keeping the ball in the park this year, allowing 17 homers through 142 innings across 25 starts. He owns a 4.88 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 101:44 K-to-BB, and he'll look to snap a four-start winless stretch in this game.