Phillies Opposition Roadblock: Miami Marlins
The Pitcher: Dan Straily
With Edinson Volquez throwing tonight and the fact I have already written about him, this series gives me the easy choice. Dan Straily has actually been the Marlins best pitcher during the first two months of baseball.
Straily currently leads Miami’s starters in wins (three), ERA (3.83), and strikeouts (54). His 54 innings pitched are also tops on the Marlin staff. He has walked 24 hitters through those 54 innings though, which is second on the team behind Volquez’s 29 free passes.
The righty has only gotten through the sixth inning twice this season. And both times, he reached seven full innings. More interesting, however, is the idea that Straily has only allowed more than three earned runs twice in his ten starts.
Six of the current Phils have faced the 28-year-old and most have had at least one hit off him. Maikel Franco, Freddy Galvis, Odubel Herrera, and Michael Saunders all have one hit off him. Meanwhile, Howie Kendrick has five hits in 17 at-bats against him. It makes sense since Straily spent some time in the AL West.
Straily has been very good at home this season. Six of his games have been home starts. In those six games, Straily has posted 33 innings with a 2-1 record and a 2.45 ERA in that time. He has logged 29 Ks and 14 walks in those games as well. Opposing teams have only hit .150 against Straily in those starts.
The pitches he throws are all predicated on his fastball. He mixes in a slider, change, and curveball. His fastball-slider combination is where he finds most of his outs. As a matter of fact, 45 of his 54 strikeouts have come from one of those pitches. Of his top three pitches (based on usage), the changeup is the one that teams hit most often, but they are only hitting .207 against it.
Next: Ben Lively Deserves Chance With Phillies
Although not a hard-thrower, averaging low-90s on his fastball, Straily has found ways to be effective this season. The struggling Phils will be hoping to face him with a chance for their first series win in what seems like an eternity.