Big Days for D. Murphy's

It was a good day to be D. Murphy in Major League Baseball yesterday.  Daniel Murphy of the New York Mets and David Murphy of the Texas Rangers helped slug their teams to victories.

Daniel Murphy: 3-5, 2 R, 4 RBI, 1 DBL, 2 HR.

David Murphy: 4-5, 3 R, 5 RBI, 2 HR.

D. Murphy's Collectively: 7-10, 5 R, 9 RBI, 1 DBL, 4 HR.

Holy crap!!!

Brandon Moss- Bombs Away

A rolling stone gathers no moss...well, this one does.

 
Brandon Moss was once a fairly high regarded outfield prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization.  He made his MLB debut in 2007 and hit well in parts of two seasons with the BoSox (.291/.804), but was shipped to Pittsburgh in the Jason Bay trade.  The Pirates believed they were getting a building block for the future, but Moss stumbled and was eventually let go after the 2010 season.  He then hooked on with the Phillies and went hitless in 6 at bats last year, and played the majority of the season in the minors.  This past offseason he signed on with the Oakland Athletics and was recently called-up.  The rest is history...

In 13 games, Moss has belted 7 homeruns, scored 11 runs, and has 12 RBI with an OPS of 1.191 (10 of his 12 hits are of the extra base variety).  With the A's constant search for offense, you have to think Moss will get every opportunity to see how long he can continue on this roll.  He no longer roams the outfield, instead he's manning first base in Oakland.

L.A. Dodgers: MLB Son Factory

Scott Van Slyke, Dee Gordon, Jerry Hairston Jr., Tony Gwynn Jr, and Ivan De Jesus Jr. have all played for the Los Angeles Dodgers this season.  What do they have in common aside from donning Dodger blue?  They are all the son's of former MLB players.

Scott's dad Andy was an all-star center fielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Dee's dad Tom was a closer for many years with the Red Sox and Phillies, and even had a Stephen King novel penned in his honor.

Jerry's dad roamed many seasons in the White Sox outfield.  His brother Scott currently plays for the Mets, and his grandfather Sam and Uncle John also played in the majors.  Quite the family.

Tony's dad was a wizard with the bat and now resides in Cooperstown (aka- the Hall of Fame).

Ivan's dad played 15 years in the big leagues, with his most memorable seasons coming with the Dodgers.

Happy Father's Day!!!

Lucas Luetge It Is

Scott Downs and Aroldis Chapman each surrendered earned runs this past week, leaving the winner of the last reliever standing as Rule 5 pick Lucas Luetge. He probably has no clue he won this "award", but congratulations to the Seattle Mariners lefty anyway. For those of you not in the know, Luetge is the only relief pitcher to have a pristine 0.00 ERA after starting the season on the Opening Day roster.   Side note- he was part of a no-hit effort this past week against the Dodgers.  The kid is enjoying life for sure.

Luetge 2012 Stats: 
23 G, 15 IP, 14 K, 1 W, 4 HLD, 0.00 ERA, 1.27 WHIP.

Now let's see how long he can continue to string together scoreless appearances...

MLB Leaderboard

Batting:
Runs - 45 - Ian Kinsler/Rangers & Carlos Gonzalez/Rockies

Hits - 86 - Melky Cabrera/Giants

Doubles - 22 - Joey Votto/Reds

Triples - 7 - Melky Cabrera/Giants

Homeruns - 21 - Josh Hamilton/Rangers

RBI - 58 - Josh Hamilton/Rangers

Stolen Bases - 20 - Emilio Bonifacio/Marlins

Walks - 47 - Adam Dunn/White Sox

AVG - .366 - Paul Konerko/White Sox & Melky Cabrera/Giants

OBP - .475 - Joey Votto/Reds

SLG - .700 - Josh Hamilton/Rangers

OPS - 1.100 - Josh Hamilton/Rangers

Pitching:
Games - 32 - Tim Byrdak/Mets

Innings - 87.2 - Justin Verlander/Tigers

Strikeouts - 86 - Justin Verlander/Tigers

Wins - 8 - RA Dickey/Mets, Cole Hamels/Phillies, Ivan Nova/Yankees & Lance Lynn/Cardinals

Saves - 19 - Chris Perez/Indians

Holds - 15- Vinnie Pestano/Indians

WHIP - 0.92 - Matt Cain/Giants

ERA - 1.87 - Brandon Beachy/Braves

And Then There Were Three- Chapman, Downs & Luetge

Two months of the 2012 MLB season have come and gone and games in June are in full swing.  There remain three relief pitchers that were on the Opening Day roster of their team that still have a zero earned run average.  Yes, a 0.00 ERA!  A Cuban fireballer, a crafty lefty, and a Rule 5 pick. 

Triple Trifecta Trinity:
Aroldis Chapman - 23 G, 28 IP, 50 K, 4 W, 5 SV, 6 HLD, 0.57 WHIP.

Scott Downs - 22 G, 19.2 IP, 14 K, 5 SV, 11 HLD, 0.92 WHIP.

Lucas Luetge - 20 G, 13.1 IP, 13 K, 1 W, 3 HLD, 1.35 WHIP.