Baseball by the numbers with Bill Chuck
BY BILL CHUCK walkoffs@gmail.com | @billyball September 7, 2013 6:38PM
The first and second hitters in opponents’ lineups are hitting .280 off the Cubs’ Jeff Samardzija. | Charles Rex Arbogast/AP
Updated: September 8, 2013 2:44AM
THE STARTING NINE FOR CHICAGO
1. Alejandro De Aza leads the White Sox with 140 hits from the No. 1 slot in the lineup. David DeJesus led the Cubs with 70 hits hitting leadoff. The Red Sox’ Jacoby Ellsbury has 166 hits and the Reds’ Shin-Soo Choo has 19 homers batting first.
2. Batting second, both the Cubs’ Starlin Castro and the Sox’ Alexei Ramirez have 91 hits. The Orioles’ Manny Machado has 174.
3. The third spot is where you put your best hitter, which is why Miguel Cabrera leads MLB batters in all Triple Crown categories and has 172 hits. The Cubs’ Anthony Rizzo has 91 hits and 17 homers and Alex Rios had 119 hits and 12 homers for the Sox.
4. Batting cleanup, the Sox’ Adam Dunn has 77 hits, including 18 homers. The Cubs’ Alfonso Soriano had 91 hits with 17 homers. The Rangers’ Adrian Beltre has 167 hits with 27 homers.
5. The Tigers have Victor Martinez batting fifth, and he has 155 hits; the Orioles’ Chris Davis has 38 homers. Paul Konerko has 69 hits, but Adam Dunn leads the Sox’ No. 5 hitters with 11 homers. The Cubs’ Nate Schierholtz has 58 hits and 10 homers.
6. Conor Gillaspie leads the Sox’ No. 6 hitters with 43 hits and seven homers. The Cubs’ Welington Castillo has 42 hits and his backup Dioner Navarro five homers batting sixth. Before he was Biogenesised, the Tigers’ Jhonny Peralta had 84 hits, followed by the Reds’ Todd Frazier and the Orioles’ Matt Wieters with 77.
7. The Orioles’ J.J. Hardy leads the majors with 80 hits and 17 homers at No. 7. Luis Valbuena leads the Cubs with 27 hits and six homers; Gillaspie leads the Sox with 35 hits.
8. Gordon Beckham has 44 hits batting eighth for the Sox; the Cubs’ Darwin Barney is tied for the MLB lead with the Cardinals’ Pete Kozma with 70 hits.
9. The Twins’ Pedro Floriman leads all No. 9 batters with 72 hits. The Sox’ Tyler Flowers has 28 hits and six homers and a .203 batting average. The Cubs’ Travis Wood has 14 hits and three homers and is hitting .246.
CHICAGO PITCHING AGAINST THE NINE
1. The Cubs’ Edwin Jackson has allowed 26 hits and Jeff Samardzija 25 to leadoff batters. The Sox’ Jose Quintana has allowed 30 hits, second only to the Padres’ Eric Stults, the Phillies’ Cole Hamels and the Mariners’ Joe Saunders (31 each).
2. Samardzija has allowed 26 hits to the No. 2 batter. The Sox’ Dylan Axelrod has allowed 23 hits (and five homers). The first two batters in the lineup are hitting .280 against Samardzija.
3. Jackson has allowed 29 hits to No. 3 batters. The Sox’ Chris Sale and Quintana have allowed 23 each. The first three batters in the lineup are hitting .318 against Jackson.
4. Axelrod has allowed 21 hits to cleanup batters, but Jackson and Samardzija have each allowed 23.
5. Samardzija has allowed 23 hits to No. 5 batters; Sale has allowed 26 hits (.325 BAA).
6. No. 6 batters are hitting .371 against the Dodgers’ Zack Greinke but .213 against Samardzija and.250 against Sale.
7. National League pitchers are hit at a .254 rate by No. 7 hitters. American League pitchers have a .245 batting average against No. 7. But the Cubs are holding No. 7 batters to a .242 average, while the Sox are even better at .221.
8. No. 8 batters are hitting .148 against Quintana, .190 against Jackson and .197 against Samardzija but .321 against Sale.
9. No. 9 batters have hit Axelrod at a .444 pace (20-for-45), but against the Cubs’ Carlos Villanueva they are .146 (6-for-41).
Chicago-gram: Jean Windsock
This Chicago pitcher’s birthday is Sept. 9, 1983.
(answer to the anagram is below)
The Week ahead: After doing nothing to disrupt the American League East, the White Sox host the Detroit Tigers and the Cleveland Indians in the hope of having a say in the AL Central. At the same time, the Cubs hope to influence the National League Central as they head to Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.
Chicago-GRAM ANSWER: Edwin Jackson
