Article author:
Reuters
After being elected to this month's National League pitcher in June, the Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara appears to remain hot at the first start of July.
A strong right-handed player leads the major in innings (115 1/3) and is third overall in ERA (1.95). Alcantara, which looks like a second All-Star rock, should also be considered starting with a midsummer classic.
First of all, Alcantara (8-3, 1.95) will face the Los Angeles Angels in the first of two games in Miami on Tuesday night.
The 26-year-old has never played against the Angels, but his counterpart in the opening round of the Interleague series has a long track record against the Marlins.
Los Angeles' right-handed Noah Syndergaard is 7-1, scoring 2.16 ERA in his 12 career starts with the Marlins. All of them came while he was in the New York Mets.
The Angels last played against the Marlins in Miami in 2017. Participate in the Interleague series swept in three games against the Houston Astros.
Meanwhile, Miami is on the high after winning five straight games, including a four-game sweep at the Washington Nationals.
Recently, Syndergaard (5-6, 3.86) is not the same pitcher as he was in his early New York career. According to Statcast, his average 4-seam fastball is 94.2 mph. Impressively, it's down from the average pitch of 97.8 mph in 2019.
In terms of pure speed, Alcantara is at the top of the game with an average 4 seam speed of 97.7 mph. ..
Alcantara took performance to another level in June, with ERA 3-1 at 1.89 in the 6th start. The opponent hit only 0.199 from him that month and he rarely allowed the base runner, as reflected in his 0.88 WHIP.
The Marlins had two National League pitchers this month, and Pablo Lopez claimed honor in April.
At his final start, Alcantara defeated St. Louis Cardinals and threw a complete game (second season).
After the match, when asked if he felt he was the best pitcher in the majors, Alcantara said on MLB.com: Currently, there are many good pitchers. He doesn't have to say he's the best, but he has to keep working. Keep him positive and keep competing.
Cinderguard beat the Chicago White Sox on his final start when he gave up three runs in seven innings on June 27th.
"I felt it was really positive," Syndergaard told reporters that night. "It was one of my best of the year. I was running most of the time. My sliders are getting better. Everything is better and I trust the delivery more."
The Marlins will face the angel for the second time this year. From April 11th to 12th, these clubs participated in two games in Los Angeles, with the Angels winning both.
In that series, Joe Maddon was the Angels manager. Well, this is Phil Nevin.
Mike Trout played against the Marlins in just seven games in his career. He hits .318 with two home runs.
There isn't much history between these teams. Overall, the angel holds 11-6 edges.
– Field-level media