Haren and Peavy Are the All-Star Starters
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by user Romiezzo
It has been announed on mlb.com that Oakland Athletics' Dan Haren, and San Diego Padres' Jake Peavy are starting the 78th annual All Star Game on the 10th of July in AT&T Park.
Peavy was named by National League manager Tony La Russa (St. Louis) while Haren got the nod from American League manager Jim Leyland (Detroit).
The two right-handers, who rank among the league leaders in several pitching categories, comprise the youngest starting matchup in the Midsummer Classic since 1986, when 21-year-old Dwight Gooden of the New York Mets faced 23-year-old Roger Clemens of the Boston Red Sox.
Peavy, 9-3 with a 2.19 ERA, leads the National League with 125 strikeouts and is second in ERA (only behind teammate Chris Young, who is also in the All Star Game via the Final Vote]]. He leads the league in strikeouts per nine innings (9.45), WHIP (1.06) and leads the Major Leagues in opponents' slugging percentage (.271). The Mobile, Alabama native has allowed only three home runs this season and has only walked 34 batters, which is quite impressive, don't you think?
Haren, 10-3 with a 2.30 ERA, leads the American League in ERA and is second in WHIP (1.00). Haren also leads the AL in opponents' batting average (.205) and opponents' slugging percentage (.327). He is second in the league in fewest hits per nine innings (6.75), only behind Jeremy Guthrie of the Baltimore Orioles.
Haren will be making his first All-Star appearance. Peavy appeared in the 2005 All-Star Game at Comerica Park in Detroit and gave up a double, but did not allow any runs in two-thirds of an inning. We'll see how it plays out tomorrow when the two pitchers of the league, with pretty even matchups for the most part, battle it out on the field.
Now, here's a comparison between Haren and Peavy for this year:
Haren is 10-3, with a 2.30 ERA, he has given up a lot more home runs (10) than Peavy has (3). Haren's WHIP is 1.00, while Peavy's is 1.06, which are both amazing; Haren's on-base-average is .256 while Peavy's is a little more (.276) than what people expect it to be. Here are some other stats that you might by interested in:
Haren-to-Peavy:
AVG: .205-.213
Pitches per inning: 15.62-16.08
Strikeouts/Walks: 3.16-3.68
Walks per 9 innings: 2.23-2.57
Strikeouts per 9 innings: 7.03-9.45
I think it'll be an even matchup and both will be replaced after 3 innings. What do you guys think about the starters?
