Jerad Eickhoff Poised to Dominate the Braves on Sunday

Jul 31, 2016

philly (1)

Philadelphia right-hander Jerad Eickhoff has become one of the most underrated pitchers in baseball. The 26-year-old owns a decent 3.83 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and a 3.82 FIP in 21 starts this season, including posting a 3.27 ERA and 1.20 WHIP versus division opponents. Eickhoff is also 2-1 with a 1.73 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in four career starts against the Braves.

Jared Eickhoff’s success has been predicated upon a solid K-BB rate, together with vastly improved exit velocity suppression which is synonymous with control and command.

Eickhoff’s arsenal is well above-average based on swinging strikes and ground ball z-scores (plus offerings with his curveball, slider and sinker). In 2015, Eickhoff induced the highest rate of swinging strikes among any slider (minimum 100 pitches).

He posted a solid 3.25 FIP with his slider last season, good for 27th in baseball, and Jared Eickhoff has significantly increased his slider usage over the last 2+ months.

Rookie Joel De La Cruz, a 27-year-old right-hander who posted a 4.68 ERA and a 4.22 FIP in 57.2 Triple-A innings this season, toes the rubber for the Braves this afternoon. In 19.1 Major League innings, De La Cruz is 0-3 with a 4.66 ERA and a 5.20 FIP and 4.66 xFIP (14.1K%; 10.6% K-BB%).

The Braves are a money-burning 15-38 in their last 53 home games, 11-25 in their last 36 home games versus right-handed starters and 1-6 in their last seven meetings in this series.

Take the Philadelphia Phillies behind Jerad Eickhoff as Oskeim Sports’ Free MLB Pick for Sunday, July 31.