This is the second contest of a three-game series in Tampa Bay between the Rays and visiting Seattle Mariners.
Bryan Woo is scheduled to pitch for Seattle, while Drew Rasmussen is slated to start for Tampa Bay.
Mariners at Rays prediction, preview
Bryan Woo has a 2.95 ERA and 3.56 FIP through 164.2 innings this season. The fastball averages 95.7 mph and the strikeout rate is 25.6%. The swinging strike rate is 12% while the chase rate is 30.4%. His fastball has a 23.4 run value while the sinker is second at 7.9. The main superpower of Woo is his control, as the walk rate is only 4.8%. He’s allowed 23 home runs.
Woo has been better against righties than lefties. The K-BB% is 25.2% against righties and 16.7% against lefties. He’s essentially been site neutral.
In 26 starts, Woo has allowed more than three earned runs six times. He’s gone at least six innings in all but one start. The only time he missed the mark was in his last outing when he “only” went 5.2 innings. He faced the Rays four starts ago at home, going six innings, walking one and striking out nine while allowing three earned runs on seven hits.
Against right-handed pitching, the Rays have the 12th-highest strikeout rate and the 15th-best ISO. Their wOBA ranks 11th in MLB.
Drew Rasmussen has a 2.64 ERA and 3.42 FIP through 129.2 innings. The BABIP is low at .252 while the strand rate is high at 81.6%. The fastball averages 95.8 mph and the strikeout rate is 22.6%. The control has been excellent with a 5.6% walk rate and he’s only allowed 13 home runs. The barrel rate is only 5.9%.
The K-BB% is 20.5% against lefties and only 12.8% against righties, but Rasmussen has allowed more home runs to lefties. The FIPs are almost identical. He’s been site neutral.
In 26 starts, Rasmussen has allowed more than three earned runs three times. He’s gone at least six innings eight times, with four of those in the most recent outings. He faced the Mariners four starts ago in Seattle, going six innings, not issuing a walk and striking out four without allowing an earned run on four hits.
Against right-handed pitching, the Mariners strike out at the ninth-highest rate while posting the 11th-best ISO. Their wOBA ranks third 13th in MLB.
As for the bullpens, Seattle has the 18th-lowest FIP, while Tampa Bay has the third-lowest since August 1.
Mariners at Rays pick, best bet
An old school pitching duel is what I forsee.
