MLB Week 9 Hot or Not: Tarik Skubal presents his Cy Young case, Max Fried and Zach Wheeler struggle

Pitching was all the buzz in the last week of May

Week nine of the Hot or Not series is all about pitching — both dominant and faulty. This week’s recap covers the fifth full week of the season, May 25-31.

AL West
Hot: Jose Altuve
Altuve has had an all-or-nothing season, and he’s recently leaned towards the “all” side. Altuve slashed .409/.435/.818 with three home runs and six RBIs in his last six games. Two of his home runs were delivered against the Athletics, marking his 13th-career multi-homer game. While Altuve isn’t as sharp as he used to be, the 35-year-old veteran still has plenty of power in him.

Not: JP Sears gets rocked by division rivals
Altuve’s home runs had to come off someone, and that someone was Sears. Sears only managed to strike out one hitter while giving up 10 hits, nine runs, and three home runs in Houston’s 11-1 pummeling of the A’s. Sears’ 3 ⅓ inning-start marks his shortest and worst starts of his season, as the lefty’s ERA climbs to 5.18.

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AL Central
Hot: Tarik Skubal does what he does best
Skubal’s dominance in Detroit’s 5-0 win over Cleveland makes him the AL Central’s obvious “Hot” mention of the week. Skubal’s first career complete game couldn’t have looked any more beautiful, as Detroit’s imminent All-Star struck out 13 in what is considered one of the best Maddux games in MLB history. His 102.6 mph four-seamer that ended the game is also the fastest strikeout pitch recorded by a starting pitcher since 2008. There’s nothing more to be said — Skubal is a monster.

Not: Minnesota’s bats cool off
Shortly after ending its 13-game win streak, Minnesota’s lineup reverted back to radio silence. Twins hitters batted .222 and couldn’t breach a .400 slugging percentage. While they only struck out during roughly 22% of their at-bats, Minnesota’s poor .261 BABIP continues to tell the tale of a team that’s capable of winning but never exceeds its expectations.

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AL East
Hot: Tampa Bay is climbing the rankings
The Rays have cruised past Toronto and Boston in the AL East in the last half of May. They’ve won nine of their last 11 games and recorded a +52 run differential in the last week. Tampa Bay’s .318 batting average ranks highest in the league in the last seven games, and its pitching crew’s combined 1.87 ERA was third in the league. With a 30-28 record, the Rays are staying afloat in a tight division.

Not: Max Fried has a tough night
Fried had an uncharacteristically poor outing against the Dodgers. The Brave-turned-Yankee lefty allowed eight hits, six runs, and two home runs against Los Angeles. Fried also only managed to strike out three batters, which is notably low considering his K/9 rate this year is 9.0. Although Fried managed to pitch five frames, the Dodgers made him work for every out, bouncing him from the game after 75 pitches.

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NL West
Hot: San Diego keeps the Dodgers close
While the Dodgers are still one of the most dominant teams in the league and NL West, the Padres are making sure they don’t run off to the races. Thanks to Jake Cronenworth’s go-ahead home run, Luis Arráez’s timely RBIs, Manny Machado’s tying home run, and a clutch strikeout from Ranger Suarez, San Diego won four of its last six games to improve its record to 32-24.

Not: Arizona’s relievers dry up
Something must’ve been in the water last week, because nothing seemed to go right for the Diamondbacks rotation. Arizona’s relievers surrendered 18 runs in 23 ⅔ innings to post a 6.46 ERA. Kevin Ginkel was responsible for the brunt of Arizona’s poor relief work, accepting two losses after allowing six runs over one inning, prompting his demotion to Triple-A. After dropping their last three series, Arizona’s record is worse than .500 for the first time since April 7.

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NL Central
Hot: Christian Yelich steps up to the plate
Yelich hasn’t been great this year, with a .233 batting average, but he came through for the Brewers last week with a .440 batting average and .840 slugging percentage. His time to shine came against the Red Sox. Tied ta one apiece in the 10th inning, Yelich pummeled a walk-off grand slam against Liam Hendriks in Milwaukee’s sweep over Boston. Entering the series 26-28, the Brewers were desperate for a win and leader, and Yelich delivered both.

Not: Ke’Bryan Hayes gets stuck
Like everyone else in the Pirates lineup, Hayes hasn’t been hitting well. One of his two hits last week broke a four-game hitless streak, but he immediately turned around and struck out at all four of his at-bats in Pittsburgh’s 3-2 loss to San Diego. Hayes’ multi-hit games have become fewer and farther between as the season has progressed, and his consistency has also plummeted in the last half of May. Hopefully Hayes can chalk it up to a bad month and move on.

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NL East
Hot: Edward Cabrera looks elite
Cabrera has historically struggled with command for a while with the Marlins, but he exhibited no issues against the Angels last week. He gave up three hits and two walks and fanned 10 over 5 ⅔ scoreless innings. Since making some mechanical adjustments and throwing more breaking pitches, Cabrera’s pitching has greatly improved. The Marlins aren’t making the playoffs this year, but Cabrera could stir trade interest from a team.

Not: Zach Wheeler has an atypical night
Another ace had a rough outing, and this time it was Wheeler’s turn. In his second time facing the Braves, Wheeler conceded four hits, six runs, a home run, and four walks in 5 ⅓ innings. The early Cy Young contender still punched out six, but he still has yet to throw a gem against Atlanta this year. No need to be concerned, though, Wheeler’s ERA is still below 3.00 and he still has the second-highest number of strikeouts in the league.