Game 154: Orioles at Red Sox

There are a few things left playing for this season: a draft pick spot (ehh kinda complicated feeling about this though), Michael Wacha’s rebound, potentially the last days of Xander Bogaerts (really hope not though). The time has also likely run out for J.D. Martinez and Nathan Eovaldi. Contributors to the 2018 World Series may be few and far between as soon as 2023.

Bogaerts enters tonight trailing both Aaron Judge and Luis Arraez in the battle title race. Xander and Arraez are both hitting .313 with fractions separating them. Both trail Judge’s .314 batting average. In all, the three top hitters have more or less slumped together average wise, with first place bouncing among them every few days.

Michael Wacha is currently in a 8-way tied for the most complete game shutouts this season: 1. The National League has 7 more. No one has completed the feat twice, although five MLB pitchers did so last year: Zack Wheeler, Joe Musgrove, Sean Manaea, Max Fried, and Anthony DeScalfani. Since 2010 only one Red Sox has more than one complete game shutout in any season: Clay Buchholz in 2014. Not that other teams are racking them up, just a little trivia.