Wandy Rodriguez
Who would have thought that Wandy would be the ace of the staff so far this season? This was the year Wandy needed to prove he was a valuable #2 starter, and he has established that in his first three starts. He's shown poise, emotion, and the ability to strike a fool out. The Astros are 2-1 in Wandy's starts.
Wandy's three starts:
| vs CHI | 6IP | 4H/1ER | 4K:3BB | 8GB/7FB |
| at STL | 6IP | 5H/3ER | 4K:3BB | 10GB/8FB |
| vs CIN | 7IP | 2H/0ER | 10K:2BB | 4GB/8FB |
Batters are hitting .177/.282/.210 (yep, I checked) off Wandy, and hitting .146 at Minute Maid Park with three induced GIDP. And this is interesting. With a first-pitch strike, opponents are hitting .147/.211/.147. After a first-pitch ball, opponents are hitting .143/.333/.190. Once he gets that first-pitch ball, batters have gone on to get three more pitches just like it six times (in 27 plate appearances), and he's had only eight walks all season.
2008 vs. Los Angeles:
| July 1 L | 5IP | 6H/5ER | 5K:4BB | 6GB/10FB |
Career vs:
| Oswalt vs. | HxAB | BA/OBP/SLG | HR-RBI | K:BB |
| Furcal | 2x5 | .400/.500/.800 | 0-0 | 1:1 |
| Kemp | 2x5 | .400/.333/.600 | 0-2 | 1:0 |
| Martin | 2x5 | .400/.625/1.200 | 1-2 | 0:3 |
| Hudson | 2x6 | .333/.500/.667 | 0-1 | 0:2 |
| Pierre | 2x7 | .286/.444/.186 | 0-0 | 0:2 |
| Ethier | 1x5 | .200/.200/.200 | 0-0 | 0:0 |
| Loney | 1x6 | .167/.167/.167 | 0-1 | 1:0 |
Chad Billingsley
Billingsley is 3-0 in his first three starts, and has turned in quality starts in all three, but his second game was the gem of the season so far. Throwing 7IP with 5H/1ER, 11K:0BB against the Giants in an 11-1 win, Billingsley is starting to live up to the hype he's had since his debut in 2006.
This matchup has the promise of a pitcher's duel as Billingsley's BAA splits are as follows:
Total: .169/.243/.231
Righties: .103/.156/.138
Lefties: .222/.310/.306
First-pitch strikes: .088/.086/.118
First-pitch balls: .292/.452/.375
2008 splits:
| vs. HOU | 1-1 | 2.77 ERA/1.15 WHIP | 0 HR | 9K:3BB |
| At MMP | 1-0 | 0.00 ERA/0.88 WHIP | 0 HR | 5K:1BB |
| Wolf vs. | HxAB | BA/OBP/SLG | HR-RBI | K:BB |
| Matsui | 3x8 | .375/.444/.500 | 0-0 | 1:1 |
| Lee | 3x12 | .250/.231/.333 | 0-1 | 1:0 |
| Tejada | 1x5 | .200/.333/.200 | 0-2 | 1:0 |
| Berkman | 2x12 | .167/.286/.333 | 0-0 | 3:2 |
| Blum | 2x14 | .143/.294/.143 | 0-0 | 3:3 |
| Bourn | 1x7 | .143/.143/.143 | 0-0 | 1:0 |
| Lee | 1x9 | .111/.333/.444 | 1-2 | 2:3 |
| Pence | 1x3 | .333/.333/.333 | 0-2 | 1:0 |
