Marquis vs. Arrieta in Inter-League Pitcher’s Duel

Friday starts the inter-league part of the MLB season. There are several compelling match-ups that involve cross-town or in-state rivals, but the most interesting game in my mind will be between the Baltimore Orioles and the Washington Nationals. Both teams will send their most productive pitcher this year to the mound in a battle of 5-1 records.

Jason Marquis has won 5 of his last 6 starts, and has been incredibly consistent in the process. He’s allowed more than 3 runs just once this year, and has pitched 6 innings or more in 7 of his 8 starts. The Washington Nationals may not finish the year towards the top of the tough National League East, but they’ve managed to stay in the hunt through the first month and a half with the help of Marquis.

Offense would’ve been a problem for this Washington team even if Ryan Zimmerman wasn’t out. Having Zimmerman sidelined makes this an uphill battle for the Nationals as they have no one in their starting line-up that could be considered a game changer. Jason Werth was a huge pick-up for the Nats, but he’s no the type of player that’s going to start rallies and lead by example. He’s currently batting just .234, and has just 6 homeruns. He was expected to be a power hitter that could manufacture runs with 1 swing of the bat, but has been unable to do so mainly because there’s rarely anyone on base.

Expert baseball handicappers have listed the Orioles as -155 favorites for this one due to the fact that they can hit the ball, and have been very competitive in the difficult American League East thus far. The A.L. East is still up for grabs as no team has taken the bull by the horns yet, but it’s unlikely to think that the Orioles will be around when the smoke clears. Regardless of where they finish, they should be excited about the direction in which this organization is going.

There have been several great stories for this ball club so far this year, and one of those is the pitching of second year starter Jake Arrieta. Arrieta is off to a 5-1 start, and has had just 1 bad performance in 9 starts. His 4.03 earned run average may not blow your hair back, but if you take into consideration that he allowed 8 runs in his second start, and had an ERA of 8.68, you’d have a better appreciation for what he’s done this season.

The Baltimore batting order hasn’t been very productive, but they seem to get the big hits at the most crucial times. Vladamir Guerrero and Adam Jones are providing the bulk of the Orioles offense as the rest of the team underachieves. This should be a competitive series, and Friday’s match-up should make for a highly contested pitcher’s duel. Tune in today as the Orioles and Nationals go head to head in their first inter-league series of the season.

Related posts:

1. Braves take on Arrieta/ Baltimore in Interleague Battle
2. Surging Indians take on Arrieta and Orioles Friday
3. Pirates host Indians in Inter-League Play
4. Rockies Host Cardinals in Pitchers Duel Thursday
5. Braves and Mets Battle in N.L. East Pitchers Duel

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