+1 Point: Back in Fourth Place

Pretty much everything went according to plan yesterday. Mike Mussina delivered his 6th quality start in his last seven appearances against one of the better offenses in baseball, Matt Holliday continued to rake (he’s 14 for his last 31) and Alex Rios continues to make his best Brian Roberts impression (3 more SB and still no power).

I have 74.5 points now, and even though it’s on the wrong side of 75, I’ve been climbing up steadily the last few days. Once I get to 80 points anything is possible. I can gain three points in wins with three wins and I have three starters going on Monday in Garza, Nolasco and Dice-K.

I know that I’ve said that I don’t have confidence in Mussina because “he turns 40 this year, his strikeout rate is low (5K/9IP) and righties have an OPS of .896 against him”. Mussina began the year with a very low K-rate, but since the beginning of June, he’s been striking out almost 7 per nine. If he can continue to strike hitters out at this rate, he’ll be successful enough to warrant a roster spot year long.

I wish the Pirates would start winning so we’d have a better idea of who’s going to get the save ops in lieu of Matt Capps. I have John Grabow, but I’m worried that he’s not going to get the chances even though he probably deserves a shot at it given that he’s been reliable all year long for the Bucs.