Dallas Keuchel is back to 2015 form - MLB

In 2015, Astros starter Dallas Keuchel won the American League Cy Young Award after posting a stellar 2.48 ERA and 1.017 WHIP in 33 starts. He also struck out 216 batters in a league-high 232 innings. In the playoffs he led the Astros to a win over the Yankees in the American League Wild Card Game, tossing six shutout innings.

Heading into 2016 it was expected that Keuchel would once again anchor the Astros’ staff. Unfortunately, it was a bad campaign for the sinkerballer. He had a shoulder injury and, even when he was pitching, he suffered command problems. He finished the season with a 9-12 record and a 4.55 ERA. His hits and walks allowed were up and his strikeouts were down. The sinker wasn’t sinking and his groundball percentage was down. Even when the ball was hit on the ground, it found holes, with his BABIP going from an excellent .269 in 2015 to .304 last year.

Heading into this season, the biggest question the Astros had was whether their rotation would be good enough to help the team get back to the playoffs. If Keuchel could be an ace again, the club would be in good shape. If not, [cliche movie quote about problems/Houston deleted]. Well, the club is in good shape again.

Keuchel has gone exactly seven innings in each of his first four starts. He allowed zero runs in his first start of the year and one each in the next three, including last night’s win over the Angels. He’s 3-0 with 22 strikeouts and only six walks in 28 innings and a 0.96 ERA. He has been inducing grounders at a 70% clip and opposing hitters have a mere .194 average on balls in play.

In other words, Keuchel is Keuchel again. And because of that it’s no accident that the Astros are tied for the most wins in baseball.

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CARSON CITY, Nev. — A bill introduced in the Nevada Legislature would give the Oakland Athletics up to $380 million for a potential 30,000 seat, $1.5 billion retractable roof stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.

The bulk of the public funding would come from $180 million in transferable tax credits from the state and $120 million in county bonds, which can vary based on interest rate returns. Clark County also would contribute $25 million in credit toward infrastructure costs.

The A’s have been looking for a home to replace Oakland Coliseum, where the team has played since arriving from Kansas City for the 1968 season. The team had sought to build a stadium in Fremont, San Jose and finally the Oakland waterfront, all ideas that never materialized.

The plan in the Nevada Legislature won’t directly raise taxes. It can move forward with a simply majority vote in the Senate and Assembly. Lawmakers have a little more than a week to consider the proposal before they adjourn June 5, though it could be voted on if a special session is called.

The Athletics have agreed to use land on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip, where the Tropicana Las Vegas casino resort sits. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has said he is disappointed the team didn’t negotiate with Oakland as a “true partner.”

Las Vegas would be the fourth home for a franchise that started as the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901-54. It would become the smallest TV market in Major League Baseball and the smallest market to be home to three major professional sports franchises.

The team and Las Vegas are hoping to draw from the nearly 40 million tourists who visit the city annually to help fill the stadium. The 30,000-seat capacity would make it the smallest MLB stadium.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said a vote on the Oakland Athletics’ prospective move to Las Vegas could take place when owners meet June 13-15 in New York.

The plan faces an uncertain path in the Nevada Legislature. Democratic leaders said financing bills, including for the A’s, may not go through if Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoes the five budget bills, which he has threatened to do as many of his priorities have stalled or faded in the Democratic-controlled Legislature.

Under the bill, the Clark County Board of Commissioners would create a homelessness prevention and assistance fund along the stadium’s area in coordination with MLB and the Nevada Resort Association. There, they would manage funds for services, including emergency rental and utility assistance, job training, rehabilitation and counseling services for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

The lease agreement with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority would be up for renewal after 30 years.

Nevada’s legislative leadership is reviewing the proposal, Democratic state Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager said in a statement.

“No commitment will be made until we have both evaluated the official proposal and received input from interested parties, including impacted community members,” Yeager said.