Taking a look around the league, here’s a recap of last night’s action and suggestions for your fantasy baseball team.
Clutch Performers – Nothing is better than a double-header in which your star player stuffs the stat sheet, and that is exactly what Robinson Cano did yesterday. He finished 6-for-8 with a home run and five RBIs. He has been the premier second baseman this season, however, Cano’s runs scored has taken a major dip this season due to the lack of offensive firepower in the Yankees lineup. This is keeping him out of the top-10 overall this season. Going forward, Cano may sneak into the top 10, but he is going to need some help from his teammates as he continues to roll out another impressive season.
- Patrick Corbin — 9 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 10 K, W
- A.J. Burnett — 7 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 7 K, W
- Justin Morneau — 4-for-5, HR, R, 4 RBI
Surprise, surprise! – If you came here yesterday looking for a streamer, you came away with the best as Sonny Gray looked very impressive against the Mariners yesterday. In the course of seven innings of work, Gray’s only blemish came in the third inning when Nick Franklin hit a two-run bomb. Since coming up to stick in the rotation, Gray has three straight quality starts to go along with a 1.44 ERA and a 0.76 WHIP.
- John Danks — 8 IP, 7 H, 0 ER, BB, 2 K, W
- Nick Franklin — 2-for-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI
- Eric Young Jr. — 1-for-4, 2 R, 2 SB
Left out in the breeze – These guys did not get it done yesterday:
- Nate McLouth- 0-for-5, 3 K
- Lance Lynn- 6 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, L
- Jay Bruce- 0-for-4, 3 K
Trending developments – Aaron Hill is on a 13-game hitting streak in which he is batting .426/.483/.778 with four home runs, nine runs and 13 RBI.
- Alex Cobb is one of the most added this week. Against Baltimore last night he went six innings, gave up three hits, an earned run, four walks and struck out five.
- Martin Prado has been one of the hottest batters this week, and last night was no different; he went 2-for-4 with a home run.
Prospect Watch – Since Kolten Wong came up, he is batting .278 with three stolen bases, all coming in the past two games. Wong is a very interesting prospect because he has the ability to stuff the stat sheet as well as hit for average. If you start glancing around at the second base landscape for keeper leagues, you will notice second base is getting very old, very quick. Robinson Cano turns 31 this year, Dustin Pedroia just turned 30, Matt Carpenter turns 28 this year, Brandon Phillips turned 32, Ben Zobrist turned 32, and Ian Kinsler turned 31.Unless you happen to own Jason Kipnis (26 years old) for the foreseeable future, you maybe in the market for a long-term solution at second base. Kolton Wong could be that future. I believe he has the ability to be a top-10 second basemen as early as next season, and if he continues to rack up stolen bases the way he has, he could have some nice value this year. Here are some highlights
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azamKjie3yA
Head-2-Head – Alex Wood against the Mets seems like a no-brainer streaming option for today. He has transitioned beautifully from the bullpen to the starting rotation and has a string of four straight quality starts. He is a must-start if you are looking to stream today.
Links of the day – Time to link it up.
- Here is some more in-depth fantasy analysis of Sonny Gray.
- Why has Prince Fielder struggled this season? Find out here.
- Xander Bogaerts day has come and gone, see what you missed here.
- Speaking of hot prospects, see who else has been called up and should be picked up here.
- Can Jean Segura repeat his success next season? This guy says it is unlikely.
