Taking a look around the league, here’s a recap of last night’s action and suggestions for your fantasy baseball team.
Clutch Performers – Just when you thought the aging hurler had given you everything you thought he had, Adam Wainwright has picked up some steam this month. He shut down the Braves last night, allowing just one run in his complete-game performance. He is on a four-game, quality-start tear in which he has a 36:6 K:BB over that span. Wainwright has not been the fourth best pitcher in fantasy baseball for nothing.
- Eric Hosmer — 3-for-3, HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 BB
- Coco Crisp — 4-for-5, HR, 3 R, RBI
- Alex Gordon — 3-for-4, 4 R, RBI, BB
Surprise, surprise! – I believe the Khris Davis breakout party just went into full swing with last night’s two-homer, four-RBI performance. The question is, as with any young and up-and-comer, is he legit? I am buying what he is putting out there for the most part. Aside from this season at triple-A, Davis has always been a high-batting-average, high-OBP type of player with some pop. However, the power at the big-league level is insane. Davis is sporting a .392 ISO and now has eight home runs in 85 plate appearances. He could keep it going for the remainder of this season and possibly swing some leagues (available in over 60 percent of leagues still), but next season, I see Davis as a .280-.290 hitter, hitting 15 home runs or so.
- Garrett Richards — 7.1 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, W
- Scooter Gennett — 3-for-4, HR, 2 R, RBI
- Ricky Nolasco — 8 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 6 K, W
Left out in the breeze – Here’s who went cold last night:
- Mike Trout — 0-for-4, 2 K
- Mark Trumbo — 0-for-4, 2 K
- Jason Kipnis — 0-for-4, 2 K
- Chris Sale — 7 IP, 8 H, 8 ER, BB, 6 K, L
- Gio Gonzalez — 3.1 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, K, ND
- Hiroki Kuroda — 6 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, BB, 3 K, L
Trending developments – Here is what’s happening:
- With last night’s 0-for-4, four strikeout performance, Chris Carter now has 174 strikeouts and a 37.8 K%.
- In Daisuke Matsuzaka’s first game in the majors this season, he lasted all but five innings, allowing six hits and five earned runs while striking out four.
- Before last night, Hiroki Kuroda had not allowed a home run in 52.2 IP. He gave up four against the Rays.
- Jim Johnson became the first Orioles reliever with multiple 40-plus saves last night.
- If you were thinking of streaming Scott Kazmir, look somewhere else because his start Saturday is getting pushed back till Sunday.
Prospect Watch – Like you, I was shocked when the Marlins decided to bring up Christian Yelich, but I am not surprised about his first stint in the majors has gone. He struggled with left-handed pitching in the minors, and he is struggling with left-handed pitching in the majors. Hitting a crisp .167 does not cut it. Ask Lonnie Chisenhall. Yelich has all the talent in the world, but still has a lot of growing to do before he becomes fantasy relevant.
While one prospect struggles, another prospect, Miller Diaz, looks absolutely amazing. Read up on his career-high 11 strikeouts here.
Head-2-Head– This time of the year is always fun because some leagues have already started their playoff push, meaning there is a lot of flux in pitching add/drops. For instance, Jeff Smardzija is out there in over 20 percent of leagues as he faces the Padres. I also like Bronson Arroyo going against the Brewers, and he’s available in almost 40 peercent of leagues. For my streamer pick of the day, however, I’m going down under. Yes, the Aussie, Liam Hendriks, who is taking on the Indians. Maybe it’s because he is from Perth, Australia, maybe it is because he has a power name like Liam Hendriks or maybe it is because he has a 1.37 BB/9 in triple-A this year. Whatever the reason, expect Hendriks to be a solid streaming option today.
Links of the day – Time to get you link on.
- Jose Altuve worth keeping for next season? Find out here.
- Emilio Bonifacio and Donnie Murphy worth grabbing onto? Check out this run-down on these two players.
- The Starlin Castro train-wreck continues. Find out what I mean here.
- Closers, closers, closers. Here is a closer report coming at you.
- Last but not least, here is some up-and-coming prospects.