News/Notes
- The only real weather concern is in the SF/WAS game
- My top pitching combo for GPPs is deGrom/Skubal and overall like the idea of spending up at SP today
- The Brewers, Reds, Astros, and Dodgers are all stacks I love today.
FD | Position | Top Tier | Mid-Tier | Value-Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| P | Jacob deGrom | Lucas Giolito | Tarik Skubal |
| IF | Jose Altuve | Jazz Chisholm | Willy Adames |
| OF | Nick Castellanos | Kyle Tucker | Ryan Mountcastle |
DK | Position | Top Tier | Mid-Tier | Value-Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| P | Jacob deGrom | Lucas Giolito | Tarik Skubal |
| IF | Jose Altuve | Willy Adames | Brendan Rodgers |
| OF | Nick Castellanos | Kyle Tucker | Jake Fraley |
Player News
Jordan Westburg went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run, a double, and a walk on Wednesday in a 10-1 win over the Tigers.
Clearly chomping at the bit to return, Westburg has now homered in back-to-back games since coming off the injured list. His late three-run shot helped to break this game open after the Orioles and Tigers were locked in a tight affair through the first seven innings. He looks ready to go on a tear and this situation serves as a good reminder that more players than we think could be struggling because they’re trying to play through an injury, as Westburg clearly was earlier this season.
Zach Eflin allowed five hits and one run with one walk and five strikeouts over 6 2/3 innings in a win over the Tigers on Wednesday.
While Eflin’s strikeout numbers are rarely gaudy, he’s at his best when he’s mixing his deep pitch-mix and living around the edges of the plate like he did in this game. He threw each of his changeup, sinker, cutter, fastball, and curveball at least 12% of the time and allowed just two hard-hit balls before the Tigers’ slight seventh inning rally that chased Eflin from this game. Nevertheless, this was a great game for him. He’s lined up for a two-start week coming up with road matchups against the Yankees and Rays.
Colt Keith went 1-for-3 with a double and a RBI on Wednesday against the Orioles.
The Tigers struggled to muster up any offense against Zach Eflin and the Orioles in this one. Keith’s double was their only extra-base hit and it drove home their only run. Alas, he’s put a sluggish start of the season behind him with a .797 OPS over his last 30 games.
Casey Mize allowed eight hits and two runs with two walks and seven strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings in a loss against the Orioles on Wednesday.
There was plenty of both good and bad to take out of this start by Mize. His seven strikeouts are the second most he’s had in any start this season and most in four starts since coming off the injured list. His splitter was lethal working as his primary pitch forcing seven swings-and-misses while not allowing a single hard-hit ball. Yet, his usage of that pitch became a bit predictable late in this game and strikes were tougher to come by. In the end, he was a tad too inefficient to get through the sixth inning and earn a quality start. He’s scheduled for a two-start week coming up against the Pirates at home and Rays on the road.
Teoscar Hernández launched a three-run homer Wednesday as the Dodgers downed the Padres 5-2.
The struggling Hernández had gone 17 games without a homer before taking Jeremiah Estrada deep in the sixth inning. The ball left his bat at 108.6 mph and traveled a projected 420 feet. It was his only hit of the game to go along with two strikeouts and two routine flies, but hopefully it will get him going. He had been 3-for-38 with one RBI since May 31.
Ben Casparius threw four innings of one-run ball Wednesday in his start against the Padres.
Although he settled for two strikeouts and just two missed swings, Casparius was able to get 12 outs on 54 pitches in his longest outing this season. If the Dodgers keep stretching him out, he’ll probably offer some mixed-league value, even if his ERA seems likely to increase in the rotation. He has a 2.86 ERA and a stellar 46/9 K/BB in 44 innings to this point. Unless something changes, he’ll face the Padres again next Monday or Tuesday.