5 days agoDetroit Tigers starting pitcher
Jack Flaherty was stellar on Friday night, pitching 5 2/3 innings and striking out eight in the Tigers' 2-1 win over the Chicago White Sox. Flaherty picked up the win and improved his record to 5-4 on the season. The 28-year-old also threw 98 pitches, negating any potential concerns about the back spasms that forced him to be removed in his start against the Texas Rangers earlier this month. With an xERA of 2.66, Flaherty should continue to be dominant whenever he takes the hill for the Tigers. His next start will be a tough test when the Philadelphia Phillies come into Detroit on Wednesday.
--Kevin Larson - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoNew York Mets designated hitter
J.D. Martinez had a very productive day at the plate on Friday, smacking a three-run homer and adding an RBI single in the Mets' 11-1 win over the Chicago Cubs. The four RBI are a season high for Martinez, and his home run was his ninth on the season. The 36-year-old has been having a fantastic season, hitting for a .370 wOBA with a .391 xwOBA, the latter ranking in the 97th percentile of the league. Fantasy managers looking for a DH should snatch up Martinez immediately if he's available. He will look to continue his hot June on Saturday against Cubs starter
Jameson Taillon, who he is 5-for-21 against in his career with a double and a homer.
--Kevin Larson - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoChicago Cubs starting pitcher
Shota Imanaga had his worst outing in the majors on Friday afternoon, giving up 10 runs on 11 hits in three innings in the Cubs' 11-1 loss to the New York Mets. After being credited with the loss Imanaga's record is now 7-2. The lefty allowed three homers to
J.D. Martinez,
Francisco Alvarez and
Brandon Nimmo. Imanaga's ERA rose a full run from 1.90 to 2.96 after the dredging. "Sometimes, when I give my 100% that's not enough. So, I need to figure out unique ways to be better," the Japanese rookie stated after the loss. Imanaga had been due for negative regression with a 3.05 xERA prior to today and he's clearly needing to find new ways to counter batters now that the league has a bit of a book on him. He'll get his next shot to get back on track on Wednesday night in San Francisco against the Giants.
--Kevin Larson - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoTexas Rangers third baseman
Josh Jung (wrist) was pulled off his minor-league rehab assignment and is returning to Arlington, Texas, to be examined this weekend, and the Rangers will then make a decision on whether his rehab assignment will continue or if he'll be activated from the injured list to rejoin the big-league roster. If the team's doctors and decision-makers like what they see, the 26-year-old right-handed slugger could be back in the lineup later this weekend against the visiting Kansas City Royals. He has gone 4-for-17 in four rehab games with Triple-A Round Rock as he recovers from a fractured wrist that he suffered way back on April 1. When he returns, Jung will be the team's starting third baseman and should be rostered in all fantasy leagues. Both
Josh Smith and
Ezequiel Duran will lose out on playing time at the hot corner when Jung is activated.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Dallas Morning News - Evan Grant
5 days agoLos Angeles Dodgers left-hander
Clayton Kershaw (shoulder) will make his second minor-league rehab start on Tuesday with Triple-A Oklahoma City. Kershaw looked sharp in his first rehab start with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday, giving up just one run on two hits while walking one and striking out five in three innings of work. The 36-year-old veteran southpaw got his fastball up to 90 mph and continues to build up his arm after having offseason surgery on his left shoulder. The three-time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer has a ways to go in his rehab assignment and probably isn't going to be ready to make his 2024 debut for the Dodgers until after the All-Star break in mid-July. Kershaw is no longer a fantasy ace and has had his fair share of injuries in recent years, but he can still be effective in all fantasy formats if he can stay healthy in the second half.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Orange County Register - Bill Plunkett
5 days agoUpdating a previous report, Los Angeles Angels infielder
Brandon Drury (illness) was scratched from the lineup for the second straight game on Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers due to an illness. Drury was also scratched from Wednesday's lineup and had Thursday's off day to rest up, but apparently he's still under the weather after initially being included in the lineup for the series opener at Dodger Stadium.
Luis Rengifo is at the hot corner and batting second, while
Michael Stefanic will draw into the Angels' lineup at the keystone and bat eighth against Dodgers rookie right-hander
Landon Knack. The 31-year-old Drury is a regular on the infield for the Halos when healthy, but he's missed time due to injury in 2024 and hasn't been much of a fantasy contributor in mixed leagues with a .173/.233/.236 slash line and just one home run in his 110 at-bats.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Sam Blum
5 days agoSeattle Mariners first base prospect
Luis Suisbel went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI on Thursday evening. This was his third three-hit performance in the past eight games. The 21-year-old has logged 90 games at the Single-A level over the past two summers and holds an overall .285/.357/.455 slash line with 11 home runs and 76 RBI. However, he has struggled with a poor 33:125 BB:K ratio. This season, Suisbel is riding a .282/.348/.436 line with six long balls and 44 RBI. The young infielder should be expected to join High-A fairly soon as he has posted strong numbers at Single-A despite his high strikeout rate. He is currently ranked as the 27th-best prospect in the Seattle system and remains several seasons away from his major league debut.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoThe Colorado Rockies placed rookie infielder
Adael Amador on the 10-day injured list on Friday with a right-oblique strain and activated second baseman
Brendan Rodgers (hamstring) from the injured list in a corresponding move. The Rockies expect Amador to have a quick recovery, although when he's all healed up, he seems likely to head back to the minors to continue his development. Colorado called up their top prospect to handle second-base duties with Rodgers on the shelf, but he looked overmatched in his first taste of big-league pitching and went 6-for-35 (.171) with a double, stolen base, one walk and six strikeouts in 10 games played. The 21-year-old suffered a similar oblique injury earlier this year while playing for Double-A Hartford, although it doesn't look like he's going to be out long.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: DNVR Sports - Patrick Lyons
5 days agoDetroit Tigers second base prospect
Hao-Yu Lee went 3-for-5 on Thursday evening with a home run to extend his current hitting streak to seven games. During this stretch, Lee has held a .484/.515/.806 line with five multi-hit games. This is Lee's second extended hitting streak this season, as he had a 10-game streak in May. Through his first 61 games at Double-A, the 21-year-old has performed very well with a .306/.379/.533 slash line with 11 home runs, 44 RBI, 11 stolen bases, and a 29:48 BB:K ratio. Lee spent the majority of the past two summers with High-A and held a similar .274/.364/.413 line. The number 13 ranked prospect in the Detroit system on MLB Pipeline has yet to slow down in the minor leagues and is worth paying close attention to in dynasty leagues as he could be joining Triple-A later this summer.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoThe Colorado Rockies activated second baseman
Brendan Rodgers (hamstring) from the injured list on Friday and placed infield prospect
Adael Amador (oblique) on the injured list in a corresponding move with a right-oblique strain. Rodgers isn't in the team's starting lineup on Friday against the visiting Washington Nationals, but he should return to regular duties at the keystone moving forward now that he's past his hamstring issue. The former first-round pick in 2015 has mostly been a bust for the Rockies since making his big-league debut in 2019, but he's actually having one of his best seasons in 2024, hitting .275/.309/.390 with three home runs, 22 RBI, the first stolen base of his career and 24 runs scored in 59 games played. Rodgers has never had more than 15 homers in his career, though, so he comes with a low ceiling and floor.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: DNVR Sports - Patrick Lyons
5 days agoLos Angeles Angels infielder
Brandon Drury (illness) is feeling better on Friday and is starting at second base and batting sixth for the Angels in the series opener at Dodger Stadium against the Los Angeles Dodgers and right-handed rookie
Landon Knack. Drury was scratched from Wednesday's lineup due to an illness but had a day off to recover on Thursday and is now good to go for the Freeway Series. The 31-year-old veteran returned from the injured list on Monday and is 1-for-6 this week since returning. Drury has battled injuries this year and hasn't been able to get into a groove at the plate, as he comes into Friday's contest with a .173/.233/.236 slash line with only a homer and six RBI in 110 at-bats. As long as he stays healthy, though, he should be a lineup regular for the Halos, making him useful in much deeper fantasy leagues.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoOakland Athletics infielder
Abraham Toro (shoulder) is back at third base and is batting in his customary leadoff spot on Friday in Minnesota against the Twins and right-hander
Chris Paddack. Toro is going to give it a go for the A's after missing the last three games with shoulder soreness, but he did serve as a pinch-hitter in Thursday's loss to the Kansas City Royals. The 27-year-old switch-hitter has earned regular playing time for Oakland and a spot atop the batting order by hitting .259/.300/.387 with six home runs, 24 RBI, three stolen bases and 31 runs scored in 274 at-bats. The playing time is useful for those in deeper fantasy leagues, but he has a low ceiling for counting stats with the A's and is hitting just .161 (10-for-62) with a homer, two doubles, four RBI and 13 strikeouts in 16 games in the month of June. Toro is hitless in two career at-bats versus Paddack.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Oakland A's Communications
5 days agoCleveland Guardians relief pitching prospect Matt Jachec is being promoted to High-A Lake City. Jachec made his minor league debut in 2023 after being selected in the 18th round of the 2023 MLB Draft. He tossed three innings in the Rookie League before moving up to finish the season at Single-A where he posted a 3.27 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and 3:14 BB:K ratio in 11 innings. He began this season with Single-A and held a similar 3.82 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and a 6:48 BB:K ratio through 35 frames. The young right-hander was sharp through May, where he held a 2:17 BB:K ratio with a 2.19 ERA and 0.97 WHIP. Jachec should be expected to remain in the bullpen at High-A and could be a name to monitor going forward as he tallied two saves for Single-A this season.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB Central
5 days agoPittsburgh Pirates outfield prospect
Charles McAdoo is moving up to Double-A Altoona. McAdoo has been performing very well this season at High-A and was rewarded with an early promotion. Through 60 games this season, the 22-year-old has posted a stellar .336/.415/.561 slash line with nine home runs, 52 RBI, and 14 stolen bases. Last season, the San Jose State product held a .302/.412/.510 line with five home runs, 24 RBI, and five swiped bags in a small 28-game sample size at Single-A Bradenton. The former 2023 draft pick is ranked as the number 30 prospect in the Pittsburgh system and is projected to make his major league debut sometime in 2026. However, with his recent promotion and due to how well he has performed in the lower levels of the minors, a 2025 debut is not out of the question.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB Central
5 days agoAfter 15 seasons in Major League Baseball, left-hander
Cole Hamels has decided to officially retire. The 40-year-old hasn't pitched in a MLB game since the 2020 season with the Atlanta Braves. Hamels made one appearance with Atlanta before suffering an injury that forced him to miss the rest of the season. He was a four-time All-Star and the 2008 World Series MVP. It was an incredible season for Hamels who spent most of his career with the Philadelphia Phillies. That being said, the organization has decided to honor Hamels ahead of Friday's game.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: MLB
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