We’ve got a great slate of MLB games lined up for Tuesday with some really nice pitching match-ups to watch. Lance McCullers Jr. makes his return from the injured list to face the Rangers, though he will be limited and the Astros are saying he’ll be piggybacked by Jake Odorizzi, Yu Darvish makes his way into Colorado and Trevor Rogers continues his ascension into the elite with a start against the Cardinals tonight. Those are just a few of pieces that make up the must-watch action for tonight. But before we look ahead, let’s wrap up a few things from Monday.
Four in a Row
In a time where fantasy baseball owners are lamenting over injuries to superstars like Mike Trout and Shane Bieber, who just landed on the 10-day IL yesterday, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. continues his onslaught on starting pitchers to give us the hero we all need. While the Red Sox may have ultimately won the game, Guerrero popped his league-leading 22nd home run, a solo shot in the top of the ninth, to tie the game and send it to extra-innings. He’s now gone yard in four-straight games and is 10-for-18 (.556) with one double, four homers, eight RBI and a stolen base during his current five-game hit streak. It may have taken two seasons to get him warmed up and ready for big-league action, but the level of dominance we are currently witnessing is exactly why he was so hyped to begin with and believe it when we say this is just the tip of the iceberg. He is real and he is spectacular.
Not Dead Yet
While we continue to usher in the next generation of MLB superstars, the old guard isn’t quite yet ready to shut it down and pass the baton. Since returning from the 10-day IL, veteran Joey Votto is showing that fantasy owners may not want to put him out to pasture just yet. He has now hit safely in five-straight games and is 7-for-22 (.318) with three home runs and 11 RBI. His slash line on the season is still just .237/.324/.466 but keep an eye on him as this Reds team continues to hit for huge power. Last season everyone kept reminding us how weak the central divisions were, so remember that they really haven’t gotten any better. The Reds could be a second-half force to reckon with, especially with the way they produce at home.
Baltimore’s Finest
Without a whole lot of fanfare, likely because only about three people actually pay attention to the Orioles, Cedric Mullins has blossomed into one of the top leadoff hitters in the game right now. The 26-year-old continues to dominate as he turned in another solid effort, going just 1-for-4, but he also drew a walk and stole two bases during Baltimore’s loss to the Indians. Mullins is now slashing .321/.389/.524 with nine home runs and 12 stolen bases. What is even more impressive is that he’s managed to kick it into another gear here in the month of June, slashing .462/.533/.821 through 10 games. It should be interesting to see what the team does with him at the trade deadline. If he were to land with a contender who could pack a bigger punch in the lineup behind him, he could turn into a fantasy beast right before our eyes.
Gomberlicious
Austin Gomber is reminding everyone why he was one of the primary pieces to land in Colorado in the Nolan Arenado trade during the offseason. The world ripped then Rockies GM Jeff Bridich for not getting back enough in the deal, but Gomber is proving people wrong almost every time he steps onto the mound. Facing the feared Slam Diego Padres in Colorado, Gomber spun an absolute gem of an outing – eight innings of shutout ball, allowing just three hits with no walks and four strikeouts. He’s now allowed just one earned run over his last three starts (19 innings) and hasn’t walked a batter since May 29. He is currently sitting on a 3.54 ERA with a 1.05 WHIP and a 75:23 K:BB over 76.1 innings this season, but what’s even more amazing is the 0.95 ERA with a 0.81 WHIP in his four starts at home in Coors Field. Next up is a soft Milwaukee team this weekend.
Revolving Closers
You thought fantasy owners were having issues with stolen bases? Try finding some consistent saves. There are really only about five or six guys you can expect to see in the ninth inning when their teams are ahead. Everything else is all about match-ups. Not just lefty/righty, but what part of the lineup and who’s got the hot hand and what day of the stupid week it is, it seems. Managers are pushing us to the brink where we have to start drafting three guys from the same pen just to nail down a team’s saves. Lou Trivino is back to being the lead guy in Oakland it seems as he nails down his third save in his last four appearances. Emmanuel Clase grabbed another save as Terry Francona opted to use James Karinchak in the seventh inning yesterday, Drew Steckenrider was the ninth-inning guy for Seattle as Kendall Graveman got the night off, Pete Fairbanks locked down the save for Tampa and is Jake McGee back closing for the Giants? Bring me back to the days where you had one guy closing. Life was just so much simpler back then.
Today’s Slate
We’ve got a few live hitting streaks to monitor tonight, two of whom belong to a pair of Rockies squaring off against Yu Darvish. Charlie Blackmon has a 13-game hit streak running while fellow outfielder Raimel Tapia has hit safely in 11-straight. Pirates rookie Ke’Bryan Hayes has hit safely though 11 games and gets lefty punching bag Patrick Corbin tonight in Washington and Rangers shortsop Isaiah Kiner-Falefa carries his 11-game hit streak into Houston against the tandem of Lance McCullers Jr and Jake Odorizzi.
Keep an eye on that San Francisco game tonight as Zack Littell is getting the start, but he is just the opener against a soft Diamondbacks team. The glory could land on 25-year-old lefty Sammy Long who made his debut against Texas last week and held the Rangers to just one run over four innings while striking out seven of the first 14 hitters he faced. Arizona hits lefties reasonably well, but they continue to be one of the least productive teams over the past two weeks and Long, should he prove himself again, could be a valuable fantasy asset as having an opener allows him to still get the win even if he only throws another four innings.
I am also watching Braves lefty Tucker Davidson who has now fired 11.2 scoreless innings over his last two starts and could lock down a rotation spot in Atlanta on a more permanent basis with a strong effort against a tough Red Sox lineup. He is still worthy of a stream despite the match-up as Boston has just a .312 team wOBA against lefties this season and just a .292 wOBA with a 25.5-percent K-rate over the past week.
Betting Favorites
The Padres are currently listed as the biggest favorites tonight with a -235 money line against the Rockies. Probably not much of a surprise there, but if you’re looking for better odds with this game, you may want to look at the run line for the Padres which is at -162 for -1.5 runs.
The Astros are -195 favorites over the Texas Rangers and I’m not sure this is a game I would want to bet so easily. McCullers is likely to only go about four innings and Jake Odorizzi is really not that good. The Texas lineup is capable of doing some damage against him. Meanwhile Kyle Gibson is on the mound for Texas and he has definitely proven himself capable enough times to push me more into the Rangers +1.5 for a -127 money line.
The Dodgers are the third-highest money line favorite at -190 against the Phillies. I like this one a whole lot more than the Astros/Rangers game as The Phillies struggle against lefties and Julio Urias is on the mound for the Dodgers while Zach Eflin toes the rubber for the Phillies against a Dodgers team that feasts on right-handed pitching.