Alex Verdugo takes home spotlight honors with his double-dong, walk-off home run game. He finished the game 4-6 with two dingers, a double, two RBI, and three runs scored. He led all players in scoring on both major DFS sites yesterday, racking up 38.0 points on DraftKings and 49.6 points on FanDuel. His walk-off home run marked the second straight day that the Dodgers had a walk-off home run off the bat of a rookie, becoming the first team to ever accomplish that feat. Verdugo is having a nice season, hitting .303 with seven home runs and 32 RBI while going a perfect 3-3 on stolen base attempts. He has been batting second in the Dodgers lineup lately and if that continues it will bode well for his fantasy production going forward.

Strong Outings

  • Aaron Civale made his MLB debut last night and was lights out against the Tigers; he pitched six shutout innings and picked up the win. He gave up just two hits while striking out six. He was only at 87 pitches, but the Indians decided six frames was enough. He was pitching pretty well in the minors prior to his promotion with a 2.85 ERA split across 41.0 innings at AA and AAA. Deeper leagues should keep an eye on him.
  • Dakota Hudson delivered the goods once again for St. Louis in a win over the Angels. He pitched seven innings of one-run ball while giving up five hits and striking out six. He has now gone 12 straight starts of at least five innings AND three or fewer earned runs. That span has seen his ERA drop from 6.08 to his current 3.36 mark. He has a 2.48 ERA since the start of May, a span of 10 starts.
  • Zack Wheeler delivered one of his better starts of the year, firing seven innings of one-run ball in a win over the Cubs. He gave up five hits while striking out five. It was his ninth start of the year that he has gone at least seven innings and his 13 start of at least six innings. He will carry a 6-5 record and 4.69 ERA into his next outing.
  • Hyun-Jin Ryu pitched well in a no-decision against the Rockies, providing the Dodgers with six innings of three-run (one earned) ball. A big error cost his two runs, but that doesn’t affect him or your fantasy team. He gave up six hits while striking out five. Ryu is having a ridiculous season and he will look to continue it in his next; he will carry a 9-1 record and 1.27 ERA into it.
  • Chris Archer had one of his best outings of the year, tossing five innings of one-run ball in a no-decision against the Padres. He gave up just two hits while striking out five. He was only at 85 pitches, but given his struggles this year, the Pirates probably wanted him to end this start on a high note. He will carry a 3-6 record and ugly 5.56 ERA into his next outing.
  • José Berríos pitched seven innings of two-run ball in a no-decision against the Royals. He left with the lead, but the bullpen was unable to hold it. Berrios has been fantastic in June, going at least four innings and giving up two or fewer runs in all four of his starts, for a 1.63 ERA in the month. Overall, he will carry an 8-3 record and 2.84 ERA into his next outing.

Hitter Highlights

Nomar Mazara had another big game, a day after hitting the furthest home run of the MLB season this year at 505 feet. Yesterday he swatted a pair of home runs and had three RBI. He is swinging a hot bat right now, hitting .321 (17-53) with four home runs and 13 RBI over his last 14 games.

Jonathan Villar had the only bash-and-dash game yesterday, finishing 2-4 with a home run, a walk, three RBI, two runs scored, and a steal. He now has nine home runs and 15 steals this year, putting him nearly on pace for a 20-30 campaign. The .249 batting average leaves a bit to be desired though.

Yordan Alvarez swatted a three-run home run and also singled, walked, and scored an additional run. This guy is a slugger and he cannot be contained. The 21-year old now has six home runs and 14 RBI to go along with a .326 batting average through his first 11 games played.

Pete Alonso , speaking of sluggers, blasted out a solo home run yesterday. He also doubled, walked, and scored an additional run in the Mets 10-2 routing of the Cubs. He now has 26 home runs and 60 RBI, the second and seventh most in all of baseball. He tied a franchise rookie record for home runs and it’s only June 23. It’s going to take a collapse for him to not win NL ROY at this point.

Bryce Harper went 2-3 with a home run, a walk, and two RBI. The home run was a laser, getting out in a hurry. He now has 13 home runs and 52 RBI on the year, despite a mediocre .246 batting average. Harper hasn’t set the league on fire in his first season with the Phillies, but there is still plenty of time for him to get hot and finish with big season totals.

Trea Turner finished 2-4 with a walk, three runs scored, and a stolen base. The steal was his 13th of the year and he is an impressive 13-14 on swipe attempts. He has only played 37 games this year, but has still managed to score 27 runs while hitting .279 and swatting five home runs.

Freddie Freeman went 2-3 with a double, two walks, a run, and a day-leading five RBI. He tied a Braves franchise record by recording a RBI in ten straight games. He is having a bonkers month of June, hitting .346 with eight home runs and 29 RBI across 20 games. For the year he is hitting .316 with 21 dingers, 61 RBI, and 59 runs scored.

What to Watch for Today

Jordan Yamamoto will look to keep the stellar start to his career going today when he takes on the Phillies in Philly. After his last start, he became the first pitcher to begin a career with two starts of at least seven innings pitched with zero runs and three or fewer hits in both outings.

Zach Plesac will also look to keep his strong start to his career going, when he takes on the Tigers. Through five starts he has a 2.56 ERA and has gone seven innings in three of them. He currently has a 0.98 WHIP and opposing batters have managed to hit .191 against him.

Jacob deGrom (4-6, 3.26 ERA) and Cole Hamels (6-2, 2.85 ERA) will go to battle in today’s best pitching match-up. deGrom has given up two or fewer runs in six straight starts and has 112 strikeouts across 91.0 innings pitched this year. Hamels has a 0.31 ERA in the month of June as he has allowed just one earned run across 29.0 innings pitched (four starts).