Patrick Corbin takes home spotlight honors, making it two straight days that a Nationals pitcher has done so (Scherzer the day before). Corbin left with a lead, but was stuck with a no-decision after the bullpen blew the save. He finished the afternoon with seven shutout innings. He gave up five hits and zero walks while matching a season high by striking out 11. He ends the first half on fire, giving up just three runs across his last 28 innings (four starts). He led all pitchers in DFS scoring on both DraftKings (34.8) and FanDuel (58.0). At the All-Star break he has 129 strikeouts across 113.1 innings pitched and a 7-5 record to go along with a 3.34 ERA.

Strong Outings

  • Charlie Morton picked up a win over the Yankees after firing 5.2 innings of one-run ball. He gave up five hits while striking out 10. It was his second straight game with double-digit punch-outs and his twelfth outing with at least seven strikeouts. He will carry a 10-2 record and 2.32 ERA into his next start and may just be the current front-runner for AL Cy Young.
  • Trevor Bauer dominated the Reds over seven innings of work in a win. He gave up just four hits and one run while striking out nine. It marked his fourteenth start with at least seven strikeouts and he has 149 punch-outs across 132.0 innings thus far. He will carry an 8-6 record and 3.61 ERA into his first start after the break.
  • James Paxton had a dicey first inning in which he gave up three hits and two runs, but he really settled in after that, giving up four hits and zero runs across his final five innings of work. He walked zero while striking out 11. It was his eighth start with at least seven punch-outs. He currently has a 5-4 record and a disappointing 4.01 ERA.
  • Trent Thornton was lights-out in a win over the Orioles, firing six shutout innings. He gave up just three hits while striking out five.  Thornton has been one of the least consistent pitchers in baseball this year, but has the ability to throw gems like this one from time to time. He has 97 strikeouts across 94.2 innings pitched and a 4.85 ERA.
  • Aaron Nola fired a gem against the Mets, giving up just one earned run across 6.2 innings pitched. He had a no-hitter through five innings but ended up giving up three before his day was done. He struck out six and picked up the win. Nola closed out the break on fire, giving up just two earned runs across his final 29.2 innings pitched (four starts). He will carry an 8-2 record and 3.74 ERA into his next start.
  • Jack Flaherty finally pitched well, despite taking a loss against the Giants. He hurled seven innings of one-run ball while giving up just two hits and striking out six. He came into this start with a streak of five straight starts with at least four earned runs against. It was a very disappointing first half for him, but maybe this strong last start will be something he can build off in the second half. He currently owns a 4-6 record and 4.64 ERA.
  • Alex Young tossed six shutout innings against the Rockies and did not allow a hit while striking out three. Pretty lame move by the Dbacks to pull a kid in the midst of a no-hitter, especially considering he was only at 71 pitches. Young was a low-tier prospect with a 6.09 ERA at AAA before being recalled, but he has been great through two starts for the big club; he has given up just three hits and one earned run across 13.1 innings.
  • Jeff Samardzija tossed seven shutout innings in a win over St. Louis. He gave up four hits while striking out two and walking zero. The Shark went into the break on a high note with 15 innings of two-run ball and two wins in two July starts. He currently has a 6-7 record and 4.01 ERA.

Hitter Highlights

Omar Narváez was yesterday’s top hitter as he went a perfect 4-4 with a pair of dingers and four RBI. The two home runs give him 14 for the year, which set a new Mariners record for home runs by a catcher before the All-Star break (previous record was 13 by Mike Zunino in 2014). He is hitting .294 and has been a fantasy stud at a scare position.

Jay Bruce had a great day at the plate, going 3-4 with two home runs and four RBI. He now has 24 home runs and 57 RBI to go along with a .243 batting average. He is hitting .291 with 10 home runs and 29 RBI across 28 games since being traded to Philly.

Fernando Tatis Jr. went 2-4 with two home runs and four RBI. What a first half it was for the 20-year old rookie as he is hitting .327 with 14 home runs and 13 steals across 55 games played. He is easily one of the most talented kids in the league and it will be exciting to continue to watch him grow as a player.

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is on fire and the flames kept burning yesterday as he finished 2-4 with a two-run home run and a stolen base. Since being recalled on May 24, he is hitting .335 with 16 home runs and 30 RBI across 40 games. Fantasy owners will be hopeful that the All-Star break doesn’t slow him down heading into the second half.

Mike Trout did Mike Trout things in the Angels 11-10 loss; he swatted a pair of home runs and had four RBI. This guy is just ridiculous and it’s amazing. He has 28 home runs, 67 RBI, 71 runs scored, eight steals, a .301 batting average, and a career high 1.098 OPS. Keep in mind, he had 79 and 72 RBI the last two years, respectively. He is already a lock for the HOF and he’s only 27.

Jesús Aguilar finished 3-4 with a pair of dingers and three RBI in the Brewers loss. Aguilar has been one of the biggest busts in fantasy this year, despite this great game; he is hitting .225 with eight home runs and 32 RBI. A big second half seems unlikely, especially with Thames playing as well as he is and drawing consistent starts at first base.  

Pete Alonso had just one hit, but it was a two-run dinger and it set some history. He tied the Mets franchise record for home runs before the All-Star break (not for a rookie, but for anyone) and became just the third rookie with 30 home runs before the break. He is hitting .280 with 68 RBI and would need to collapse mightily in the second half to not win NL ROY.

Greg Allen was recalled from the minors yesterday and then went out and delivered a 4-6 game with a home run, a triple, three RBI, and two runs scored. Allen was a starter for the Indians at the beginning of the year, but struggled his way into a demotion. He doesn’t carry any fantasy relevance right now, despite this strong showing.  

Yordan Alvarez continues to rake; he went 3-5 with a double and three RBI. He is turning into an RBI machine with 25 through 19 games to go along with seven home runs and a .342 batting average. This young slugger can flat-out hit and he should be in for a monster second half.

Eloy Jiménez went 1-3 with a two-run home run and a walk. While his overall line for the year of a .241 batting average with 16 home runs isn’t the best, he’s been playing much better recently with a .264 batting average and 10 dingers over his last 24 games. There is no reason to believe that he won’t have a big second half.

Defensive Prowess

Jorge Polanco had a rough afternoon at the dish, going 0-5, but he did help out the Twins with this nifty bit of glove work:

Fernando Tatis Jr. didn’t just have a great game at the dish, he also made a fantastic play in the field:

What to Watch for Today

The home run derby! Here is the bracket via MLB.com: