Mike Clevinger tossed a gem in a win over the Tigers en route to taking home spotlight honors for today’s Round Up. He fired eight shutout innings and gave up just four hits while striking out 10. He was the only pitcher to reach double-digit strikeouts yesterday and he led all pitchers in DFS scoring by a wide margin. Clevinger has been one of the most dominating pitchers in the league this year, when healthy. Over his last three starts, he has given up just one run across 18.2 innings pitched while striking out 28 in that span. This was his fifth double-digit strikeout game across 15 starts this year and his 14th start with at least six punch-outs. He will carry a 10-2 record and 2.72 ERA into his next outing.

Strong Outings

  • Chris Paddack took advantage of a good matchup, hurling seven innings of one-run ball in a win over the Giants. He gave up five hits while striking out eight. He has had a horrendous month of August, so this was a nice outing that both he and fantasy owners needed. He will carry an 8-7 record and 3.69 ERA into his next outing.
  • Robert Dugger hurled seven innings of two-run (no earned) ball in a no-decision against the Reds. He gave up three hits while striking out seven. It was only the second career start for the 24-year old rookie and it was a great outing after he was blown up for six earned runs in his debut. He will carry a 0-1 record and 4.50 ERA into his next outing.
  • Trevor Williams went into Coors and pitched well, tossing seven innings of three-run ball in a win. He gave up seven hits while striking out six. A second straight good outing for Williams as he tossed six shutout innings his last time out. That being said, he gave up five or more runs in three straight prior to these two. He will carry a 7-6 record and 5.26 ERA into his next outing.
  • Jon Lester pitched well against the Mets in a win, firing six innings of one-run ball. He gave up five hits while striking out four. A nice bounce-back performance for Lester after giving up six earned runs in his previous start. He will carry an 11-9 record and 4.36 ERA into his next outing.

Hitter Highlights

Aristides Aquino blasted another home run as part of a 3-5 day with three RBI. He now has 14 home runs (a record-setting amount), 32 RBI, and a .330 batting average through his first 98 career at-bats. He has even thrown in a pair of steals for good measure. This has come out of nowhere and he should probably be his fantasy owners' favorite player.

Kevin Newman finished a perfect 4-4 with a pair of home runs, a double, and four RBI en route to being the slates top scoring DFS player. He is having a very strong season, hitting .309 with nine home runs, 50 RBI, and 13 steals across 105 games (392 at-bats).

Jake Cave swatted a pair of solo home runs across five at-bats in a 10-5 win over the White Sox. It was his second multi-homer game in his last six games and he has five dingers in that span, but remarkably has only collected six RBI in that timeframe. He is currently hitting .275 with seven home runs through 138 at-bats.

Jurickson Profar finished 3-4 with a home run, three RBI, and a pair of runs scored. Profar was apparently struggling so bad that the A’s were no longer going to start him every day, but oh how fast things can change as Profar was the DH in this one because he has been hitting well. He is hitting .400 with two home runs, three doubles, nine walks, and five RBI over the past seven games. He is now hitting .214 with 17 home runs and seven steals on the year.

Travis d’Arnaud has cooled off recently, but he did go 3-5 with a home run and four RBI yesterday. Even with the cold month of August, TDA is still on pace to have a career year in multiple categories as he is hitting .253 with 14 home runs and 53 RBI.

Victor Caratini finished 3-4 with a pair of home runs and four RBI. What makes this performance even more impressive is that both of his home runs came against deGrom. The switch-hitting catcher is now hitting .288 with four home runs in August. He is hitting .274 with nine home runs and 28 RBI across 175 at-bats this year.

Wilmer Flores went 3-5 with a pair of doubles, three RBI, and two runs scored. Flores has had a great month of August, hitting .468 with four home runs and 11 RBI. He is now hitting .323 with six home runs and 26 RBI across 198 at-bats this season. A very strong average for a player who has never hit over .271 in his seven-year career.

What to Watch for Today

Aaron Nola (12-4, 3.53 ERA) vs. Zack Wheeler (9-7, 4.46) will be an interesting battle in a crucial series for both teams. Nola will be going for his fourth straight quality start and he has a 2.73 ERA across five starts in August. Wheeler started August out with 15.0 shutout innings across two starts but has given up 12 runs across his last 16.0 innings pitched.

Iván Nova (9-10, 4.37) will look to keep his strong run going in a tough matchup with the Braves. He has a 0.94 ERA across his past seven starts but he will have his hands full in this one. The Braves rank sixth in runs scored this year and are sixth in OPS against righties.

Kolby Allard (2-0, 4.64 ERA) will look to follow up his gem last time out with another strong outing when he takes on the Mariners. He tossed 6.1 shutout innings his last time out while racking up eight strikeouts. The Mariners are not the toughest of tests, so another solid outing could be on tap.