It’s ironic to discuss how the major league collective bargaining agreement continues to prolong talented young players to remain in the minors in order for teams to maintain control remains a hot topic. With roster expansions announced, players such as Byron Buxton , Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Eloy Jimenez will not play in September. Using all three in the same sentence seems contrite, however, their teams will benefit from an extra year of control due to these decisions.
With Buxton, Eloy and Vlad Jr. spending September somewhere other than the majors I am becoming convinced that the next CBA will have to figure out something other than service time as the key driver of pre-FA salaries and free agent eligibility.
— JJ Cooper (@jjcoop36) September 2, 2018
For Guerrero Jr. and Jimenez, this could also cut into their time next year like Kris Bryant in the past, starting the year in the minors unless they agree to a below market contract prior to a promotion. As for Buxton, he’s still battling lingering wrist issues and finds himself in a similar position as Jurickson Profar who struggled in 2017 and did not get called up last September. Profar’s in the midst of a breakout season, especially in the second half, so for Buxton there could be hope. His teammates will explore the issue at hand, as implied in this article by Mike Beradino, the Twins beat writer. As for fantasy, all three can be dropped if still on rosters in redraft formats.
That Just Happened
Continuing his hot August, Nicholas Castellanos went 3-for-5 with a double, his 20th home run and two RBI in a win over the Yankees. He’s on a modest four-game hit streak and hit safely in seven of his last 10 contests.
Luke Voit continues to wrest playing time at first base away from Greg Bird . Voit tallied two more hits on Sunday including his sixth home run of the year. Through 16 games with the Yankees, Voit’s scored nine runs with four home runs, 11 RBI and a .326/.404/.587 slash line.
Rookie Sean Reid-Foley won his first major league game throwing a gem in Miami. Reid-Foley recorded 10 strikeouts giving up four hits, an earned runs and a walk in seven innings. He generated 16 swinging strikes and 20 called of his 101 pitches.
A record setting day for Javy Baez going 2-for-5 with two runs, a triple, his 30th home run and an RBI. He’s the first player in Cubs history with at least 30 home runs, five triples, 20 stolen bases and 100 RBI. Jon Lester won his 15th game of the year firing six shutout innings with seven strikeouts. He’s owned the Phillies during his career moving to 8-0 in 10 starts with a 1.49 ERA against them.
Tough day for Aaron Nola who recorded 11 strikeouts but allowed four earned runs on five hits and two walks in 5.2 innings. He absorbs only his fourth loss of the year and his ERA slipped to 2.23 falling behind both Jacob deGrom (1.68) and Max Scherzer (2.22).
Sudden National League MVP contender, Christian Yelich , launched his first career grand slam to extend his 19 game on-base streak. Yelich has hit eight home runs his last 14 games and nine homers with 21 RBI in this 19 game stretch.
Flying below the radar in a lost season for the White Sox, Tim Anderson went 3-for-5 with two doubles, his 18th home run and an RBI. He’s hit safely in nine of his last 11 contests with six doubles, two home runs, seven RBI and a .289 average in them. He’s within two home runs of becoming the first White Sox shortstop with at least 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in a season.
Jonathan Villar continues to produce since joining the Orioles. He hit his 11th home run of the season on Sunday. Since joining Baltimore, Villar’s played in 28 games scoring 15 runs with four home runs, 13 RBI, nine stolen bases and a .261/.336/.387 slash.
With Dee Gordon playing through some injury issues, Whit Merrifield moved into a tie for the American League lead in stolen bases swiping his 30th base on Sunday. Merrifield’s been hot of last riding a 22 game on-base streak hitting .368/.429/.563 with 15 runs, nine extra-base hits and 14 RBI in it.
Although his team’s record will probably inhibit his MVP status, Eugenio Suárez hit his 31st home run and drove in two to reach 100 RBI for the first time in his career. Suarez sits tied for first in RBI in the National League with Javy Baez as the season winds down.
Tough day for Bud Norris owners, and Cardinals fans alike, with his 10th inning implosion. He was not helped by his defense, but allowed three earned runs on two hits and two walks with a strikeout in two-thirds of an inning. This ends a six game scoreless streak during which Norris notched six straight saves.
While Buxton will be shut down, Jake Cave stays in center field for the Twins. He homered for the third straight game, and his fourth in the last six.
Texas racked up 18 runs versus the Twins at home on Sunday. Nomar Mazara launched two home runs, has four in his last three games with seven RBI and hit safely in seven of his last eight games. Perhaps his thumb feels better? Jurickson Profar added his 15th home run among his four hits with two RBI. He’s still only 25 years old and hitting .357 over his last 16 games. In the second half, Profar’s played 35 games with 19 runs, five home runs, 21 RBI while increasing his walk rate, hard hit percentage and weighted runs created plus. Intriguing.
Just when it seemed safe to move on from Stephen Piscotty , he’s on fire of late and hit two home runs on Sunday. He’s 19-for-his-last-55 (.345) with three doubles, six home runs and 15 RBI.
Noah Syndergaard fired his first complete game yielding only two hits, one earned run and a walk with 11 strikeouts. He produced 24 swinging strikes and 16 called of his 114 pitches and reaches double digit wins before teammates Zach Wheeler of Jacob deGrom in the process.
Can fantasy owners trust Brad Boxberger ? First, his splits versus left-handed hitters has seen Andrew Chafin introduced in the ninth inning to face them before seeing Boxberger enter for the save his last two prior to Sunday. Then, with a lead on Sunday, Boxberger walked two batters and only recorded one out before being pulled in favor of Archie Bradley (7.79 ERA in the second half). Bradley served up a walk-off double to Matt Kemp for the loss and this bullpen seems in a bit of disarray at the most pivotal time of the year. Stay tuned.
Not his best outing, but Kyle Freeland battled six innings allowing seven hits, three earned runs and two walks with three strikeouts for his 13th win of the year. Freeland’s recorded a 2.50 ERA in 12 starts since July 2nd winning six starts and the Rockies have won 11 of these 12 contests.
Rookie Ryan Yarbrough won his 13th game on Sunday giving up two hits, an earned run and a walk with three strikeouts in five innings. He’s won his last five decisions and as the “bridge”, pitching after the opener leaves for the Rays, Yarbrough’s 11-3 with a 3.39 ERA. There’s a missing pitcher report out on Sergio Romo who has not pitched in a week. Jose Alvarado notched his second save over his last three outings, and seventh this year. Alvarado’s made nine straight scoreless appearances yielding only one hit with an impressive 12:2 K:BB in his last 8.2 innings.
Ronald Acuna Jr. continues to punish baseballs. He racked up three more hits along with his 23rd home run. Only Khris Davis has hit more homers in the second half than Acuna. Since moving to leadoff, Acuna’s played 42 games with 36 runs, 16 home runs, 31 RBI, nine stolen bases and a robust .354/.426//.733 slash line.
Both George Springer and Alex Bregman homered to fuel an Astros win. Springer finished 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBI. It’s his first home run since returning from the disabled list on August 17th and his owners desperately hope a hot September could be in the offing if Springer’s healthy. Bregman hit his 27th home run, extended his on-base streak to 30 games and has reached safely in 90 of his last 92 contests.
What To Watch For
Rookie Touki Toussaint will face the Red Sox at home opposing Nate Eovaldi. Also of note, will the Red Sox play J.D. Martínez in the outfield all series?
Potential great match-up with Jack Flaherty going against Max Scherzer in Washington this afternoon. Same goes for Jacob deGrom trying to add to his Cy Young resume facing the Dodgers and Alex Wood in Los Angeles.
Milwaukee welcomes back Zach Davies to the rotation and he will go against the Cubs shiny new toy, Cole Hamel with playoff implications pending.
Can Trevor Cahill bounce back at home against the Yankees? Will C.C. Sabathia be able to provide innings on the road against a hot lineup?
Last, but not least, keep tabs on how the Angels handle Shohei Ohtani going forward, His velocity dipped the second time through the order and his next start could be a question mark.
Be sure to stop back on Tuesday for a recap of all the Labor Day action. Also, please read up on all the latest NFL moves with rosters in flux prior to the start of the season to stay ahead of your competition here on Fantasy Alarm.