Matt Carpenter took a check swing Wednesday. He felt a pain his side. He’s now been placed on the DL with a right oblique strain. Carpenter is on pace for a .298-27-102-108 season. He’s obviously not going to get there which is a massive blow to the Cardinals and to the Carpenter’s owner. How long will he be out? We don’t know. Oblique injuries can take two to six weeks to recover from in most instances, and practically speaking if he misses six weeks that would be nearly half the remaining season. What does the team do now? Sounds like Jedd Gyorko could get some work at second but the true winner might be Kolten Wong. Since being recalled from the minors, Wong has appeared in 14 games for the Cardinals with some success. Wong has hit .273 average with a .360 OBP in that time. He’s failed to hit a homer or to steal a base, but it’s progress. If he’s on waivers, and you aren’t in a 10-team league, you should give serious consideration to changing that.

Willson Contreras has appeared in 19 games at the big league level and he’s been great with a .297/.384/.594 line. A review. (1) His BABIP is .359. That’s a huge number. (2) He has a 35.7 percent HR/FB ratio. That’s a huge number. (3) He has a 1.64 GB/FB ratio with a 52.3 percent ground ball ratio. Those are not power hitter numbers. (4) Contreras has a 15.9 percent line drive rate. That’s a poor number and well below the 20 percent league average mark. I could break things down further, but hopefully if you’ve been following my work and know how I would read that data. How about one word for you – caution.

Zach Davies was sent to the minors so that the Brewers could call up a bat the last few days before the All-Star break. I get why they would do that – there’s little reason to keep a pitcher on the roster you aren’t going to use (Davies will be recalled right after the break and reinserted into the starting rotation). Again, I get why the club did that. I also get why Davies’ agent, Scott Boras, was so angry about it. What do you think? Let us know about it in our new Forums.

I just cannot figure out how Aledmys Diaz is doing this. The last 10 games he’s back at it again with a stupendous three homer, nine RBI seven runs scored set of numbers. Additionally, his slash line in that time is .378/.500/.784 which is patently absurd unless your name is Barry Bonds or Ted Williams… unless of course you are Aledmys Diaz. Just nuts really.

I own Yunel Escobar in a couple of leagues. I know how good he has been. At the same time, I’m just not overly impressed. Same as you? Escobar hit .314 with a .375 OBP last season. This year he’s hitting .322 with a .370 OBP. Those are All-Star numbers. Alas, he had a .415 SLG last season and a .423 mark this season. In practical fantasy terms, he has three homers, 22 RBI and 25 runs scored with no steals. That level of effort would lead to a season of six homers, 50 RBI and 70 runs scored in 150 games. He’s good, but slightly boring. You aren’t “losing” if you start him, but you also aren’t “winning” unless your only goal is batting average help.

Are competitive eaters “athletes?” No matter your answer to that, can you believe that Joey Chestnut ate 70 hot dogs, buns and all, in 10 minutes in the 100thNathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest?

Giancarlo Stanton is only good for one thing… hitting home runs. Brandon Belt is hitting the ball well. Chase Utley turned back time on Wednesday night with 6 hits. BIG 3 VIDEO.

This is just good police work.

Anyone know that Corey Seager has a 19-game hitting streak, the longest by a rookie with the Dodgers since Tommy Davis had a 20-game streak back in 1960? Seager is on pace to go .303-32-75-110. And you were concerned after April when he was hitting .250 with two homers.

Andrelton Simmons isn’t a very good hitter. He’s proven that. Over his last 13 games though he’s hit .420 with eight RBI and 10 runs scored. Just something to think about.

Is this Teddy Bear alive?

Yesterday in the Daily Trends article I suggested that Yangervis Solarte was a great start. He went out and had a day going 3-for-5 with a homer and five RBI (yes, I was touting myself there). That homer, his third in four games, has helped raise his OPS to .909. That’s an elite number for a fella who failed to reach the .750 mark his first two seasons in the big leagues. Solarte has been a beast this season, out of control good. No one is talking about it. Reason being, he’s playing over his head. Ride the wave though with a guy who qualifies at first, second and third base, just don’t be surprised when that wave hits the beach.

Ervin Santana is a league average arm at best. Marcus Stroman is starting to look a lot better overall. Steven Wright is not an ace despite what his stats may tell you. DAILY DIVE VIDEO.

I told you it was coming. Troy Tulowitzki has been a mess this year, but he’s finally starting to swing a bat like we know he can. Over the last two weeks, he’s appeared in 12 games in that time, Tulo has a .306/.375/.633 slash line. Stupendous numbers. He’s also blasted five homers and driven in 14 runs, both numbers the second best in baseball in that time. Yes, he’s hitting .235. Yes, he’s been a disappointment. But hear me. Tulo has appeared in 62 games. If he were to maintain his current 62 game pace, and appeared in 125 games, Tulo would hit 30 homers with 80 RBI. Read that again. There’s still plenty of time for him to generate copious amounts of second half value.

 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday, 7 PM EDT and Friday on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 7 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).