With fantasy owners still reeling from the Robinson Canó injury then suspension news, more bad news but at least some clarity regarding A.J. Pollock . He suffered an avulsion fracture in his thumb and will miss four-to-eight weeks as a result. Pollock will not require surgery, but his bad luck incurring injuries continues. Replacing a hitter with 12 home runs and nine stolen bases while slashing .293/.349/.620 will not be easy to do. However, it’s part of the risk versus reward when targeting players.

In other injury news from Tuesday, both Starling Marte and Francisco Cervelli left Pittsburgh’s game early. Marte felt tightness in his side, potential tweak of the oblique, and Cervelli took a pitch to the forearm. Cervelli reports he plans on playing on Wednesday, but no further word on Marte yet. Plan on the worst and hope for the best. With both players off to fast starts, the Pirates find themselves in contention and cannot afford to lose either player for an extended period.

That Just Happened

Reports surfaced José Berrios worked on his curveball mechanics during his throwing session and reaped immediate results. Berrios limited the Cardinals to two hits over 7.1 innings giving up one earned run and a walk with 10 strikeouts. He entered the game only inducing three swinging strikes on his previous 52 curves but generated nine swings and misses on 33 curveballs according to Statcast data last night. Encouraging to say the least.

Josh Bell hit two doubles and drove in three during the Pirates win over the White Sox. Bell’s hitting .360 over his last 25 at-bats with three doubles, a triple, two home runs and eight RBI increasing his average by 20 points.

In the feel good moment of the night, Stephen Piscotty homered in his first game back after celebrating the life of his Mother. Sometimes moments prove to be bigger than the end results.

Boston’s Andrew Benintendi launched his first home run in Fenway this year and extending his personal hit streak to eight games. During the last 18 games, Benintendi’s 24-for-76 (.316) with 16 runs, eight doubles, two home runs and nine RBI.

There’s something not right about Andrew Miller . He only worked one-third of an inning giving up three walks for only the fifth time in his career as a reliever. The free passes along with two doubles allowed added up to two earned runs and his second loss this year.

Arodys Vizcaíno ’s second blown save comes with the same musings by his manager about a potential committee. Since the last warning did not translate to much, Vizcaino’s owners should not panic but he did give up three hits and two earned runs with a strikeout raising his ERA to a respectable 2.75 on the season. A.J. Minter ’s notched two saves but allowing too much traffic with eight hits and four walks his last 5.2 innings. Keep tabs on Dan Winkler ’s role going forward. He’s whiffed 27 batters in 18.1 innings with a 0.98 ERA and 0.65 WHIP so far.

This finish clouded a strong outing by Mike Foltynewicz who struck out 10 Cubs in five innings of work. Of course, he also yielded five walks and worked too deep into counts capping his start. After starting the year with one home run in his first 157 at-bats, Ender Inciarte hit his third over his last 12 when he homered in the fourth inning.

Whit Merrifield moved his hit streak to nine games with two hits and three RBI. During his streak, Merrifield carries a .457/.513/.657 slash line. Kelvin Herrera allowed his first run at Kaufmann Stadium since last September resulting in his first loss of the year. It’s only the second earned run he’s given up and his first outing since last Friday.

Breakout candidate C.J. Cron launched his ninth home run, extended his hit streak to eight games, with five multi-hit games within the streak, and reached base safely for the 21st straight contest. During the last 21 games, Cron’s hitting .310/.358/.598 and pacing towards 36 home runs. His average may regress, but the power may be for real.

Perhaps a bright spot for the Mariners with Jean Segura becoming the sixth player in team history to steal four bases in one game. He went 3-for-5 with three runs, an RBI and a walk on Tuesday night. It’s the seventh time in team history a player recorded four steals and the first since Ichiro did it in August of 2010.

Teammate Ryon Healy stayed hot crushing his eighth home run among his two hits on Tuesday. Since returning from the disabled list, Healy’s 25-for-72 (.347) with 19 runs, five doubles, eight home runs and 16 RBI.

San Francisco’s Brandons were at it again. Brandon Belt hit his eighth home run pacing towards 30 this year with a .298/.405/.546 slash line. Brandon Crawford went 4-for-4 and has hit safely in 12 of his last 14 games with a .446 average in 56 at-bats and 12 RBI.

Although the focus remains on Mike Trout , and rightly so, Justin Upton ’s heating up in May. He launched his sixth home run in 10 games and seventh in May pushing his total to 11 on the year. In 14 games in May, Upton’s hitting .328/.375/.724 with seven home runs and 21 RBI.

Perhaps Joey Gallo can break out of his slump with this week’s road trip. His first game in Seattle went well with Gallo hitting his 13th home run with two RBI. He faces some juicy match-ups going forward so use him in daily formats as well.

Joey Votto did not play but Eugenio Suárez did his best to carry the Reds offense on Tuesday. Suarez hit his seventh home run and in 19 games since coming back from the disabled list, he’s hitting .297 with six doubles, five home runs and 23 RBI.

Burning Questions

With weather lingering over the Wednesday slate and some aces on the mound, here’s some burning questions. How will Jameson Taillon pitch dealing with his finger issue? Will Miles Mikolas stay hot in Minnesota? Can Matt Harvey carry over momentum in start number two for the Reds? Which young gun wins out in Miami tonight, Walker Buehler or Caleb Smith ? How many strikeouts can Mad Max rack up versus the Yankees? More than Chris Sale versus the A’s?

Be sure to check back on Fantasy Alarm for the Closing Bell which will wrap up the day baseball along with updates on the latest news in baseball to stay ahead of your competition.

 

Statistical Credits:

MLB.com

Fangraphs.com

BaseballSavant.com