Wander’s World
Well, it didn’t take long for the consensus top prospect coming into this season to make an impact. The Rays Wander Franco homered, doubled and walked while driving in three runs and making a great defensive play in the field as well. If the window didn’t already close for you to add him in your leagues, you might want to re-evaluate who you are playing fantasy baseball with. Needless to say, his DFS price is going to skyrocket fast. He will face Garrett Richards on Wednesday with another chance to shine.
Returning
Luke Voit returned for the Yankees and wasted no time going yard in his first game back. Obviously get him back in your lineups. Max Muncy for the Dodgers also returned and is safe to put back on your active squad. Toronto welcomed back George Springer on Tuesday although he went 0-4. Let’s hope he stays on the field longer than his last return from the IL.
Shooting Themselves In The Foot
Max Scherzer returned from a short stint on the Injured List to get the win, allowing one run over five innings and striking out eight. He also endured three checks for “sticky stuff” by Phillies Manager Joe Girardi. Things are going to be crazy if pitchers are going to be checked multiple times a game. Major League Baseball has been on a crusade to shorten games for years and now they just found a new, dumb way to make them longer.
Blister In The Sun
Braves starter Max Fried is headed to the Injured List with a blister and the hope he will miss just the minimum. Fried has been a great pitcher since returning from a disastrous start to the year. He has allowed just one earned run in five of his last seven starts. The move was made retroactive to June 19th so he could just miss one turn in the rotation.
Let’s take a look forward to Wednesday’s action
MVP! MVP!
Shohei Ohtani takes the mound this afternoon against the Giants. San Francisco is still outperforming the talent level on their team, but Ohtani has just been an absolute assassin both on the mound and with the bat. He is among the league leaders in home runs and has an ERA well under 3.00. Enjoy this not only from a fantasy perspective, but also for the wonder of what he is for Major League Baseball. Look for Ohtani to dazzle again on Wednesday.
Under-Appreciated
If you are looking for a pitcher that is flying under the radar, check out Oakland’s James Kaprielian. He has allowed more than three earned runs just once in his last seven starts and has struck out six or more in five of his last seven starts. He will face the Rangers on Wednesday who have the tenth most strikeouts as a team and hit just .229 as a club. Kaprielian should have no trouble dominating again against this flawed Texas offense.
Expect The Check
The MLB obsession with checking pitchers is sure to continue with Trevor Bauer when he takes the mound on Wednesday. Bauer is a guy who seems to be more in tuned with the mental part of the game and I’m interested to see how he handles potentially being checked multiple times for foreign substances. Add that in with a tough matchup against the Padres and it could be a wise night to sit an ace.
Wednesday’s Bets
The biggest favorites on the board are the Houston Astros at -190 against Thomas Eshelman and the Orioles. Considering that Houston has beaten Baltimore by a combined score of 13-3 in the first two games of this series and the Orioles starer Thomas Eshelman had an ERA near 6.50 in Triple-A this season, I would continue to roll with Houston.
There aren’t any heavy underdogs I like today, but they say you are only as good as your next game’s starting pitcher. If that is true, I’ll take the Marlins at +110 over the Blue Jays. Yes, Toronto has one of the most explosive offenses in MLB, but Trevor Rogers has been amazing. He is 7-3 with an ERA of 1.87 with 95 strikeouts in 81.2 innings. I believe he can tame the beast that is the Toronto bats. The Jays will throw Robbie Ray who has had a fine season but if you have watched him throughout his career you know he is always good for a terrible outing at any moment.