Cole Hamels - If Saturday was the last day that Cole Hamels threw in a Phillies uniform, he made it as memorable as possible with a no-hitter against the Cubs. The only baserunners he allowed came on a pair of walks, but Hamels recorded 13 strikeouts in his sixth win of the season. Hamels' is having one of the best seasons of his career, and he's only going to get better if he gets dealt this week. His K/9 is the highest of his career since 2006 and his swst rate is his highest since 2012. Being on a contender could elevate him in to the elite tier of pitchers.
Shelby Miller - Shelby Miller was a popular sell high candidate across the industry as his numbers in the first half were so much better than any prior year that keeping those numbers up was unlikely. Turns out he was a great sell high option, just because the Braves refuse to score for him and he's now gone 12 straight starts without a win. He now owns a 2.27 ERA but is just 5-7 on the season, all while posting career highs across the board except for a slightly depressed K/9. He's going to continue to be an ace for the Braves, but he'll remain on the outside looking in from even the second and third tiers of pitchers as the Braves offense is among the worst in baseball now.
Carlos Martinez - Eight shutout innings for Carlos Martinez earned him his 11th win of the season Saturday, moving his recorded to 11-4 overall. He allowed six hits over the eight innings, walking just one and fanning six Braves' hitters. The outing dropped his ERA to a stellar 2.34 but his FIP sits just a run higher at 3.41. His GB% has taken a nice jump during his breakout season, sitting at 55.5% which is up about 5% compared to last season. Could Martinez actually get better down the stretch though? It's possible as his HR/FB% is up almost 10% this season compared to his career average entering this season.
Freddie Freeman - In surprising news, Freddie Freeman was activated from the DL Saturday but did not start as his flight from Orlando was slated to get in around 30 minutes before first pitch. All signs point to him being in the lineup for Sunday's game, after just one rehab start in the GCL where he homered. If I'm a Freeman owner, I'm much more worried than excited that he's coming back earlier than expected. I know the Braves wouldn't bring him back unless he's 100% healthy, but wrist injuries have a bad track record of sticking around for hitters so the more time off a batter can get is better.
Billy Hamilton - Don't look now but Billy Hamilton has been getting on base a ton the last five games, picking up at least two hits in three of the last five. Oddly enough, he's stolen just one base over this span but he has driven in four runs over the span. Saturday was also the first day that he scored a run in this span, and he scored two today. There's literally no telling what his value could be if he could continue getting on base at a solid rate, but he also needs to hit somewhere besides ninth for his value to really reach its peak.
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