Yu Darvish, SP, CHC
Darvish struck out 14 in 6 shutout innings against the Padres on Thursday, allowing just 2 hits and 2 BB's in the contest. He has been one of the best pitchers in baseball in the 2nd half, posting a 2.44 ERA and a ridiculous 93:6 K:BB across 66.1 IP covering 11 starts. His 2.82 second half xFIP entering Thursday ranked 4th in all of baseball and that was before this most recent spectacular outing. Some may still shy away from Darvish considering his struggles last year and the beginning of this year, but he clearly still has the upside of a bonafide ace.
Dexter Fowler, OF, STL
Fowler went 2-3 with his 17th HR of the season against the Rockies on Thursday, and enjoyed a nice series at Coors Field in which he went 5-9 with a HR, 2 doubles and 3 runs scored. Since taking over as the Cardinals leadoff hitter on Aug 6, Fowler has accumulated 23 runs scored (and a surprising 24 RBI) across 33 games, and should continue to be a solid source of runs for the remainder of the season as the leadoff hitter for a team with something to play for. Overall though, Fowler remains a mediocre fantasy asset as he doesn't really excel in any area. He's a career .261 hitter who has never hit 20 HR's and hasn't reached double-digit steals the past three years. He shouldn't be drafted in 2020 outside of the late rounds.
Rich Hill, SP, LAD
Hill was activated from the IL to start Thursday's game against the Orioles but only lasted 0.2 IP before leaving the game with an MCL sprain. To say Hill is injury-prone is an understatement, and you can't imagine anyone would invest much in the soon to be 40-year-old in 2020. Still, he's been so good when he does pitch over the past few years that he's worth rostering when healthy. Since 2016, he has a 3.01 ERA and 10.50 K/9 over 435.1 IP. If he's healthy and ready to pitch at the start of next season, you can probably get him for cheap, but he's obviously not going to be a full-season option. As far as the remainder of this season, even if this newest injury ends up not being serious, it's unlikely Hill will provide much value over the final couple of weeks.
Marcell Ozuna, OF, STL
Ozuna went 1-3 with a HR against the Rockies on Thursday and now has 27 HR and 82 RBI for the season. He's been slumping recently, hitting just .115 (6-52) over his last 14 games, although he does have 3 HR's during that span. His BA has dropped to .254 for the season after he hit at least .280 in each of the last two campaigns. His BABIP has dropped to .268 this season (career .317) which is surprising considering he has a career-high 48.6% Hard%. Expect a better BA in 2020 along with 30 HR's and 90 RBI (and possibly more), which would make Ozuna a solid mixed-league OF.
Sandy Alcantara, SP, MIA
Alcantara has suddenly started striking people out, racking up 30 K's in 29 IP over his last 4 starts after posting a very mediocre strikeout rate for most of the season. He'll look to continue that success on Friday against a relatively week Giants lineup. DraftKings Value Play Salary $8,100.
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