IN THE LINEUP
Joey Votto was held out of Thursday's doubleheader for the Reds, but the manager said that he isn't dealing with any sort of injury, but rather he just wanted to give the first baseman a few days off. After a strong start to the season, Votto has slumped to a .191/.321/.326 slash line but was back in the lineup on Saturday hitting leadoff for the team... Many Pina left Thursday's game and was spotted on crutches afterward, and it was revealed on Friday that he tore his meniscus and has been placed on the 10-day IL. He'll miss the remainder of the season. Jacob Nottingham was recalled from the alternate training site, and got the start on Friday and went 1-for-3 with a homer... Gavin Lux was recalled from the alternate training site on Thursday to be the 29th man for the doubleheader but was sent back down to the alternate training site afterward. He was then recalled by the Dodgers again on Saturday (no double-header that day) which could mean that we see Justin Turner hit the IL. Lux started at second base and hit 8th on Saturday... With the trade deadline looming on Monday, teams are doing their homework on Carter Keiboom as a potential trade target. Keiboom hasn't been able to crack the lineup consistently for the Nationals and this could make him expendable for the team in the right deal. If he were to get traded, he'd most certainly be worth a pickup as he's still a very highly regarded prospect... Andy Young has been recalled again by the Diamondbacks. Young slashed .286/.444/.571 with a homer in his first stint with the team this year... Raimel Tapia was out of the lineup on Wednesday with an elbow contusion but was back in the lineup hitting leadoff on Thursday... Anthony Alford was claimed by the Pirates off waivers after he was DFAd by the Blue Jays. With the Pirates out of the mix, he should get more playing time as the season winds down, but Alford hasn't done anything at the major league level to make him worth a potential pickup... Colin Moran was placed on the 7-day IL for his concussion and Will Craig was called up from the alternate training site to fill his spot on the roster. Craig was ultimately sent back down on Saturday... Since Ronald Acuña and Nick Markakis have returned to the team, Ender Inciarte has been relegated back to his bench role with Adam Duvall and Marcell Ozuna splitting time in left field. Inciarte has a .239 wOBA this year and doesn't rate well defensively so his role on the team is extremely limited.... Harrison Bader has dealt with some migraine issues this week and was held out of the lineup on Wednesday despite playing through them on Tuesday. He returned to action though on Thursday. Dylan Carlson slid over to CF while Bader missed time... In a surprise move, Jose Garcia was called up from the alternate training site and should be the Reds primary shortstop going forward. Pedro Strop was DFA'd to make room for him on the 40-man roster and Freddy Galvis will move to a utility role with the team... Magneuris Sierra was placed on the IL with a hamstring injury that was retroactive to the 24th. He originally injured the hamstring on Sunday, but the team was hopeful he could play through it... Kevin Newman has been held out of the lineup this week while he deals with some discomfort in his lower abdomen. Erik Gonzalez will continue to play shortstop while Newman is sidelined... Justin Turner sat out last Sunday with a sore hamstring but played most of the week, however he left Friday's game with a hamstring issue as well that will keep him out of the lineup on Saturday and Sunday and he'll be re-evaluated on Tuesday after the off day Monday... Austin Slater has started to ramp up baseball activities for the Giants... Ozzie Albies is getting closer and closer to returning as he's now swinging the bat right handed with no issues. Brian Snitker said he's still at least another week away from returning to the team. He's been out for almost all of August with a wrist injury, though when he returns, he might now slide right back into the number two spot in the lineup with how well Dansby Swanson has been swinging the bat... Garrett Cooper went 2-for-4 in his return from the IL. He was one of the many Marlins players who tested positive for COVID-19. He was the DH in this game, but he's expected to get some work in the corner OF spots as well... Adam Duvall left Friday's game with a sore Achilles after trying to beat out a base hit. The team didn't seem too concerned after the game and he's not expected to land on the IL... Jake Marisnick was activated from the 10-day IL and it's expected he'll get the starts against lefties in the Mets outfield... Will Smith is back with the Dodgers after missing the minimum 10 days with neck inflammation... Brock Holt was released by the Brewers and signed a one-year deal with the Nationals to be a reserve infielder...
IN THE ROTATION
Julio Urias' next start will be pushed back to Tuesday against the Diamondbacks and Tony Gonsolin will fill Urias' spot in the rotation on Sunday... Johan Oviedo started game two of the doubleheader for the Cardinals on Thursday and allowed two runs over five innings. This was Oviedo's second career start with the first coming eight days ago. It doesn't sound like he's going to stick in the rotation but will rather continue to make spot starts as needed... Michael Wacha was activated off the 10-day IL with his shoulder inflammation. Wacha has been awful this year with a 6.43 ERA but he has recorded 18 strikeouts in just 14 innings with decent expected statistics based on the batter ball profile against him... Madison Bumgarner is scheduled to throw a simulated game on Saturday. The team was thinking that there was a chance he'd make his return to the team that day, but they are going to give him one more outing of side work before activating him. Bumgarner's stint with Arizona has gotten off to a rough start with a 9.35 ERA over his first 17.1 innings... Walker Buehler was placed on the IL with a blister on his throwing hand. The move is retroactive to August 23rd... Merrill Kelly is not expected to return this season after having surgery to remove a blood clot from his shoulder. He's expected to be ready to be full strength for 2021... Stephen Strasburg's season officially ended on Wednesday after undergoing surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome in his right hand. Mike Rizzo has said that he fully expected Strasburg to be ready for the 2021 season... Seth Lugo has jumped from the bullpen to the rotation for the Mets and tossed three perfect innings in his first start on Wednesday. Lugo has been an outstanding reliever for the Mets over the last few seasons and could provide a nice boost to rosters if he can provide the same ratios over multiple innings per outing... Carlos Martinez has been working his way back from a COVID-19 diagnosis and the team confirmed that they are looking to bring him back as a starter. Due to all of the games the Cardinals missed they have a ton of double-headers on the back end of the schedule and getting Martinez stretched out for 4+ innings will be worth more to the team than rushing him back to be in the bullpen... Alex Wood tossed a simulated game on Monday and Dave Roberts described it as "not overwhelmingly positive." It doesn't sound like he's anywhere close to returning to the team... David Peterson was activated off the IL to start for the Mets on Friday and allowed three runs over four innings. He threw only 70 pitches in the outing and only 37 of those went for strikes. He has Baltimore next time out... Robbie Erlin earned a second start for the Braves and allowed four runs over four innings. He should stick in the rotation in the meantime as the Braves are struggling to find consistent options in the rotation besides Max Fried... Wade Miley dealt with some shoulder tightness on Thursday in his start and when waking up on Friday he felt even worse, so the team placed him on the 10-day IL. Miley said that he doesn't believe it's a long-term injury... Sandy Alcantara is ready to rejoin the rotation for the Marlins and will start for the team on Sunday against the Rays. Alcantara has pitched just one game this year, July 24th, and gave up two runs over 6.2 innings while striking out seven batters... Tyler Chatwood returned to the Cubs on Tuesday after missing time with an injured back.
IN THE BULLPEN
Richard Rodriguez picked up the save Thursday, notable as Keona Kela was placed on the IL earlier Thursday. It sounds like he's going to be the favorite for saves and he brings a 95th percentile K% into the role along with him... Andrew Miller was placed on the 10-day IL with shoulder fatigue. Miller's slow decline has continued into 2020 with a 4.76 ERA over 5.2 innings... Edwin Diaz left his Wednesday appearance early with leg cramps, though he told Luis Rojas he wanted to keep going. Diaz doesn't have the ninth-inning role for the team anymore, but he's still having a fantastic season with 25 strikeouts and a 2.45 ERA over 11 innings... Sean Doolittle was activated from the 10-day IL on Wednesday but he will be eased back into his normal role with Daniel Hudson remaining at closer. Though a small sample of just three innings, Doolittle was shelled allowing a .613 wOBA and a near 30% barrel rate... Kirby Yates' surgery last week went extremely well and besides the bone chips that were removed, the doctor said that his elbow looks great. While the timetable for him this year ends his season, he should easily be 100% to begin spring training next year... Jose Quintana has been activated off the IL and will join the bullpen for the time being. I'm not really considering him fantasy relevant unless he can get some rotation work, and even then Quintana isn't quite the arm he used to be... David Robertson suffered a setback this week and has been shut down. The team is expecting to have an update over the next few days but this all but ends Robertson's chance to return this season... Trevor Rosenthal was acquired by the Padres and will be in the mix for the 9th inning role with the team, but Drew Pomeranz was activated by the team on Saturday.
PLAYERS TO ADD
Ian Anderson, Atlanta Braves - Anderson was fantastic in his first outing for the Braves, and with the rotation struggles he's virtually a lock to remain in there for the rest of the season barring a complete meltdown. Anderson was terrific at working ahead on batters (81% first pitch strike) and then generated a 31.6% whiff rate on all his offerings, including a 44% rate on his outstanding changeup. Anderson is slated to start next week against the Red Sox, a much better matchup for him than the Yankees were this week.
Jose Garcia, Cincinnati Reds - Jose Garcia was a surprising call-up this week but he brings an exciting set of tools to Cincinnati. Garcia hasn't played above High-A, but last season for Daytona Tortugas he slashed .280/.343/.436 with eight homers, 37 doubles, and 15 stolen bases. He also had an impressive spring training for the Reds hitting three homers. David Bell has said that they brought him up to play virtually ever day and he's posted a .375 OBP over his first eight plate appearances and swiped a base already. This is more of a speculative add based on his loud tools and the fact he's slated to play every day.
Pablo Lopez, Miami Marlins - Pablo Lopez has been great for the Marlins posted a 1.65 ERA over six starts while striking out nearly a batter per inning. Lopez continues to use his fantastic changeup at the highest rate of all of his offerings, with it bordering on 30% for the third straight season. Lopez has posted a 30% whiff rate and owns a hard-hit rate in the 71st percentile, giving a solid combination of both swing and miss stuff along with generating soft contact.
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