Glenn Otto (SP-TEX) made his MLB debut against Houston on Friday, firing 5 shutout innings in which he allowed just 2 hits and walked none while racking up 7 punchouts. The 25 year-old righty was one of the pieces that the Rangers received as part of the recent Joey Gallo trade, and he's outperformed his prospect grades this season. In 65.1 Double-A innings, he recorded a 3.17 ERA, 14.2 K/9, and 1.9 BB/9, with a 2.46 xFIP confirming that he performed very well. His performance did slip a bit following a promotion to Triple-A, as he recorded a 4.35 ERA, 10.5 K/9, and 2.6 BB/9 (4.14 xFIP) in 2 starts (10 IP) with New York and a 2.70 ERA, 8.6 K/9, and 3.2 BB/9 over 4 starts (20 IP) since moving to the Texas organization. Concerningly, his 5.15 xFIP with Round Rock indicates that he did not actually perform as well as his ERA might suggest. Otto was a reliever in college whom the Yankees worked on turning into a starter, but his arm action and command raise concerns about his future in a SP role. He possesses a plus heater and curve to go with a developing change-up, but, again, the command is not rated too highly.
Shane McClanahan (SP-TB) defeated the Orioles on Friday as he allowed 2 runs on 8 hits and no walks while striking out 4 over 6 innings of work. The 24 year-old lefty fired 53 of his 78 offerings for strikes and allowed a homer in the contest. McClanahan has been effective in his first season of big-league ball after skipping the Triple-A level entirely, putting together a 3.59 ERA, 10.5 K/9, and 2.8 BB/9 across 20 starts (100.1 innings). His 3.26 xFIP actually suggests that he's run into a bit of bad luck that has slightly inflated his ERA, namely a .331 BABIP and 15% HR/FB. If there is anything to knock about his performance to date, it's been that McClanahan has generally not pitched deep into games, averaging just 5 IP per start. He lines up for a turn against Boston at home next week.
Hunter Renfroe (OF-BOS) landed on the bereavement list on Thursday. The 29 year-old slugger will have to miss a minimum of three days of action because of the move. It comes as a bit of a blow to Renfroe's fantasy owners, as he was hitting .269 with 10 homers and 21 RBI across 84 plate appearances in August. He was blistering the baseball with a 44% hard-hit rate that was his best in any single month this season, with a season-high 46% flyball rate helping to fuel his power surge. On the year, Renfroe is batting .258 with 25 dingers and 77 RBI in which should end up being his strongest overall season in the majors. His 115 wRC+ is his highest in a meaningful sample size, and he's trimmed the strikeouts to a palatable 22% clip while logging a career-best average exit velocity just over 90mph per Statcast. Fantasy owners will need to watch for his reactivation so they can get him back in their lineups.
George Springer (OF-TOR) was not activated from the IL on Friday as the team previously indicated was possible. But he did participate in various baseball activities on Friday and manager Charlie Montoyo indicated that he could return to game action any day now. He landed on the IL back on Aug 17 with a grade-1 (mild) knee sprain and has made good progress since then. The 31 year-old's 2021 campaign has now been shortened by multiple IL stints, but he's been highly productive when on the field. Springer currently owns a .269 average to go with 16 homers, 35 RBI, and 40 runs scored across just 211 plate appearances. His strikeout rate is up significantly to 25%, his highest clip since his rookie campaign back in 2014, although Springer has continued to make hard contact at a healthy 43% clip, per Statcast, when he has put the bat on the ball. Springer's .287 BABIP is a touch low (.305 career), so it's entirely possible that his average corrects a bit going forward. His fantasy owners should be watching for his activation.
Riley Greene (OF-DET) has put together a solid 2021 campaign and has been re-ranked as MLB Pipeline's #7 overall prospect in baseball. Across 373 Double-A plate appearances Greene batted .298 with 16 homers, 54 runs scored, and 12 stolen bases. While his walk rate was solid at 11%, he did fan at a 27% clip. Following a promotion to Triple-A, he has batted .286 with a dinger, 9 RBI, and a steal over 40 plate appearances, but the walk rate has slid to under 8% while he's fanned at a 38% clip in that small sample size. Greene is just 20 and jumped from the low minors in 2019 to the cusp of the majors in 2021, so one should not be too alarmed at the strikeout rate. His batted-ball profile from Double-A shows a guy who can rip lots of liners (27% at that level), enough flyballs to be dangerous but not a power drain (30%) and use the entire field (his push and pull rates were both 37%). Given his plus hit and power tools as well as his solid work in the high minors in 2021, fantasy owners need to have him on their radar for the 2022 campaign.
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