Alek Manoah dominated the Pirates on Friday, throwing 7 1/3 shutout innings with six strikeouts en route to his 13th win. He also allowed five hits and a walk. Manoah was excellent in his first start of September, logging his most innings since July 9 and keeping the Pirates off the board while recording 22 outs. Friday marked Manoah's third straight quality start, lowering his ERA to 2.48. It was his first win since August 4, however, as Toronto had lost his four previous outings. The young All-Star has now allowed just two earned runs in 20 1/3 innings over his last three starts combined with a 22:5 K/BB ratio, showing no signs of wearing down towards the end of a long season as Toronto's ace. Manoah is one of the best pitchers in baseball and is essentially matchup-proof, making him a great fantasy option when he takes the mound against the Orioles in Baltimore next week.
Cal Raleigh powered the Mariners to a 6-1 win over the Guardians on Friday, going 2-for-4 with two home runs and four RBIs. The slugging catcher popped a solo shot in his first at-bat before clubbing a back-breaking three-run job in the sixth to put the game away. It was the second career multi-homer game for the 25-year-old slugging backstop, who recently clubbed a pair of homers back on August 17. He's now up to 21 big flies on the year over 98 games in his first full season, although he only his 49 RBIs to show for them because of his .205 average, 28.9% strikeout rate, and spot in the bottom third of Seattle's batting order. Even so, his 21 taters are tied with Willson Contreras for the most among MLB catchers this year, making Raleigh an elite source of power at his position. If you can withstand the poor batting average and mediocre counting numbers, he's worth it.
Jordan Montgomery stayed red-hot by pitching another gem for the Cardinals on Friday, twirling six shutout innings against the Cubs while scattering seven hits and two walks. Montgomery bounced back after allowing five runs in five innings during his previous outing, keeping Chicago off the board and pitching St. Louis to an 8-0 victory. He's now 5-0 with a sparkling 1.47 ERA in six starts for the Cardinals since being traded from the Yankees at the deadline, making him arguably the best trade deadline addition so far. St. Louis has won all six of his starts, while the southpaw has improved to 8-3 with a 3.15 ERA. After a solid first half with the Yankees, Montgomery is suddenly a must-start with St. Louis. He's in a great spot to keep rolling with a home matchup against the Nationals on deck.
Travis d'Arnaud paced the Braves' 8-1 victory over the Marlins on Friday by going 2-for-3 with two homers, three RBIs, and three runs. d'Arnaud stayed red-hot at the plate with his second multi-homer game of the year, belting a two-run shot in the fourth off Sandy Alcantara before adding a solo blast in the seventh. The former first-round draft pick has been absolutely on fire lately with four home runs and eight RBIs over his last seven games, notching multiple hits four times during that stretch. The hot streak has brought his batting average up to .266 and his OPS up to an even .800, as he has 16 homers and 53 RBIs as well. The 33-year-old All-Star is having the best full season of his career from a statistical standpoint despite getting frequent off days due to the presence of William Contreras. When he is in the lineup, however, he makes for a great daily play, especially since he often bats fifth.
Luis Castillo delivered another excellent start for the Mariners on Friday, firing six shutout innings with five hits and one walk allowed while striking out four. Castillo earned the win for his efforts against the Guardians, helping Seattle cruise to a 6-1 victory. He's now notched five quality starts in six outings since being traded from the Reds, posting a 2.39 ERA with a 43:9 K/BB ratio in 37 2/3 innings for his new club. That run has only added two wins to his ledger, however, which explains why his overall record is 6-5 despite an impressive 2.71 ERA and more strikeouts than innings pitched. Castillo has been victimized by poor run support and bad luck all too often this year, but he's still a great fantasy option with more upside now that he's on a better team.
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