Trea Turner, SS (PHI)
Turner made his second-straight appearance in the No. 8 spot in the Phillies lineup. After going 0-for-3 on Thursday, the $300-million shortstop, who currently has a 75 wRC+, was 1-for-4 with an RBI. Turner's struggles just haven't gone away as his once-impressive plate discipline has evaporated, now featuring a 15% swinging-strike rate and a 39% chase rate. That's either a result of more than four months of pressing or there's something wrong with his skillset. For a player with seven seasons of elite play, it would make more sense that he's pressing and trying to justify the contract, which would explain why he's swinging more, swinging at pitches out of the zone more and swinging upright more with a 13.7-degree launch angle. He will more than likely break out of this slump, but when that will be is highly uncertain. In fact, it may not happen in 2023. Fantasy owners though really have little choice but to wait for that turn to come. Too much was invested to go in any other direction.
Nolan Gorman, 2B (STL)
Gorman had a monster game on Friday after missing Thursday's game with a foot injury resulting from a foul ball. He popped a pair of solo home runs and added a single in five at-bats. The free-swinging infielder has left little doubt as to his power, but his batting average is limited as long as he fails to reach 70% contact. He swings for the fences with a pull-heavy upper-cut hack, and it's working (he already has 24 home runs). The next part of his development will be generating better contact on pitches inside the strike zone. Pitchers have options against him, but Gorman can cut into those options if he doesn't allow opposing success inside the zone. That's a reasonable skill set to improve for a young slugger. The ceiling is high for the former first-round pick.
Merrill Kelly, SP (ARI)
Kelly pitched well on the road, holding the Twins to two solo home runs in six innings with nine strikeouts. Since returning from a blood clot in his calf in late July, the veteran right-hander has only allowed six runs in 17 innings with 20 strikeouts. On Friday he posted a 30% CSW-rate against a good Twins lineup. On the season, he has a 3.21 ERA while posting more than a strikeout per inning. At 34 years old Kelly is finally a threat to strike opposing hitters out, and while the improved K rate comes with regressive quality of contact, Kelly's overall production is excellent. He is clearly removed from the health issues that cost him a month and should be a reliable fantasy starter over the final two months of the season.
Blake Rutherford, OF (WSH)
Blake Rutherford, who was drafted in the first round by the Yankees in 2016, made his long-awaited major league debut on Friday. He was hitless with a pair of strikeouts in four at-bats. Rutherford struggled for the first several years of his professional career, but he hit 24 home runs combined between 2021-22 and shined in his first season in the Nationals organization this year. He was hitting over .340 with 11 home runs and seven stolen bases in 235 at-bats between AA and AAA. He managed to put up those strong numbers in spite of some concerning issues with his plate discipline. In fact, Rutherford had a 18.9% swinging-strike rate for AAA-Harrisburg. His power is moderate and his speed is average so the questionable hit tool leads to questionable fantasy upside. Although he should be rewarded with solid playing time in a weak Nationals lineup, he should not be so rewarded by fantasy owners.
Luis Urias, 2B (BOS)
Urias made his Red Sox debut, reaching base twice and scoring a run in four plate appearances. The utility infielder was acquired prior to the trade deadline after falling out of favor with the Brewers. Initially the Red Sox kept him in AAA, but the team called him up on Friday following the decision to designate Christian Arroyo for assignment. Urias essentially takes over the super utility role in Boston, but when Justin Turner returns from a heel injury, the most likely place for him to play is at shortstop, where Yu Chang is hitting only .170. Urias and Chang will have to battle for more at-bats. Urias hit 39 home runs combined between 2021-22, but he was simply awful for Milwaukee this year prior to his demotion, and his results weren't much better in the minors. After pretty steady quality-of-contact numbers throughout his career, suddenly Urias lost most of his hard contact with the Brewers.
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