Corbin Carroll, OF, ARI
Carroll hit his second home run of the season and brought in five runs as part of a 2 for 5 night at the plate. He now has two consecutive two-hit efforts, which has brought him back over the Mendoza Line and is hopefully a sign that he is breaking out of the season-long slump. The talented 23-year-old has followed up his 2023 NL Rookie of the Year campaign in an extremely disappointing fashion to this point. Last season he slashed .285/.362/.506 with 25 homers, 54 stolen bases, and a 133 wRC+. Carroll is currently slashing .211/.300/.278 with eight swipes and a 73 wRC+. His plate discipline numbers are very similar to those he posted last season, and his K% and BB% have both been slight improvements; however, he is not getting good wood on the ball whatsoever. Carroll's 29.4% HardHit% and 4.9% Barrel% are both significantly down from his 2023 percentages (40.9% and 7.6%). His 84.9 average exit velo ranks in the 5th percentile and his 27.5% IFFB% leads the league. It's not time to panic with the youngster yet, but he needs to make some adjustments and find some confidence at the dish.
Alex Verdugo, OF, NYY
Verdugo hit a three-run job off Justin Verlander in the first inning on Tuesday night. He added an RBI single in the third and finished the game 3 for 5. The 27-year-old 's first season in pinstripes has been excellent thus far. He's slashing .275/.362/.450 with five homers and a career-high 136 wRC+. Verdugo has been extremely disciplined at the plate this season. He came into Tuesday's contest with a 13.2% Whiff% that ranked in the 94th percentile and 21.6% Chase% that ranked in the 82nd. His current 9.9% K% ranks 7th in the majors. Both his K% and 12.1% BB% are well above his career-best marks of 13.4%, and 8.4%, respectively. If Verdugo stays disciplined, he could have himself a career-year hitting in the meat of the Yankees lineup.
Ross Stripling, SP, OAK
Stripling was hammered by the Rangers on Tuesday afternoon. He gave up 11 runs on 10 hits in just 1.2 innings of work. Thankfully, only five of the runs were earned. Stripling has been a serviceable streaming/deep league fantasy option this season. Before Tuesday's debacle, he had gone at least five innings in each of his seven starts and had allowed more than three runs just twice. The 34-year-old also hadn't been hit hard, as he came into Tuesday's start with a 2.9% Barrel% and 32.4% Hard-Hit% which ranked in the 90th and 81st percentile, respectively. Still, he doesn't miss enough bats (19.1% Whiff% and 15.8% K%) for fantasy owners to be optimistic about his upside.
Ryan Jeffers, C, MIN
Jeffers went 2 for 4 with a three-run home run, his seventh of the season. The 26-year-old continues to prove he is one of the best-hitting catchers in the league. His 175 wRC+ and .968 OPS currently rank in the top 10 in the majors for any position. He hasn't hit the ball particularly hard (33.3% Hard-Hit%) but he has a controlled approach at the plate and has a solid 17.7% K%. Jeffers is currently owned in 55.2% of ESPN leagues but there are only a few backstops that are more reliable right now. He's hitting in the middle of the Twins lineup and will get a lot of plate appearances between being the starting catcher and DHing on many of his days off.
Marcus Semien, 2B, TEX
The Rangers ambushed the A's for 15 runs in the first four innings on Tuesday afternoon and it was Semien who led the charge. He hit a leadoff homer to start the game, then quickly added an RBI single AND two RBI double in the second inning. He finished the day 4 for 5 with five RBI and three runs. This was a big game for the 33-year-old as he has been scuffling at the dish as of late. Semien's output on Tuesday outdid his production from the previous nine games combined (8-40, 0 HR, 2 RBI). He is now slashing .266/.314/.449 with six homers and 27 RBI this season. Semien's expected numbers are excellent (.362 xwOBA and .308 xBA), however with a lowly 35.7 Hard-Hit% and 88.1 Avg Exit Velo, he hasn't quite been getting the results.
This is just a small sample our daily analysis, join our member area for tools that will help you win your fantasy championship. Click here for details: http://www.insiderbaseball.
