Yusei Kikuchi (SP - LAA) - Kikuchi has been racking up the K's lately, picking up another dozen on Wednesday against Boston to give him 31 in his last 3 starts. By allowing just 2 unearned runs over 7 innings, he's now also gone 11 consecutive starts allowing 3 ER or fewer. The control has definitely been an issue, which makes it all the more remarkable that he's really only had 1 poor start in 17 appearances so far this year. It definitely feels like there's been a lot of luck this year, but he's managed to walk that tightrope successfully to this point, and the K numbers would suggest that he's actually improving as we are moving into summer. I have more faith in him than the numbers would lead you to believe, and an upcoming trip to Atlanta and a visit from the Rangers don't impact that negatively.
Sean Burke (SP - CWS) - Burke had yet another solid start on Wednesday against Arizona, holding the D-Backs to 2 unearned runs on 5 hits in 5 innings, walking 2 and fanning 7. Burke's velocity was up significantly on Wednesday for the third consecutive start, and the swinging strike rate has jumped commensurately. The control has improved as well over the past month-plus, and the quality contact numbers have retreated back into the average range. He's allowed two runs or fewer in 5 of his last 6 and 8 of his last 10, and with the improved bat-missing and control, I think I'm willing to live with the low GB rate. He's worth a pickup as a streaming candidate, but as much as he's improved, I doubt I'm willing to risk the start against the Dodgers next week. The following week will be a 2-starter against the Jays and Guardians, and I will likely be on board for that.
Michael Busch (1B - CUB) - Busch went 3-5 on Wednesday and stole his 4th base of the season in the 8-0 win over St. Louis. I definitely did not see Busch cutting his chase rate and his swinging strike while increasing his flyball rate and his exit velocity, all while running more than he ever has before. This all looks completely legitimate, and at age 27 it isn't out of the ordinary to see this kind of improvement, particularly from a player that only had 648 MLB PAs coming into the season. There's no reason to expect anything less than a solid AVG and 20 HR at this point, which is far above my expectations for him coming into the year.
Andy Pages (OF - LAD) - Pages was 2-4 with an RBI on Wednesday in Denver, expanding upon his 341/345/66 June line. The 24 year old is essentially average in terms of both contact ability and power, but he does leverage that average raw power with a very low GB rate. I think he's definitely maximizing his skill set at this level of production, but he has the potential to be a plus hitter in both average and power production while mixing in 10-15 SBs. He's clearly one of the breakout players of the first half at this point.
Jacob Lopez (SP - ATH) - Lopez tossed his 3rd straight QS on Wednesday, shutting out the quality Tiger offense on 3 hits and a walk over 7 innings, striking out 6. He picked up 12 whiffs on 103 pitches and avoided hard contact almost completely (avg EV - 82.9), but this really feels rather fortunate to this point. He can miss bats, but the control is very spotty and the flyball rate is astronomical. I know we ride the hot arms, but that 2-start week (@TB, SF) definitely has me a bit nervous next week. For what it's worth, Statcast and SIERA think I'm being ridiculous (xERA of 3.69, SIERA of 3.63).
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