Spencer Strider, SP, Atlanta Braves
Strider had a night to forget, going 4 IP, 8 H, 8 ER, 2 BB and 2 K. He allowed three homers on 9 hard hit balls. He posted a 22% CSW. Strides is obviously not the same guy he was pre-injury. Unfortunately for fantasy purposes, he has been tough to trust, and very inconsistent from start to start. He's only thrown more than 6 innings twice, which makes the fact that he's allowed 3 ER or more in 9 of 16 starts very meaningful. Even when Strider was dominant, his fly ball nature worked against him as he allowed 26 homers in 2023. This year he's allowed 12 in 86.1 IP. Not great. And since he's walking more guys now (9.4% in 2025, 7.6% in 2023) and giving up MORE zone contact (80.8% in 2025, 73.3% in 2023), this is more of a formula for mediocrity than it is dominance. Strider has not returned to full form, and my worry is that he follows the Walker Buehler career arc.
George Kirby, SP, Seattle Mariners
Kirby started the season off on a rough note, as he didn't make his first start until May, in which he gave up 11 ER in 8.2 IP. From there, his ERA danced around the mid-4's until now. Thanks to a 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K strikeout performance, Kirby's ERA is now below 4.00 for the first time this season. While he gave up ten hard hit balls, his 37% CSW is robust. While Kirby is walking a career high 6.3% of batters, his 26 K% is a career high, and represents an excellent tradeoff. Kirby appears to have regained his traditional form, as his 3.47 xERA and 3.32 xFIP all like his K/BB ratio and higher groundball rates. You can confidently start him week in and week out.
Cal Raleigh, C, Seattle Mariners
The homerun derby is truly a curse. Raleigh went 0-4 as his second half struggles continued. It's only been 101 PA's since the All-Star break, but he's slashing .191/.248/.415 and is striking out 34.7% of the time. Luckily for Raleigh, it seems like the quality of contact is still there, as his 100 PA rolling xwOBA still sits at a robust .334. These kinds of slumps are common for players that whiff and strikeout a lot. Nothing is wrong with Raleigh, you'll just have to bear through the slump until he can bring his contact rates back to his personal average.
Marcus Semien, 2B, Texas Rangers
Semien went 0-3 with an RBI and K. He is now slashing .224/.298/.350. His reliability in terms of being on the field is an asset, as he took over 700 PAs the last two seasons and is projected to come close to that figure in 2025. Semien had a super strong 2023 where he posted an .826 OPS with 29 HR and 14 SB. He had a down 2024, and unfortunately carried that into 2025. We now have two years of bad data on this player, and I'm officially believing that, as a 34 year old, we may not see a return to his 2023 form. Semien has 7th Percentile bat speed and is only hitting balls hard 34.8% of the time. His .344 xwOBACON is super underwhelming. That figure has been above league average only once in the last six years. The entirety of this profile for his whole career, has been great discipline and contact (18/9 K/BB career) along with the ability to run and a high pull air rate (22% career). But hitting the ball hard was never really a part of his game, so once the ability to impact regresses even the slightest, this type of profile feels it the most. I won't be drafting him in 2026.
Ramon Laureano, OF, San Diego Padres
Laureano had a strong day at the plate going 2-3 with 2 R, 2B, and BB. Laureano was a sought-after piece at the trade deadline, as he slashed .295/.351/.511 in July. He carried that momentum into August, where he's slashing .293/.341/.512, so he's been pretty consistent as of late. His .880 OPS on the season is a career high. The 47.9% HH rate being a career high certainly helps, and a 78th Percentile LASS means we can expect some great rate stats. The main knock on Laureano is the lack of stolen bases (5) which is unusually low given today's SB friendly environment and his 63rd Percentile speed. Laureano might be light in counting stats, but he's a super safe play if you need ratio help.
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