In The Field
OF Adolis Garcia (quad) was not in the Rangers lineup on Wednesday. This was the second day in a row that he was out. He was placed on the 10-day IL on Friday. The Rangers are optimistic that he can return when first eligible. Garcia is hitting .235 with 18 HR, 56 R, 73 RBI, and 13 SB. OF Matt Vierling (oblique) started a hitting progression earlier in the week. Vierling has played in just 31 games this year (.239 AVG with 1 HR, 6 R, 11 RBI, and 2 SB). OF Roman Anthony left Tuesday's game early with an oblique injury. He was placed on the IL on Wednesday. Anthony had just started to reach his potential as a five-category contributor (.292 AVG with 8 HR, 48 R, 32 RBI, and 4 SB in 303 PA). OF Lane Thomas (foot) started a rehab assignment with Double-A Akron on Tuesday. 1B Jonathan Aranda (wrist) has started swinging a bat, but his wrist is not completely healed. OF Mike Trout was scratched from the Angels' lineup because of a skin infection. Trout is on pace to surpass 500 PA for the first time since 2019, but his production has fallen off drastically (.231 AVG with 20 HR, 58 R, 54 RBI, and 2 SB in 466 PA). His strikeout rate has increased to 31% this year, which is the highest of his career. This is not good for the 34-year-old. OF Taylor Ward was not in the lineup on Monday and Tuesday due to running into the outfield wall in Houston. He returned to the Angels lineup on Wednesday. OF Wilyer Abreu (calf) has not started running. He has been out for two weeks with the injury. Abreu was hitting .253 with 22 HR, 52 R, 69 RBI, and 6 SB in 395 PA. 1B/OF Luke Raley left Wednesday's game early due to side tightness. Raley has struggled to stay healthy this year. He has just 189 PA (.203 AVG with 4 HR/2 SB). OF Anthony Santander (shoulder) is expected to start a rehab assignment on Tuesday with Triple-A Buffalo. Santander has not had the year he or the Blue Jays expected. He is hitting .179 with 6 HR, 14 R, 18 RBI, and 0 SB in 209 PA. Santander has struggled with injury and performance. 3B Isaac Paredes (hamstring) was able to run and take grounders on Wednesday. He is still without a timetable for his return. Paredes seems to be trending in the right direction, but until talk of a rehab assignment starts, it is hard to nail down when he will be returning. OF Tyler O'Neill (wrist) is expected to start a rehab assignment next week. O'Neill has had trouble staying healthy this year, so he has been limited to 164 PA (.210 AVG with 8 HR/2 SB). 2B Jordan Westburg (ankle) is also expected to start a rehab assignment next week. Westburg has been limited by injuries but has been productive when on the field (.276 AVG with 15 HR, 53 R, 34 RBI, and 1 SB). 2B/3B Jazz Chisholm Jr. had testing done on both his knees on Thursday, and the results came back clean. He was back in the Yankees lineup on Friday. Chisholm Jr. is hitting .240 with 28 HR, 68 R, 70 RBI, and 26 SB in 455 PA. C Ryan Jeffers left Thursday's game early with a head injury. He took a foul ball off his mask. 1B Nolan Schanuel (wrist) took batting practice on Friday. He has been experiencing soreness, which has stunted his rehab process. He is without a timetable for a return. Schanuel was hitting .266 with 10 HR, 61 R, 49 RBI, and 5 SB in 535 PA. He has produced very similar numbers to last year, which is above-average plate skills (11% BB and 12% K) but very little hard contact (4% Barrels). SS Taylor Walls is going to miss the rest of the season after having sports hernia surgery. The Rays have been rolling with SS Carson Williams at SS. Williams is hitting .229 with 1 HR, 5 R, 8 RBI, and 1 SB in 39 PA. He hit .213 with 23 HR/22 SB at Triple-A, and his 33% strikeout rate at the major league level means that we will likely get the same, if not worse. The power/speed is real, but the AVG could be sub .200. OF Jake Meyers (calf) is supposed to be activated soon. Meyers will likely go back to being the everyday CF, with UTIL Mauricio Dubon moving into a super utility role. C Adley Rutschman was able to take some swings off a tee on Friday. This was his first time swinging a bat since being placed on the IL on August 21. SS Bobby Witt Jr. (back) was not in the Royals lineup on Saturday after leaving Friday's game with back spasms. OF Victor Robles returned on Saturday. He had been out due to injury and suspension.
On The Mound
John Means (elbow) threw a bullpen on Wednesday and was supposed to have his final rehab start on Friday, but he was scratched after feeling under the weather. Means has thrown just 52.1 IP at the major league level since 2021. Tyler Mahle was not good in his rehab start on Tuesday. He went 1 IP, 5 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, and 1 K (36 pitches) for Triple-A Round Rock. Max Scherzer (back) has been feeling better and is expected to start on Saturday. Despite being 41 years old, Scherzer has pitched well (4.11 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 16% K:BB, and 4.36 SIERA). David Festa (shoulder) has been shut down for the season. He finishes with a 5.40 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, and 15% K:BB in 53.1 IP. He has enough skills to be useful (4.15 SIERA), but will need to have a strong spring next year to secure a rotation spot. Seth Lugo (lower back) had his start pushed back due to lower back tightness on Thursday. The Royals were hoping that he could start on Saturday, where they have an empty spot, but he was placed on the 15-day IL on Thursday. Spencer Arrighetti was placed on the 15-day IL on Wednesday with right elbow inflammation. The Astros look to be going back to a five-man rotation after they called up a reliever, Jayden Murray, in a corresponding move. Pablo Lopez (shoulder) was activated on Friday and started against the Royals (6 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, and 4 K). Cole Ragans threw a 30-pitch live BP session on Wednesday. He is expected to start a rehab assignment on Sunday. He will need to continue to build up his pitch count in an attempt to make it back before the end of the season. Prior to the injury, Ragans had a 5.18 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 36% K, 8% BB, and 2.66 SIERA. Reese Olson (shoulder) has started a throwing program but is still out for the year. There is an outside chance that he returns for the postseason. Dean Kremer had an MRI on his right forearm on Saturday. He left Friday's start after three innings.
In The Bullpen
Jose Urquidy (elbow) went 2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, and 3 K in his latest rehab appearance with Triple-A Toledo. He is going to return as a reliever and not as a starter because the Tigers have enough starters. Jordan Hicks (shoulder) was placed on the 15-day IL on Friday. Keegan Aiken picked up a save on Monday, and Yennier Cano got the save on Wednesday and the win on Friday. Aroldis Chapman continues to defy Father Time as he picked up two saves (28) and has been dominant in his age-37 season (1.00 ERA, 0.65 WHIP, and 32% K:BB). Jeff Hoffman got the save on Tuesday and has back-to-back scoreless outings after giving up 8 ER over his previous four appearances. Jordan Leasure had a big week for fantasy owners with three saves for the White Sox. Carlos Estevez got back-to-back saves on Thursday and Friday, which ups his total to 38 SV. Justin Topa blew two saves this week.
Players to add this week:
OF Jeremiah Jackson (BAL)- Jeremiah Jackson has had a hot start to his major league career. He is hitting .318 with 4 HR, 15 R, 17 RBI, and 0 SB in 115 PA. At Triple-A this year, he hit .377 with 11 HR, 29 R, 22 RBI, and 9 SB in 171 PA. The power/speed combo is something he has displayed across his time in the minors. The biggest difference this year for him has been an improvement in his strikeout rate. If he can hold that, he could carve out more of a longer-term role. Either way, he is swinging a hot bat and has power and speed, so he is a good pickup.
OF Jesus Sanchez (HOU)- Jesus Sanchez is strong side platooning for the Astros. This season, he is hitting .255 with 13 HR, 53 R, 43 RBI, and 9 SB. His core skills are also very solid (8% BB and 21% K) to go along with 11% Barrels and 45% Hardhit. He won't be a league-winner, but in deeper mixed leagues, he has value given his solid all-around skillset.
OF Dylan Beavers (BAL)-Dylan Beavers has started out his pro career strong. He is hitting .302 with 1 HR, 10 R, 6 RBI, and 1 SB in 65 PA. He hit .304 with 18 HR, 78 R, 51 RBI, and 23 SB at Triple-A in 418 PA. That was after 15 HR/31 SB in 531 PA in Double-A in 2024. He has just enough power and speed to be a valuable fantasy asset. Beavers has shown the ability to barrel the ball (9% Barrels) in his limited sample, so his power numbers should improve as he gets more comfortable.
SP Payton Tolle (BOS)- Payton Tolle was not as good in his second start (3 IP, 5 ER, 4 BB, and 2 K), but the stuff is still too good to pass up on. In the minors this year, he had a 3.04 ERA, 099 WHIP, and 30% K:BB. He's got above-average velocity from the left side with six pitches. Tolle also has a cutter and changeup that he can use to get right-handed batters out. This is important for his long-term success. Don't be scared by his latest outing because his ability to miss bats is real and could be a difference maker for fantasy teams heading down the stretch.
SP Ian Seymour (TBR)- Ian Seymour is an older left-hander with average velocity. However, he makes up for this with excellent control and command. He has a 2.89 ERA and 1.10 WHIP through 37.1 IP. He has only two starts for the Rays, but has been pitching behind an opener recently. Seymour has struck out 31% of batters and walked 7%. His 14% swinging strike rate supports the strikeouts. It also tracks with his minor league numbers (29% K and 15% SwStr). The Rays have a good track record of developing pitchers, and this is another case.
SP Kyle Bradish (BAL)-Kyle Bradish has made two starts since returning from Tommy John surgery (10 IP, 4 ER, 2 BB, and 15 K). His velocity is right in line with his pre-injury time. Bradish still has the same pitch mix (FA, SI, SL, and CU). He doesn't have great Stuff+ numbers (91), but he has excelled at the major league level with good control and the ability to mix just enough strikeouts (25% K) with a ground ball approach (48% GB). He has shown more than enough to warrant picking up.
SP Luis Morales (ATH)- Luis Morales has a 1.59 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, and 17% K:BB through 5 GS. He's got a plus fastball that sits 97.2 mph. He has struck out 27% of batters and walked 10% BB. His 3.90 SIERA gives a good indication that he isn't quite as good as his surface stats suggest, but even with regression, he is a useful starter. Morales is also in line for a two-start week (BOS and CIN). Both starts are at home, which isn't great, but he is pitching well, and two-starts are two-starts at this time of the year.
3B Josh Jung (TEX)- Josh Jung is hitting .255 with 13 HR, 44 R, 53 RBI, and 4 SB in 429 PA. He has solid plate skills (5% BB and 26% K). Jung also hits the ball hard enough to have 20-25 HR power (8% Barrels and 45% Hardhit). He has also been swinging a hot bat in the second half (.300 AVG with 5 HR, 18 R, 18 RBI, and 0 SB). Jung has hit for a better average thanks to a .397 BABIP, but the power has come back in the second half (.814 OPS and 126wRC+).
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