Aroldis Chapman- RP- BOS- Great Player- Chapman saved his 28th game of the season for the Red Sox. He is sporting a 1.00 ERA and 1.77 FIP. Chapman's 12.83 K/9 is not surprising nor is his fastball velo of 98.5. What is unusual for him is that at the age of 37 Chapman seems to have found control. He has a BB/9 of 2.33, which is unknown territory for the flame-throwing veteran. The closest he got to that before was 2.79 in 2016. For his career Chapman has a 4.51 BB/9. In his last 12.1 IP he has walked 1 and struck out 16, allowing no runs and no hits. It's not just this latest stretch where his control has blossomed. Through July 27 he had a BB/9 of 2.81. The Red Sox locked Chapman up for 2026 with an extension and he is going to be a high-value closer.
Caleb Durbin- 2B- MIL- Stats- Durbin is looking like a prize catch from the Devin Williams trade. The rookie went 1-for-4 yesterday with his 10th homer of the season, a walk, 2 runs, and a RBI. For the season he is slashing .257/.329/.397 with 12 steals in 419 PAs. Durbin has established himself as the starting 3B, but has also seen time this year at 2B and SS, so he will have position versatility in 2026. Durbin has exceptional plate discipline, with a chase rate of 22.6% and a SwStr% of 5.0%. For someone who makes a lot of contact (88.3% Contact%) his BB% of 5.7% shows a good eye. Durbin's power is not necessarily going to replicate in 2026 as his 84.8 EV and 26.2% HardHit% are not what you'd think would produce that many homers. His xSLG is about 35 points below his SLG. Durbin did steal 31 bases in the minors in 2024 so that is the area where he will likely make improvements in 2026, particularly with the style of baseball Milwaukee plays.
Shane Baz- P- TB- Hot- Baz has been streaky this season. After a stretch where he didn't toss a quality start for 6 outings (after getting 4 in a row) Baz now has consecutive quality starts. Yesterday was the 4th time this season he gave up no runs in a quality start, going 6 IPs and allowing 5 hits, walking 2 and striking out 6. The inconsistent nature of Baz has resulted in an overall ERA of 4.98 and FIP of 4.56. He is a strong candidate for a bounce back in 2026, though. A return to Tropicana Field will help him. Baz has a 6.47 ERA at Steinbrenner Field and 3.59 on the road. In 2024 he had a small sample size of 35.1IP at the Trop but posted a 3.31 ERA.
Carter Jensen- C- KC- Rookie- The Royals brought up Jensen from AAA Omaha when rosters expanded on an off day. He is likely to get a decent amount of playing time in the last month as it will let Salvador Perez get more time at 1B and DH. Jensen had a power surge after getting promoted to Omaha. He slashed .288/.404/.647 with 14 homers and a BB% of 16.3% in 184 PAs. Jensen is looked at as a solid defender and his power is expected to translate to MLB. With Perez turning 36 in 2026, handing the primary catching duties to Jensen is a distinct possibility.
Trevor Story- SS- BOS- Hot- Story hit his 23rd homer of the season and 3rd in his last 7 games. It glanced off the Pesky Pole in Fenway Park after Cleveland outfielder touched the ball. It was odd-looking but the right call was made after some confusion. Story has slugged his most homers since 2021 and needs to hit just one more to tie that mark. His rebound is across the board in his first healthy season since that 2021 campaign. Story has more RBIs than any season since 2019, more runs scored since 2021 (and is 2 behind his 88 that year,) and swiped more bases (24) than he has since his career-high of 27 in 2018. His slash line of .260/.307/.437 is not up to the levels of his Colorado days. That has a lot to do with the Coors effect. Story's road slash line of .230/.282/.419 is close to his career mark of .234/.302/.420. Looking at 2026, Story could repeat the power numbers, as he has career highs in EV at 91.1 and HardHIt% at 46.4%.
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