Tyler Mahle (SP - ATL) - I was definitely not high on Mahle after the move to Driveline: Atlanta, but I clearly underestimated the ability of the Braves to streamline Mahle's arsenal. He's essentially gone to the Kevin Gausman fastball/splitter approach since the trade, and the results speak for themselves: 5 GS, 30 1/3 IP, 24 H, 5 ER, 5 BB, and 33 K. Granted, the schedule has been fairly accommodating, but that's still an impressive turnaround from the 5.13 ERA and 1.39 WHIP that he was sporting when he left the Giants. All this from moving from 70% FB/SF to close to 90%...you wonder how many more pitchers would benefit from junking their least effective pitches and focusing on their strongest offerings. I don't feel great about it, but I'm ready to give Mahle some trust in his two-step against the Phillies over the next two weeks.
Hector Rodriguez (OF - CIN) - Rodriguez hit a 3-run HR in the 4th off of lefty Shota Imanage, and the 22 year old has now reached base in 8 straight and has upped his slash line to 230/309/459 through 68 PAs. If you look closely at his minor league stats, you'll see a very raw player that is slowly but steadily refining/improving his strike zone judgment and, consequently, his contact ability. He's still a very impatient hitter, but not nearly as much as he was a few years ago, and the contact ability appears to be approaching average now. Let's keep in mind that this has all happened while he was moving up the ladder....he was playing in the complex league just 4 years ago. The power is the calling card here, and at just 22 years of age it's impressive 115 mph off the bat already. He's already hit 31 HR between AAA and MLB in 123 games, so easily a 35 HR pace. Steadily improving contact ability with very good power in that home park? I'm certainly interested, and he's playing almost every day, as evidenced by Sunday's HR against a same-side SP. I think he can be a help in all formats for the last month, and I'll absolutely be interested come spring if he can keep a starting role with the Reds.
Luke Keaschall (2B - MIN) - Keaschall singled, homered, and walked on Sunday as he is putting the finishing touches on an excellent August (he entered Sunday hitting 315/390/522 for the month). The 24 year old has excellent strike zone control and contact ability to go along with very good speed, and he's been batting at the top of the Twin lineup again over the past two weeks. The power is definitely below average, but only 15 2B have double-digit HRs this season, and half of those guys don't steal bases, so it isn't really a deal breaker for an otherwise talented player like Keaschall to be a 10-15 HR guy. He will most certainly be a target of mine again come spring....I cut bait on him a little too quickly this season, a mistake that I doubt I'll repeat in 2027.
Lazaro Montes (OF - SEA) - There have been reports coming out Sunday that Montes will be promoted to the Mariners when rosters expand on Tuesday, and he's expected to join the club in Boston. With less than two months under his belt at AAA, I doubt that the Mariners are bringing him up to watch games from the bench, so I do expect him to play. That probably means deadline acquisition Taylor Ward, he of the 113/214/145 line since coming to Seattle, will probably be sitting against RHP (Montes likely won't play against LHP, as far as I can tell). There will be many enticed by Montes and his elite power, but if you follow me at all, you likely won't be surprised by my lack of excitement here. The contact rates for Montes have been abysmal at every level, although he does have above-average plate discipline. He also doesn't run well or field well, so this is a power-only profile. He does have 38 HR in the minors this season after hitting 32 last year, but barring a sudden boost in his ability to actually make contact, I can't see that translating all that well to the MLB level. Unless you're desperate for any power whatsoever, I'd let someone else take the risk next week.
Thomas Saggese (2B/SS/3B/OF - STL) - Saggese returned to the Cardinals on Saturday, and suddenly it looks like he's in line for a lot of playing time with Blaze Jordan and JJ Wetherholt joining Masyn Winn on the IL. I really like what Saggese brings to the table, although the strike zone judgment is rather poor and the contact ability is merely in the average area. The 24 year old has average power and above average speed, and most importantly he can play 2B, SS, 3B, and OF while potentially offering average or better ability across the board (contact, power, and speed). He had 10 HR and 9 SB in just 55 games at AAA, which is pretty clearly a 25/25 pace over a full season, and he's hit over .300 at 6 different minor league stops over the past 5 years. There's a very solid ceiling here and, like I mentioned previously, the playing time should be there over the next week or two at least. I think he's a nice aggressive pickup for the next few weeks, and then we can see where the playing time looks like it'll land for the remainder of the season.
