Speaker 1Baseball has always been a game of inches, now it's also a game of seconds. T-Mobile and MLB have teamed up to bring ABS Challenge to all 29 ballparks across the US. This isn't a minor upgrade, this is the most significant new technology in the history of the sport. And it's powered by T-Mobile. With every pitch thrown, ABS Challenge uses real-time precision to verify the call, giving them the support they need. No delays, no guesswork, just accuracy at the speed the game demands. Thanks to ABS Challenge, T-Mobile is helping power the moments that define the game. When performance and reliability are non-negotiable, MLB turns to T-Mobile. That's not a coincidence. That's what happens when the most innovative network in the country powers the most data-driven sport in the world. T-Mobile powers MLB's most ambitious technology, and America's best network powers your connection to baseball. Home or away, every pitch, every game, every day. T-Mobile, it's better over here. Major League Baseball trademarks and copyrights. Are used with permission of Major League Baseball. Visit MLB.com. T-Mobile, best mobile network in the U.S. According to Ookla Speed Test, based on analysis by Ookla of Speed Test Intelligence Data First Half 2026. Ookla trademarks used under license and reprinted with permission. Hey, before we jump back into the show, let's take a quick break. But not just any break. This is a refreshing break with Snapple. We all know about Snapple's iconic real facts, so let's take a minute to go over some of my faves. Snapple real facts, 14-17. Before 18-19. Before 18-59, baseball umpires sat behind home plate in rocking chairs. Snapple real facts, 14-83. More than 100 baseballs are used during a typical professional baseball game. Snapple real fact, 2-53. The first TV remote control introduced in 1950 was called Lazy Bones. Snapple real fact, 21-05. Professional athletes used to perform in vaudeville in the off season. So grab a Snapple, take a second, and enjoy the moment. Because let's be honest, this might be the most refreshing part of your life. Snapple, make your break more interesting. Alright, now let's get back to the show.
Speaker 2Welcome to the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast from CBS Sports.
Speaker 3And first pitch, rushing deep left field. This is what it's like. Walk the walk.
Speaker 2Got a fantasy question? Email fantasybaseball at cbsi.com. Get ready to win your league. Where fantasy becomes reality. Now here's Frank, Scott, and Chris.
Speaker 1What's up? And welcome in to Fantasy Baseball Today. On Tuesday, September 15th, I am Frank Snapple, joined by Scott White and Chris Towers. Today on the show, what do we do with these fringe? Six fringe starting pitchers. I completely butchered that. Great start. Latest waiver names. We'll look into the crystal ball. For way too early. You do actually have one after all this time?
Speaker 42027 ADP predictions. I've been telling people we don't have one of those, and you pull one out, and now I can't say that anymore. We do have a crystal ball. We should get everything right.
Speaker 5Yeah, I got this, like, dirty ball, gross ball that I found at Central Park one day. That is not crystal.
Speaker 1I have looked into the crystal ball, and I could tell you there will be a season in 2027. I knew it. All right, let's start with the players of the night.
Speaker 6Way to go, kid! Step it back, yeah! We see ya! You da man! Woo! All right, let's get things... A lot going on there. Yeah, there's a lot. You da man! Scott, tell me, who was da man on Monday?
Speaker 4Well, we actually got a good pitching performance from somebody. And that somebody is Quinn Matthews, who was my favorite two-star pitcher to stream. So that's a good thing, I guess. He was going against the Giants, a good lineup to stream against. In the first of a two-star week, potentially, subject to change, as always. One-run run in six and two-thirds innings. He struck out eight, walked only two. It's important for Quinn Matthews. Walks have been an issue, both in the majors and minors. Got 16 whiffs, multiple three-plus on four different pitches. Less than 80-mile-per-hour average exit velocity allowed. So weak, weak contact. And this comes on... Am I seeing this right? He's made two straight starts against the Giants?
Speaker 6Yep.
Speaker 4Well, hopefully it's not just the Giants. At least the first of those two starts, Devers was still around. But yes, he's had two really good starts in a row. Each six innings plus. Each just two walks. Which, again, is a big step in the right direction for Quinn Matthews. And I think you dig a little deeper in what these two starts also have. Have in common. Other than being against the Giants. Other than being six-plus innings. Other than being just two walks. A lot more sinkers than usual. It was 20% in this one. It was 17% in the last one. Prior to that, he was throwing it like 5% of the time. It wasn't really a part of his arsenal. And we have seen this trick used successfully for pitchers who have good stuff. And we have seen this trick used successfully for pitchers who have good stuff. But struggle to throw strikes. You mix in a sinker. And I honestly don't know the science behind it. If the sinker itself is easier to spot for strikes. Or if having it in the arsenal somehow makes... I don't know. It seems to get them in the zone more. And back-to-back starts where this worked for Matthews. And the stuff has had a chance to shine. So I think it's a step in the right direction. He does make a second start this week. As I mentioned, against the Nationals. If you're in a daily league, do you want to stream him with a matchup like that? Probably not. But you can think about it. And in the final week, it looks like he's facing the Brewers. So you probably don't want to stream him for that one. So I don't know that you're going to get any more use out of Quinn Matthews this year. Weekly leagues, obviously, you probably will get that National start. Because you started him for two starts. But it's encouraging to see scouting him for next year. Pitcher with a lot of upside making some changes. Hopefully throw more strikes.
Speaker 5And, you know, the one thing the Nationals, they rank second against lefties in WOBA on the season. So that's not great. Over the past 30 days, they're 26th in WOBA. So that offense has slowed down a lot. And them being good against lefties has been weird. Because their two best hitters are left-handed. And Dale Lyle is also lefty, right? He's not a switch hitter. So it's like, why have they been so good? Curtis Meade was probably a big part of that early on. He's not there anymore. So, I don't know. I'm not saying he's a must start, certainly, against the Nationals. But I could see another good start coming. And I think part of what we're seeing is just maybe him starting to figure out his arsenal a little bit. Because typically what you see is, it's not like this for everybody. But guys who have both a sinker and a four-seamer. You usually see the four-seamer against opposite-handed hitters more. The sinker against same-handed hitters more. And that's what we're seeing from Quinn Matthews here. In this start, 38%. 30% of his pitches against lefties were sinkers. 0% of his pitches against righties were sinkers. So just trying to min-max that platoon edge is something that I think a lot of smart pitching coaches and teams are doing now. And that's what we're seeing from Quinn Matthews now. And looking ahead to 2027, I think the thing that you have to like about him is he will probably qualify just as a sleeper. Not a breakout, I think. But he's going to have a great season. He's going to have a great defense behind him. I assume, I know Mason Wynn's been a big disappointment with the bat, but he's still one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball. J.J. Weatherholt is a shortstop playing second base. So I still think this looks like a pretty good situation for a pitcher like Quinn Matthews. It's just, it's the walks. I think it's four of the past five, he has two or fewer walks. If he can do that consistently, I think he can be really good.
Speaker 1Yeah, and I dove into. I dove into the pitch mix a little bit here and looking at it, I mean, his changeup is awesome. It had a 42% whiff rate entering today and his breaking pitches, while they don't get huge whiffs, they induce really, really soft contact. The ex-woba on both his slider and curveball are really good. And then I think throwing the sinker more actually is a good idea because this four-seam fastball has been hit hard so far. So the overall arsenal, it looks pretty interesting. You know, whether or not he could throw strikes, that remains a question. But he's allowed two earned runs or fewer. And six of his seven starts, the one that he didn't, it was seven earned runs. So that was a really rough one. But, you know, he's managed to keep runs off the board and he's looked pretty good here. That is Quinn Matthews. Last two matchups are pretty tough. But I think he will qualify as a decent sleeper heading into next season. Chris, what about your player of the night? Can he be useful this season? Can he be a sleeper next season?
Speaker 5Yeah, let's stick with pitchers who I have always really liked. Maybe more than me. And that is Jonah Tong, who went, I believe this is the first career quality start for Jonah Tong. Things have been pretty disastrous overall for him. But he was really good on Monday against the Orioles. I know to the chagrin of the city field crowd, I don't know if you guys were watching the game at all. But there was some booing when he got Pete Alonzo out at one point. I get it. Pete Alonzo, he's a fun player. That was weird. But yeah, Jonah Tong, zero earned runs, one unearned. run six strikeouts one walk one uh four hits he had seven strikeouts one walk in his previous start i know it was four and runs over five innings but there are signs of life here for a guy who still has a lot of really interesting traits um you know he's still a really good athlete and he's got that fastball that he can throw in the mid to high 90s with really interesting shape and he's got the funky delivery and the change-up can flash really good and i thought the curveball he threw a couple of good ones today and so i you should remain very skeptical of jonah tong moving forward um we need to see more than one good start ever from him at the major league level before we start talking about him as a viable option for fantasy i don't think i would stream him against the phillies later this week probably not against the nationals next week either but this is a name to keep an eye on for you know looking ahead to 2027 because he's kind of in his own way like a microcosm of the mets organization over the past two years like last year he emerges as i mean by the time he made his debut he was one of the best pitching prospects in baseball probably and he was a big win for the mets pitching development system and i think that pitching development system has let them down this season in a lot of ways both at the minor league and major league level pretty much everybody has taken a step backwards except for maybe zach thornton nolan mclean i guess hasn't taken a step backwards but pretty much everyone else has and so jonah tong's right there with them i still think there's some talent there
Speaker 4if the if the mets can can figure it out though i mean i don't think nolan mclean has quite lived up to everybody's wildest dreams for him but he hasn't
Speaker 5he's been good he's obviously good he might finish the season with a sub three or a just because people maybe got a little too excited about him yeah doesn't want they wanted him to be cam schlittler this year he he hasn't been bad certainly no um no but kind of like organizationally there aren't a lot of success stories to tell on the pitching side for the mets this year and that i think more than anything else when you talk about the mets you know i saw like i don't know there was some mlb network thing with john hayman he was talking about like oh the the mets lean on analytics too much and it's like well i don't know dude the brewers lean on analytics a lot you know like i don't know if
Speaker 1that's the explanation the rays kind of feel like they're at the forefront yeah like they're good
Speaker 5every year the dodgers you know like the dodgers this thing we're like oh analytics are ruining these teams like well no and like okay maybe they should have re-signed pete alonzo i don't have a strong opinion on that i don't think it would have changed their season either way but like the biggest thing is that if david stearns isn't going to invest much in pitching they're gonna have to be a really good pitch development team and they looked like that last year and they haven't been that this year they've got to fix that and fixing jonathan would go a long way to uh to answering some of those questions for them
Speaker 1yeah i thought he looked really good in this start his velocity was down across the board it was actually a little chilly here in the new york city area on monday night so perhaps that affected him uh but the fastball 20 inches of ivb in this start six whiffs six of his 13 whiffs so i thought the fastball looked very good for jonathan and really everything played up pretty well so uh first quality start of his career i agree i i am not eager to stream him in his next two starts i think if you're in a deeper league you you can run them out there just because your options probably are not great but uh mostly just interested to see how jonathan finishes out the season very much so uh similar to quinn matthews my player of the night uh want to highlight javier sonoha and we've talked about him you know kind of sparingly here over the past couple of weeks but he's been really good uh since the start of august he had two more hits a triple his ninth his ninth home run two runs three rbi here on monday night 40 games since the start of august he is hitting 347 with six homers 21 runs 28 rbi four steals and ops around 950 his strikeout rate is sub 10 percent during that stretch he does not hit the ball hard at all but he does pull it in the air quite a bit and so i think that is uh helping javier sonoha get away with some of this and he has started 22 straight games he is 54 rostered he is eligible at four different positions second third shortstop outfield eligible we've had a lot of these like eligible in three or four different position players kind of pop up i still think exact geloff is probably at the top of that list but after him i mean sonoha has been really really good and i'm intrigued by the doesn't hit the ball hard but pulls it in the air quite a bit uh skill set skill set that he's showing off right now
Speaker 4yep and makes a ton of contact so he's probably going to hit for average and has so far like he strikes out less than 10 percent of the time that's when i say a ton of contact that's what i'm talking about so you can add him to the pile javier sonoha um who's else is in that pile brooks lee's in that pile and ezekiel duran's in that pile and willie castro when he's healthy is in that pile yep uh they've all been very useful this year i wouldn't say any of them stud sonoha probably i would rank behind all of them except for castro who's injured right now uh but if you need batting average specifically i think he stands out sonoha if he was more like
Speaker 5a 25 steel guy i think the whole profile would make a lot more sense 83rd percentile sprints yeah i wonder if he could get there you know yeah uh but he's only got 11 and 133 games um and so you're really it's really just batting average is all you're gonna get from him um but if you need that down the stretch he's as good a choice as any who's available i don't know
Speaker 1that he profiles we'll see what the marlins do like in the offseason but i'm not sure they view him as a long-term hey just everyday player at this one position he's probably just there i hope not super utility guy that bounces around but i mean if he gets enough plate appearances with that much eligibility he's someone that can help in fantasy and again it's like makes that much contact you know can he pop a 15 15 season with a really good batting average i don't think that's crazy um assuming he can get enough playing time next year and i do like him the rest of this season so if you've been using sonoha stick with it if you need help at any position i think he's a pretty good name to look at i did want to shout out the uh the first game in course field this week we're off to a nice start padre's got it done eight to seven but 15 combined runs in that game fernando tatis hit another home run his 22nd mary machado also hit a home run his 28th and he looks like he's finishing strong last 23 games 267 five homers 16 runs scored three steals the ops is around 850 it was a really really rough start to the second half but basically since mid-august on machado's looked pretty good once again and uh ty france who we talked about a lot as top sleeper hitter this week he's off to a nice start three for five with a double run and an rbi and we've talked a ton about ty france criminally under rostered at 58 on the rocky side of things jake mccarthy two for five with a double triple two rbi and the dude has been a league winner man he was if you took him in a deep league it was probably as one of your last picks or in an auction like i got him in i think the tout wars reserves or it's like a one dollar player of course i dropped him in the first month so i didn't get any of this production but uh probably picked up in a lot of leagues as a free agent 296 15 homers 29 steals 826 ops just great great season here for jake mccarthy cole carrig also one of scott's sleeper hitters he hit his eighth home run in this one but he has been struggling previous 35 games before this just a 203 batting average two homers four steals strikeout rate up around 30 percent scott where are you at on uh cole carrig i know you liked him this week obviously all the games in course field but just i guess evaluating his first season and what you might expect from him moving forward
Speaker 4yeah i i'm still pretty impressed um every rookie season has its ups and downs we've certainly seen those from aj ewing for instance and i think i think this is a similar type of player just with the advantage of his home games at course field there is i i don't think there's there's not huge power cole carrig was a prolific base dealer in the minors and has the speed to be that he hasn't been able to do that he hasn't been able to do that he hasn't been able to do that in in his rookie season just nine steals in about half a season's worth of plate appearances but you know that's some theoretical upside that he could just start running more and if he's more like a 40 steal guy than a 15 to 20 steal guy i think the ceiling for cole carrig and fantasy is really high even as he is though even if you just pace out his rookie numbers uh i i think there's a lot to like here
Speaker 5and it kind of looks like statistically zach netto like less power uh but better contact skills and that kind of like 20 to 25 to 20 to 25 upside i think is there i don't know that i give him quite
Speaker 4that much power and i i wonder if he's gonna he walked more in the minors it's only a it's only a 20 to 20 to 25 upside i think is there i i wonder if he's gonna he walked more in the minors it's only a which isn't terrible but it's not anything impressive either so he might profile a little differently as far as that goes yeah I don't know that I want to put him at Kerrig with as much upside as Netto but I do like him I think he's going to be a good third outfielder for next year like a low end third outfielders where I'm guessing we'll draft Cole Kerrig
Speaker 5needs three more appearances at shortstop to gain eligibility there would be nice to enter next season with some versatility and especially you know a middle infield tag would be nice too yeah although you might just use him at outfield anyway but it'd be nice to have
Speaker 4oh yeah I've made use of it even in some shallow leagues Cole Kerrig you know trying to only start him at home some weeks it makes more sense to slot him in outfield some at shortstop and it's been nice to have that dual eligibility for this year
Speaker 1no clue what the Rockies are going to do with Ezekiel Tovar I mean they gave him an extension it looks completely underwater I know he's a really good defender but man offensively he just has been abysmal this season so very interested to see what they do there and Scott you're right even if you just pace out the numbers for Kerrig over a full season 16 homers 18 steals 86 runs 80 RBI it's pretty good for a rookie season here for Cole Kerrig for those who play in deep dynasty deep daily lineup leagues very niche but Connor Norby has been good with the Rockies he went two for five with two doubles and two RBI and in 30 games with the Rockies a 293 batting average 381 on base three homers 16 runs 14 RBI two steals 856 OPS so I don't know that he's going to play against every right handed pitcher but if you play in a daily lineup league and you just you're on top of it just play him whenever he's in the lineup in Coors Field he's been pretty good again that's
Speaker 5Connor Norby you know this is the kind of thing that used to happen all the time just random guys going to Colorado and revitalizing their career well not really but you know putting up good numbers because of Coors Field and it hasn't really happened a lot the last couple years I'm glad we got some this year I mean I guess Mickey Moniak last year but McCarthy Willie Castro now Connor Norby this is this is what we should be seeing at Coors
Speaker 1Field yeah tell that to my Tyro Estrada shares last year Chris that didn't work out very well but yeah we did we have had a few names pop up the past couple years there was like a Nolan Jones awesome season in there too not that he was like a journeyman but you know he had one great season and then did nothing ever since so yeah shout out to Coors Field and the Rockies before we hit our first break big thanks everyone watching live make sure to hit that like button if you are listening on audio and you enjoy the podcast drop a five star rating and review wherever you listen Apple or Spotify we really do appreciate it let's take a break we'll be back right after this baseball season is in full swing and there's no better place to be than Calchi America's number one prediction market platform Atlanta is currently trading at 7% to win it all meaning a $100 trade pays out over $1,200 with a win on Calchi you're trading against other people in a live market no house no odds makers and as the odds move you can buy in or out anytime throughout the postseason download the Calchi app and use code FAN to get up to $500 in bonus credits when you trade $25 K-A-L-S-H-I Calchi trade on anything 18 plus only restrictions and eligibility requirements apply event contract trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors Calchi products are not available in all jurisdictions prices values and available markets may differ from those mentioned for more information see Calchi.com slash regulatory think about how
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Speaker 1fantasy at baseball today let's run through the news and notes and we have a bunch of Dodgers updates Shohei Otani will hit off a tee on Tuesday his first time doing so since landing on the IL last Friday and he's only got about 12 days left in the season to get right before the postseason so we'll see where things wind up with Shohei Otani when I think about it I think about it I think
Speaker 5he has to be on the IL for 15 days yeah it's treated like a pitcher for that
Speaker 1purpose so he was I think on Friday yeah I think I can only come back with one day left in the season I think it's one
Speaker 5or two yeah yeah so we're not gonna get much of from him either way yeah why do
Speaker 1the Dodgers hate Emmett Sheehan my goodness talked him up as my player of the weekend yesterday I know Scott you had him at the top of your sleeper pitchers and then the Dodgers option Emmett Sheehan back to AAA on Monday he pitched well in the two starts since being back I guess they just really needed the bullpen help and there's a chance that Roky Sasaki returns later this season I just felt like he kind of earned the opportunity to stay in the rotation or even in the bullpen over Justin Robleski who's been pretty bad since coming off the IL but the Dodgers did not agree so that is frustrating
Speaker 4yeah they at least were kind enough to you know to be able to get him back in the game so I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be
Speaker 5interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see
Speaker 4what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be
Speaker 5interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I
Speaker 4think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see what happens but I think it's gonna be interesting to see I mean, the whole core is old.
Speaker 5And then you've got, like, the young guys dotting the periphery.
Speaker 4Well, and aren't there other financial issues, too? Yeah, there's, like, a whole other big thing going on behind the scenes
Speaker 1that's like, wait, are they going to be forced to sell the team and all that kind of stuff?
Speaker 5Yeah, I'm not smart enough to understand that stuff. That gets into, like, insurance, and I barely understand my own insurance.
Speaker 1Jeff Passan put out an hour-long podcast talking to someone who specializes in this exact thing. It's like, I don't even remember what it was called. It was incredibly dry, but it did kind of break things down and kind of explain them in a way that I never even thought was possible. Things that I didn't even know existed when it came to, like, owning a team, I learned listening to that podcast.
Speaker 5I will shout out the Tipping Pitches podcast. They've done a couple of really good series. They've done a couple of good series on, like, kind of debunking various myths around the Dodgers, and they did a follow-up about this. I still don't really understand it, though.
Speaker 1It is confusing, man. So, we'll see. I think what they do in the postseason will shape their offseason, too, because the Dodgers look more vulnerable now than they have in each of the previous two years. They also have, like, a ridiculous pitching staff that can dominate anybody in the postseason. They might just shut everybody out all postseason. Just win every game one zip, right?
Speaker 5I also feel like... We had a stretch like this last year, too, where, oh, the Dodgers are...
Speaker 1Hey, man, you know, they probably should have lost Game 7 of the World Series, so anything can happen in the playoffs. We'll see. Roki Sasaki threw a bullpen on Monday. He is under consideration to start on Thursday, though that is not yet confirmed. Dave Roberts said Edwin Diaz hasn't been good on his rehab assignment and needs to pitch better before the team considers returning him to the active roster. I do enjoy the accountability. I do enjoy the accountability here. Normally, it's a lot of times, like, guys get paid a lot of money. All right, when you're ready, we're just going to throw you back out there. But, hey, we need to see something from Edwin Diaz.
Speaker 5I'm just enjoying this recurring bit where the Dodgers spend a ton of money on a closer, and that closer stinks.
Speaker 1Yeah.
Speaker 5And then the next year, they just spend a bunch of money on a closer, and that guy stinks.
Speaker 1So will they sign David Bednar or Rysel Iglesias' offseason?
Speaker 5I don't think either of those guys are good enough for the Dodgers. What does it say about the Dodgers?
Speaker 1David Bednar's really good, man. I think both are really good. I think both are really good. I think both are really good. All right, but, yeah. They're not Edwin Diaz, or at least we thought coming into the year. And reliever Edgardo Enriquez was placed in the I.L. for the Dodgers. Bobby Miller was recalled. Other non-Dodgers-related news. Aaron Judge is expected to receive Wednesday off this week as part of the plan to ease him back into the lineup. Rafael Devers will officially undergo core muscle surgery on Tuesday. The Giants are expected to provide an official return timetable after the procedure. So, hopefully. Hopefully, we will have more of that. More information on tomorrow's podcast. Pete Fairbanks left with injury in the ninth inning of that game. I know he's dealt with this hand thing. It's been there for years, but it's really been affecting him a lot lately. So, that did not look good. And then the Dodgers proceeded to walk off the Marlins. So, that was a pretty rough scene there for the Marlins bullpen. J.J. Weatherholtz will go through a full pregame workout Tuesday to see if he is ready to return from that wrist injury. Devin Williams threw a live BP Monday. And will face hitters again on Thursday. There is a chance that he returns over the weekend. And that would likely push Kodai Senga back into a setup role. So, it would be bad news for Senga's value. Dansby Swanson will start a rehab assignment at AAA on Tuesday.
Speaker 4Are we sure that's what's going to happen, though?
Speaker 5I'm not sure. I would guess that's what's going to happen, but I'm not certain.
Speaker 1I'd say like 75%. I think Devin Williams is back in the closer role. But that's another one where he's...
Speaker 4He's in trouble of making that Michael Jackson opening. And they got the dancers and everything. I mean, they seemed all in on Senga closing. And he is under contract for another year. Well, Williams is under contract for two more, I believe, so...
Speaker 1And he's making a lot more money than Senga.
Speaker 4But he's been bad two years in a row, Devin Williams.
Speaker 1No, that could be the case, yeah. It's defensible. I just don't know if they're going to do it.
Speaker 4Yeah, I'm not... I don't know either. I'm just not ruling out that they just stick with Senga.
Speaker 1Dansby Swanson will start a rehab assignment at AAA on Tuesday. On Tuesday, Ronaldo Lopez had a rough start. And then afterwards, manager Walt Weiss said that Lopez might go on the IL due to a shoulder injury. Both Royce Lewis and Kalen Culpepper were out of the lineup on Monday with various ailments. Shane Bieber will throw a side session off a mound on Tuesday. He's been out since August 20th with shoulder inflammation. Colt Keith was scratched in the lineup due to left thumb soreness. The Braves are moving AJ Smith-Shawver to the bullpen. Maybe they need to rethink that now that Ronaldo Lopez is hurt and...
Speaker 4Yeah, he did just make a five-inning relief appearance today, so...
Speaker 1There you go. And the D-backs claimed Jesus Sanchez off waivers from the Blue Jays.
Speaker 5Yeah, I know the Braves are starting J.R. Ritchie tomorrow. Is it? So that explains some of the rotation choices.
Speaker 1It's one of these games. Yeah, it's either tomorrow or Wednesday. Oh, Wednesday. Wednesday, you're right. You're right. It was Wednesday. I mean, either way. Hey, welcome back, bud. You got to go face Pete Curl Armstrong, the best player in baseball this year. So it's not great. What do we do? What do we do with these starting pitchers? These six fringe starting pitchers for their last two starts? If we're not using them, hit the road, Jack.
Speaker 4I mean, the easy thing to say is sit for all... Just a blanket sit for all of them. Yeah, but we're not starting them. We're getting rid of them. I mean, it's the sort of thing, like, if you have any doubts, sit them. And if you can't sit them because you don't have anyone better... Okay. Okay, then start them. Like, it's, you know, it's... Okay, go ahead. Let's get into it.
Speaker 1No, I mean, I could just give you the names. All right, segment over. We're moving on. We could just end the segment there, and we could just keep this thing moving. Yeah. Kate Anderson, Troy Melton, Sean Burke, Sandy Alcantara, Jose Soriano, Will Warren.
Speaker 5So Kate Anderson's next start is at Colorado.
Speaker 4Mm-hmm. True. This was supposed to be the good one in the two-star week, and...
Speaker 5I don't know what the final... I don't know what the final start is, but I don't know if it matters. He just hasn't shown enough. My... Yeah. My long-term opinion of Kate Anderson has not really changed. I do think it is interesting to consider what his value for 2027 is going to look like, because if he had just stayed down at AA the whole season, never came up to the majors, and was going to be in the rotation on opening day, he'd be drafted as a top 24 starting pitcher next season. Probably a top 75 overall pick. Given the way people were talking about him, I think that's almost guaranteed. And now, because of, what, six bad starts, he's probably not a top 36 starting pitcher. Maybe not a top 40 starting pitcher. Which, all is to say, I'm much more excited about the prospect of drafting Kate Anderson in 2027 than I was before his debut, because there was no way he was going to... Like... There is no room for you to be... It's like Nolan McClain. Nolan McClain's had a really good season. He's probably going to end up close to 200 strikeouts with an ERA near three. Whip's a little high. Okay, whatever. That's fine. It's not disastrous. It's like 118 or something. And I think people are disappointed in Nolan McClain. And that's not a spot you want to be in, where a pitcher has to be a top 15 starting pitcher, or else you're disappointed in them. And so I think that's where it was leading up for Kate Anderson. And now, there's a lot more room for him to just be pretty good. And I think he'll be pretty good, at least, next year. I think asking this guy to make the leap from AA to the majors in the middle of a playoff race, with all that entails, including having to get used to using a new ball, it was asking a lot for him to immediately be a difference maker. But I don't think the long-term outlook has changed, very much. I still think, eventually, the command and consistency are going to get better. And he's going to be a very good pitcher. He's just not going to be able to get away with just having great stuff, because he doesn't have that. But I think he's going to spend the offseason working with the MLB baseball on his command, and all that stuff. And I think he's going to be pretty good. But probably not going to be ranked as a top 40 starting pitcher after this.
Speaker 1We'll quickly move. We're going to move through the rest of these names here. But Troy Melton had another stinky start. Four walks over two and two-thirds innings. His last six starts, 528 ERA, 163 whip. His start this weekend is at the White Sox. And it looks like his start next week is home against the Pirates. They are really good against righties. Troy Melton, do we just... I feel like he's a bench.
Speaker 4I mean... Possible drop, yeah.
Speaker 5Drop. Bench drop.
Speaker 4Last six starts, 528 ERA, 163 whip, 6.2K per nine. I don't know. I don't see how you trust that guy right now. I think he's talented. I think he'll be somebody who's drafted maybe even ahead of Kate Anderson next year. But I don't know how you use him right now.
Speaker 1Sean Burke looked much better in bulk relief here at the Guardians. Five innings, one unearned run, four strikeouts to two walks. And it looks like he faces the Tigers this weekend. And then next week he gets... This is Sean Burke we're talking about. He gets the Rockies in Chicago.
Speaker 5I'm not dropping him. I'm hanging on to him. He was really bad before this. I recognize that. I think I'd rather use him than Melton or Anderson right now.
Speaker 4I think so too. Clearly he has the best matchup there. I'm hopeful this is the kick in the butt he needed following an opener like this. We've seen this work with shocking frequency. A starting pitcher just seems to be unraveling. They're like, okay, we'll have him start in the second inning instead of the first. It goes really well.
Speaker 5Including with Burke. Remember, the break started with a bulk relief appearance against the Yankees.
Speaker 4Obviously, the rationale why the opener became a thing is that you get a good leverage reliever to face one, two, and three in the batting or the three best hitters. Then, the starting pitcher comes in against lesser hitters in theory, depending how the lineup was set up. But I don't feel like that goes all the way to explaining this phenomenon. It's weird.
Speaker 5Pitchers are weird. Just by nature of the job that they do. It's not just about the physical tools. It's about execution and the mental side. Some guys can unravel. When you mess up their pregame warm-up situation. But for some guys, maybe there is an element of, oh, no, I'm pitching for my job now. There could be something to that, too.
Speaker 1It was so pronounced for Brian Bale this year. I have no idea what to make of that. But it could just come down to being a mental thing where I think as a starter this season, his year rate was over 10. Then, as a reliever, it was below 2. It's just, yeah. Pitchers are very weird. Sandy Alcantara, another subpar outing for him. Four-plus earned runs in four straight during that stretch. 802 ERA, 169 whip. And the strikeouts are way down. The hard contact has been up. He is at the Padres this weekend and home against the Braves next week. It's looked bad for Sandy.
Speaker 4Yeah, I think this was the last hurrah with it being a two-star pitcher. And he was far from a must-start two-star pitcher with the way things had been going for him. Yeah. We had him in the points-league-only section of the two-star pitcher rankings for this week. And the first of the two starts didn't go very well. So the trend continues. And you just can't afford... You can't afford a misstep. I don't want to overstate it. I've gotten some bad starts in some of these leagues where some of these head-to-head leagues even. And I'm still in it because you're not going to have a week where you get nothing but good starts. That's just not how... That's just an unrealistic expectation. So I'm not saying you can't afford a misstep, but obviously you want to... You're making an extra effort to avoid missteps as much as possible. And it seems like Sandy Alcantara with the kind of run he's on, I don't know why you'd use him for one start next week.
Speaker 1Yeah. These last two names, again, I think they're both very fringy. Jose Soriano, he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and then just kind of imploded here. He's not been very good with the blue chase, but his... Final two starts, he's at the Rangers this weekend and then home against the Reds next week. So I really like those matchups. And then Will Warren, he's looked good as of late. His last three starts, it's two earned runs over 18 and two-thirds innings. I still don't really trust him as, you know, a kind of set-it-and-forget-it guy, but at the D-backs this weekend and then home against the Orioles next week, I like the matchups for both of those guys, Will Warren and Jose Soriano. So I could see sticking it out with those two.
Speaker 5I like Soriano a little more than Warren. I don't love either, but Soriano does have great matchups. I don't know. I... Soriano's a tough pitcher to analyze. I think it's going to be interesting to see if he continues to get breakout hype in 2027 or if the kind of fake-out that we got early on this season is going to scare people off. I kind of think he is what he is, but what he is isn't terrible. It's just not great, you know?
Speaker 1Mm-hmm. Feels like a better points league player because you can kind of absorb that bad whip and usually get you a decent amount of volume, but yeah, I mean, the overall whip now in the season for Jose Soriano is 127, which is... Honestly, I thought it would be worse, but still, that's much higher than where it was earlier on in the season. Let's take our final break. When we return, I've got some waiver names. We will take a look into the crystal ball, and we will do all that, and we will do all that,
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Speaker 1Welcome back, Fantasy Baseball today. And a quick run-through on the waiver wire hitters. Josue DePaula started against a lefty. You love to see that. He did go 0 for 2, but he walked, and he picked up his first career. And in four games, he's 2 for 9. He's got a home run, a steal, five walks to zero strikeouts, 51% rostered. Scott, I feel like if DePaula's going to play against both lefties and righties, that number should probably be higher for the final two weeks.
Speaker 4That was a very good sign for his immediate future and certainly his long-term future. He was batting ninth against the lefties, so they were, you know, a little skittish about doing it, but got on base. One of his three plate appearances, so you can't feel too bad about that. Still has yet to strike out.
Speaker 5Five walks to zero strikeouts in his first four games, I think now. Yeah, four games. Pretty good start.
Speaker 1Yeah. AJ Ewing looks like he's heating back up. One for three with a walk in his 10th home run. Last 13 games, 370 batting average, three homers, two steals. Hitting the ball harder. The strikeout rate is way down during that stretch. He is 62% rostered. He has six more games this year. This week, Shane Boz, Chris Bassett, Aaron Nola, maybe Lozardo, who's dealing with the shoulder, Andrew Painter, Christopher Sanchez. So, you know, it's kind of a mix and match of matchups there for AJ Ewing. Who would you guys prefer? Ewing or DePaula? If you're just looking for an outfielder the rest of the way.
Speaker 5I would just go with DePaula, personally. Me too.
Speaker 4Unless he gives me a reason not to. I think the upside is considerably higher and he's tiny, he's ample, obviously, but it looks like he's making good on it. It certainly doesn't look overmatched.
Speaker 1Would you take both of those over Jacob Marcy, who went three for four with his 10th home run? Last 34 games now, 310 batting average, four homers, three steals. The OPS is right around 900. Do you take both DePaula and AJ Ewing over Jacob Marcy?
Speaker 4I mean, honestly, I'd have to look at the matchups, so I've pulled them up right now.
Speaker 1There's no lefties the rest of this week. There's six games next week, two lefties on this game.
Speaker 4The Mets finish out the season against Aaron Nola, Jesus Lizardo, if he's healthy, Andrew Payne during Christopher Sanchez. So, I think I'd take Marcy over AJ Ewing. We have Marcy.
Speaker 1All right, yeah, we spoke about Javier Sanoja earlier on. I do have some Cardinals to highlight here. Thomas Segeci was moved up to the leadoff spot. He went two for four with his fourth stolen face.
Speaker 4Oh, I'm sorry. You know what? That was this week. That was this week. I wasn't looking at next week. That's who the Mets face. That's who the Mets face this week. Well, that might be still enough to...
Speaker 1Yeah, I think a lot of people listening at this point, too, also play in daily lineup leagues, and they're trying to figure out which hitters to use the rest of the week, so...
Speaker 4I can't seem to pull up next week. I think these league settings are not to include the final week, and that's probably why, so I'll have to adjust that. Carry on, carry on. I'll try and figure it out as you continue.
Speaker 1I think I can get to it pretty quickly here. This is AJ Ewing we're talking about, and...
Speaker 4Well, I want to see Marcy's matchups, too.
Speaker 1Okay. All right. Now I have Ewing pulled up. If you want to look up Marcy, Ewing gets DeGrom, McKenzie Gore, Kumar Rocker, Jake Irvin, Jackson Kent, and Cade Cavalli
Speaker 4in the final weeks. Does not sound too bad.
Speaker 1DeGrom and Cavalli aren't great, but they're righties. McKenzie Gore is hit or miss. There's two lefties in the schedule. But the left-right splits are actually pretty even for AJ Ewing so far.
Speaker 4And Cavalli, I'm sorry, but Marcy, Jacob Marcy, he gets, he's got like Gosman, Imanaga, Holmes, Holmes, both Holmes, Clay, and Grant. Yeah, bad Braves pitchers. Yeah, I think that scales still tip in Marcy's favor. So I'm glad we took three minutes to figure that out.
Speaker 1Yeah, let's go. Jacob Marcy, some Cardinals. Thomas DeJayce was moved up to lead off. He went two for four with his fourth stolen base. He has started 14 straight. And during that, he is hitting 400 with three homers, three steals, and OPS around 1,100. He is 24% rostered, second, third, shortstop, and outfield eligible. Has great matchups the rest of this week. Six road games next week. I didn't look at the pitchers, though. And then Leo Bernal, who we've talked a lot about. He stayed hot. Three for four with a double and an RBI. He has started all 13 games since getting called up. If you need a second catcher, he's like the top of the list right now. That's Leo Bernal. Chris Thomas DeJayce, he's kind of doing some things. He's actually hitting the ball really hard during the stretch, too. The average he eats is around 92 miles per hour.
Speaker 5I know we talked a lot about Javier Sanoja earlier, but I kind of think Thomas DeJayce might be a little more interesting. Just because I think there's a little more juice in the bat. He runs a little bit, too. And then moving to the leadoff spot, whether... Whether. Whether Weatherholt's return changes that is a different question. I assume Thomas DeJayce is still going to keep playing there. But I know he was playing a lot of shortstop when Mason Wynn was out. Mason Wynn's back. He's been playing a lot of second base. Yeah, that's true. I assume with how well he's hit, he's just going to keep playing. But... Nolan Gorman could go. Right.
Speaker 4Moves DeJayce to third.
Speaker 5Yeah. Yeah, or... And now I feel like I imagine he's going to play somewhere. But that would be the only question. But I think, on the whole, I think he's a little more interesting than Javier Sanoja.
Speaker 1All right. And then two D-backs here. Jordan Lawler, two for four with a sock and a shoe. It was his fifth home run. His fifth stolen base in just 35 games played this season. He's looked better in September. The home run came off of a righty. He started against a righty in the game as well. He homered off of a righty reliever. So, look, he's still not playing against every righty. It's like every second or third righty he's getting in there. He does play against every lefty. I think the D-backs should just, you know, let Lawler play and see what he can do. But obviously, they're playing for a lot right now. And then Lars Neupahr, three for five with his seventh home run. And he is, leading off against righties. He does not play against lefties. He has been really, really good over his last 21 games hitting the ball very hard during that stretch. And he only has right-handed pitchers the rest of this week. Next week, six road games, three of those in cores. And there's only one lefty on the schedule. So, I think Lars Neupahr lines up really well the rest of the way if you're in a deeper league. Jordan Lawler, I remain intrigued by the skill set, but there's only one lefty left in the 12 games that they play. I just don't know how much he's going to get on the field. Yeah,
Speaker 4he has put together a good slash line and good home run and steals total for as few at-bats as he has. it looks nice on the surface for Lawler. The exit velocities are poor, the strikeout rate is poor, and he's only playing like two-thirds of the time. So, I don't know what to take away from this. I guess it's a step in the right direction. If nothing else, I feel like Lawler will have the inside track on a job next year. But I don't see him as that usable for the rest of this year for all the reasons you point out.
Speaker 1On the waiver wire pitcher side of things, we spoke about Matthews and Jonah Tong. Two other names here, David Peterson pitched well against the Braves. Six-plus innings, one run, seven strikeouts. His last 12 games, he has a three ERA, a 140 whip. One of those things is not like the other. He is at the Reds this weekend, at the Red Sox next week. Dean Kramer pitched well against the Yankees, five and two-thirds, one run, five strikeouts to one walk. He did have 14 whiffs on 94, pitches, and he is at the Angels this weekend, home against the Rangers next week. So I really like those matchups. I really don't like Dean Kramer, but if you're in a deeper league, I mean, the matchups, matchups look good. Poor guy.
Speaker 5I think he's, he's probably a great guy. He's better than he's pitched so far this year.
Speaker 4I don't have a 535 ERA. I don't either. I think he's better than that, but. It sounded mean. I don't like that Dean Kramer.
Speaker 1Yep. Can you see yourself actually using him with those matchups? I mean, it's a deeper play, but.
Speaker 4Get real. No, I can't.
Speaker 1All right, that's a no. I don't think we're doing anything here. Corbin Burns, rough go in his second start, five runs over four and two-thirds, two homers allowed, but he did have 14 whiffs on 75 pitches, so.
Speaker 4Velocity was down even more though. That's true.
Speaker 6It was, so.
Speaker 4Yeah, because Corbin Burns actually lined up for two starts this week, so in a max, max out volume scenario, there was a case for starting him. I think I did in a deeper league just where I'm chasing strikeouts, deeper roto league where I'm chasing strikeouts and wins, but it's not a surprise that it didn't go well and presuming he does make the second start this week, just one start next week, seems unlikely you're going to use him.
Speaker 1All right, let's take a little peek into the 2027 crystal ball and I will throw up a made up ADP number out there for these players. You tell me if you think they will go higher or lower, lower being
Speaker 5smaller, smaller number, better, smaller number.
Speaker 1Yes, lower means they will go inside of that ADP. We're going golf range. Higher means. Yes. So Miguel Vargas had himself backward to me.
Speaker 4Can we say earlier or later?
Speaker 1Roto earlier or later
Speaker 4instead of higher or lower? Sure.
Speaker 1Miguel Vargas had a huge game two for four with a sock in his shoe. His 31st home run, his 19th steal. He is finishing very strong and I have set the number at 36 and a half. Will he go earlier or later?
Speaker 4Earlier. Earlier. I think Chris agrees with me. So he is a confusing terminology.
Speaker 1Top three round player in a 12 team league.
Speaker 4He is somebody I'm struggling to leave out of my top 24. I will kind of want him in those first two rounds since he's third base for next year. You know? So the weakest position arguably. I think I'm going to leave him out of my top 24. Miguel Vargas. But there's no way I'd leave him out of my top 36. So I'm going to say earlier.
Speaker 5And I just I love when you have a breakout like this who is running through the finish line. And he absolutely is doing that. The underlying numbers have been strong pretty much all season. I look it's always possible he's a one year wonder. That happens even when the underlying numbers are strong. But given the pedigree given what he's done this season okay maybe he's not quite as good as he's looked all season. But I think he's clearly a very good player.
Speaker 4And I think the only reason he would be top 36 rather than top 24 is just that guarding against the one hit wonder possibility. I think if this was if like if we could pencil Miguel Vargas in for these same numbers next year absolutely second round pick.
Speaker 1Who do you think goes higher him or Jordan Walker?
Speaker 4Walker.
Speaker 5I think Walker will but that's exactly what I was about to look up because the numbers aren't that much better for Walker. The counting stats are better.
Speaker 4He hits the ball significantly harder. That's the main thing. It's just he's he's more talented than Miguel Vargas.
Speaker 5And like the 30 points of batting average that's not nothing. I don't know if I want to bet on Jordan Walker hitting 281 or anything close to it again. But yeah, but it's I think it'll it will be Walker. It'll be it's closer than you might think though.
Speaker 1All right. Let's move on to Ben Rice who has been better as of late. He's been moved up to the leadoff spot against right-handed pitching. So I think they they're thinking kind of a Kyle Schwarber type leadoff hitter here for Ben Rice two for three with a walk and two RBI last 12 games since moving to leadoff three, 56 three homers 11 runs scored in OPS around a thousand. And I set the number here at 24 and a half earlier or later
Speaker 4earlier. I've got him in my second round. The only reason I am a little hesitant is because he plays first base.
Speaker 1It is the inverse of Miguel Vargas.
Speaker 4Not so much that he's losing catcher. I think Ben Rice would be great at any position. But, it happens to be first base where there's such surplus. But I think Chris and I were actually talking about this before we started recording. I think for as good as Ben Rice has been this year, he's left a little bit of meat on the bone still. We've seen him strike out much less than he has this year. We've seen him hit the ball even harder than he has this year. I'm not sure this is the best case outcome for Ben Rice. And because he's been great two years in a row, obviously with more bats this most recent year, see here, then I, I, I think it's a more durable production than you could say for like Vargas or Jordan Walker.
Speaker 5I think this is going to go down as the best season of Ben Rice's career, and I don't think that's a knock on him. It's an awesome season. He's probably going to get to 40 homers, 100 RBI, maybe 100 runs. It's a great season. I have a really hard time seeing him being better than that, personally. Maybe I'm just a hater.
Speaker 1No, I mean, I thought you brought this up before the podcast. He's facing more lefties this year, and he's been adequate against lefties. Yeah, he's good enough. He's an everyday player, but you factor in playing against lefties and posting a 790 OPS versus a 935 OPS against righties. I think that is going to bring the numbers down a little bit. I think this is kind of just close to my expectation. I think he'll kind of hit 260 to 270 with maybe he's not a 40 home run hitter every year, but in that 30 to 35 home run range, I do think losing Judge this year, I've affected him, so that could be a point in the favor of him, you know, what Scott's saying, getting even better. But will Judge stay healthy next year? I have no idea. You know, he's entering his mid-30s, and he's a big dude.
Speaker 5Bryce is 28, which is not old, but it's to the point where he is what he is, probably. Yeah, he's in his prime right now. I don't think there's growth left in his skill set.
Speaker 4Yeah, I just think we've seen him be even better than this.
Speaker 1All right, let's talk about Gunnar Henderson. He has been a little better as of late, hit his 23rd home run here on Monday, last 31 games, hitting 275 homers, one steal, OPS around 850, but not really hitting the ball hard during that stretch. Obviously, it's been a huge letdown of a season. He was like a one-two turn player entering this year. I set the number at 36 and a half once again. So is he inside of the top three rounds of a 12-team league next year? Earlier or later, 36 and a half, Gunnar Henderson?
Speaker 4I think later.
Speaker 1I'd go out, yeah, later. I thought about making this 48 and a half and putting him in the fourth round, but...
Speaker 4So this is one of those examples where if you had asked me before I had started lining up names, I kind of feel like he deserves to go that early, just given that as young as he is and as spectacularly as he started his career, we usually give players... players like that a pass for a misstep. But there's just so many other good players that need to be in the top three rounds that I don't think you can roll the dice on Gunnar Henderson until at least round four.
Speaker 5I think it's also worth noting, it's not just one misstep. You know, he was better in 2025, but he was not a third-round caliber player in that season. He was the number 46 hitter. Last season. So you include pitchers and there's a pretty significant gap between, like, my view of Gunnar Henderson is we've already given him the benefit of the doubt. Like, he was more like a...
Speaker 4He hit 274 that year. He stole 30 bases. 17 home runs was a little low, but he hit 37 the year before and 28 the year before that. And he's at 22 this year, so...
Speaker 5He was the number 62 player in 2025. He was a good player. But... We still took him as a first-rounder, and we were giving him the benefit of the doubt. I just... I look at it and I say, we've already given him the benefit of the doubt for one of these seasons. At some point...
Speaker 4I think he was really good in 2025. I think the home runs were just kind of oddly low, and I think this year supports the idea that the 17 home runs in 2025 were just oddly low.
Speaker 1Yeah. It didn't feel good, though, in the moment.
Speaker 4No, because you drafted him, like, fifth overall.
Speaker 5Well, 30 bases is the biggest thing. Like, that was what carried... Gunnar Henderson's profile in 2025. And now it's down to 10. It's down to 10, and... He has dropped a lot.
Speaker 1And it's a new coaching staff, too, so that might just be part of their philosophy.
Speaker 5If he stole 10 bases in 2025, that's a disaster season. No, you're right. That's true.
Speaker 4I didn't realize Gunnar Henderson's steals had fallen off that much.
Speaker 5I think he ran a ton in the second half of 2025 to get there, too, if I'm remembering correctly. So I just... Yeah, 20 steals in the second half in 2025. So I just look at it as we've already given him the benefit of the doubt. Now it's... Now it's time for him to... I mean, honestly, even if it's a fifth-round pick, that's giving him the benefit of the doubt. So I think fourth or fifth round is probably right, but I would go later than 36.5 for Gunnar.
Speaker 1Okay. Would you like to guess where he ranks in the player radar right now, both pitchers and hitters combined? So overall, Gunnar Henderson.
Speaker 5I'm going to guess outside of the top 150.
Speaker 1158th overall player... Real good at this. ...is Gunnar Henderson. Kyle Tucker, he did have a big game, and it came on the road. No surprise here. One for two with two walks, a sock and a shoe. His 15th home run, his 11th steal. He has homered in three of his last five games. The updated home road splits. 572 OPS at home, 826 on the road for Kyle Tucker. And similar to Gunnar Henderson, you know, he's a one-two turn player coming into this year. I set this number a lot lower. I just feel like people, given his age, are going to be a lot more scared. 75 and a half. 75 and a half earlier or later for Kyle Tucker. So that's like a top six-round player in a 12-team league.
Speaker 4I'm still inclined to say earlier there. I think so. If it's later, I will have Kyle Tucker in every single league.
Speaker 5Yeah, I mean, I just look at it as, one, you know, we did the What Went Wrong for the first rounders last year, and I wrote about, or this year, and I wrote about that for the newsletter. And I don't know, there are people who, who would argue that Kyle Tucker was overrated before this season. I think those people are lying to themselves. Like, Kyle Tucker had been an unbelievably good fantasy player for like six years before this year. If he was disappointing last season.
Speaker 1He was only bad in the second half last year. Yeah, I think that was the argument against him.
Speaker 5Right. And look, maybe he's just bad now. Like, I'm open to that possibility, but if he's at all good in 2027, the arguments, the arguments for why we thought he was a first rounder in 2026 are still there. Because he's still going to, like, if he's an 800 OPS bat in 2027, which would be below his career norms, he would be a second or third round caliber player in that lineup. So, yeah, discount him a lot. He is going to be 30. Maybe the pressure of playing in LA is too much for him. He's making $64 million a year. That's a lot of pressure. But, yeah, I think, I think Kyle Tucker is one of the more clear bounce back candidates out there.
Speaker 1The last name on this list is the Big Dumpa. Kyle Raleigh, who hit his 22nd home run, three RBI, and he's actually finishing kind of strong here. Last 26 games, 273, 10 homers, 20 runs, 20 RBI, OPS around 1,100 during that span. And I set this hypothetical ADP at 100.5. Earlier or later. Or later. Lower. Later. Later. You think he would go outside the top 100? Yeah.
Speaker 5I might personally rank him inside the top 100. But I think he would go.
Speaker 1Second round player this year in ADP.
Speaker 5Yeah. And look, that upside's not, like the 60 homer season, that was never his upside. Like that was never a reasonable thing you could expect from him again.
Speaker 1That was like his 110th percentile.
Speaker 5That's just like an all-timer season. And that's, you can't expect that. But, like Aaron Judge has never hit 62 homers again, you know? But that doesn't mean he's bad. And I think whatever the theoretical Cal rally upside was beyond or beneath the 60 homer season, I think it's still very much there. And let's not forget, he had, I think, three different oblique injuries this season. And I think the vibes in Seattle have been rotten all season. And basically everybody but Randy or Rosarena has had a bad year. And so, you know, I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing. I think that's a good thing.
Speaker 4I think that's a good thing.
Speaker 5I think that's a good thing.
Speaker 1Cal Raleigh. Somewhere around there. I don't think it'll be too far off from that. All right, let's wrap up here with some leftovers. PCA is gunning for that 40-40. He went 4-5 with a sock and a shoe, plus 4 RBI. He is up to 42 homers and 37 steals. Aaron Judge finally sees one go over the fence. It was his 18th home run of the year, 104.2 exit velocity, 415 feet, and his first home run since coming back from the IL. Eli De La Cruz hit a mammoth home run, his 27th, 114 exit velocity, 457 feet. Literally out of the stadium. I didn't even see it land. It was crazy. Teoscar Hernandez is finishing strong, 1-3 with a sock and a shoe, his 14th home run, his fifth stolen base. Kazuma Okamoto also finishing strong here, his 33rd home run, his last 24 games. He has nine home runs during that stretch. And Corbin Carroll, I want to give a shout-out, hit a sick walk-off two-run home run in that game against the Marlins. Anything to add on mostly really awesome hitters and then Teoscar Hernandez and Okamoto are just kind of in there.
Speaker 5Eli De La Cruz is super, super locked in. I love seeing the quad injury not derailing his season. And yeah, he's an awesome player. I don't really have a lot else to say. Yeah.
Speaker 1I was going to include Okamoto in the ADP thing, and I had him, I think, around 100 as well.
Speaker 5I was thinking more like 120, 140 for him.
Speaker 1It's interesting because as a rookie, 33 home runs, 88 RBI. It's pretty awesome, but it strikes out a lot.
Speaker 5The batting average is tough, and he's already 30, right?
Speaker 1If not, he's pretty close to it.
Speaker 5Yeah, so that'll be tough because a lot of people are going to be doing... Yeah, he's 30. Rankings and drafts based on projections. Projection models are not going to be super thrilled about a 30-year-old who just struck out 30% of the time. So I think the projections are going to be a little mild on Cosimo Okamoto.
Speaker 1Some pitching leftovers. Tarek Skubal was great at the red. Seven shutout innings with nine strikeouts for him. For Gavin Williams, he was solid. He was inefficient with walks here against the White Sox. Five innings, two runs, had three walks, seven strikeouts, still 21 whiffs on 113 pitches. And Reid Detmers, yet another quality start, this one against the Mariners. Six innings, three runs, eight strikeouts, 13 whiffs on 95 pitches. And Scott, I'm sure you have the updated numbers if you want to read.
Speaker 4I actually don't. Okay. Not this time. Because I was going to say for Reid Detmers, this is an example of a bad Reid Detmers start still, a quality start where he gets eight strikeouts.
Speaker 3Yeah.
Speaker 4The three runs he allowed in this one, were as many as his previous six starts combined.
Speaker 1Yeah. His last seven starts, overall 120 ERA, .89 whip, over a strikeout per inning there for Reid Detmers. Anything on Williams or Skubal?
Speaker 5Did you see the bat that Tristan Peters put together against Gavin Williams? It's like 18 pitches, right? 18 pitch walk. Which is why Gavin Williams only got through five innings on 113 pitches.
Speaker 1113 pitches in five innings of baseball.
Speaker 5My goodness. I don't love that. For a guy who throws that hard and has had, I think, multiple elbow issues over the past three seasons. But, well, I mean, there's nothing you can do once an 18 pitch at bat starts, you know? Just got to push on through.
Speaker 1The call to the bullpen for the Blue Jays. Louis Varlin entered with one out in the eighth. A one-run lead, two runners on. He got a strikeout. Then he allowed a game-tying RBI single. He came back out for the ninth, and he did give up another run. It scored on an error. He took a second-blown save, and sixth loss for the Tigers. Kenley Jansen picked up his 20th save of the year. For the Orioles, Rico Garcia got the ninth with a one-run lead. He picked up his ninth save. Andrew Kittredge last pitched on Friday, so he should have been available. He didn't pitch at all. Rico Garcia has the last three saves for the Orioles. I know we just said yesterday that it's kind of murky, but I don't know. I kind of feel like maybe Rico Garcia is... Nope. They will never have a closer.
Speaker 4Orioles don't have a closer and never will again.
Speaker 1All right. You know what? I can respect that analysis. For the Cardinals, Riley O'Brien...
Speaker 4If you want to gamble on somebody, Garcia seems like the lead dog, but I don't have a ton of confidence in it.
Speaker 1I've only been waiting two years since starting to do that for one of you guys to say that a team does not have a closer, and they never will ever again. And we finally got it, so thank you. For the Cardinals, Riley O'Brien got the ninth with a one-run lead, and he picked up his 37th save, though it has been a pretty rough second half here for Riley O'Brien. For the Padres, Mason Miller picked up his 37th save, for the Angels, Ben Joyce picked up his fifth save, and for the Marlins, the gentleman who came in after Pete Fairbanks suffered that injury was Jack Ralston, and unfortunately he gave up a walk-off two-run homer to Corbin Carroll.
Speaker 4Not great. Yeah. I think Calvin Fauché got a couple of saves when Fairbanks was down earlier, but I think it would be an all-hands-on-deck situation. Michael Peterson's been the setup guy.
Speaker 3Yeah.
Speaker 4All year. He didn't get a save when Fairbanks was out last, but it wouldn't surprise me if he got a couple down the stretch.
Speaker 5Jack Ralston of Panorama City, California. I hear there's great views there.
Speaker 1Wow. All right. Well, the lead-up to Pete Fairbanks here on Monday was Calvin Fauché in the sixth, Michael Peterson in the seventh, and Tyler Zuber in the eighth. So I'm pretty sure if Pete Fairbanks goes in the IL, the Marlins do not have a closer, and they never will, ever again. I agree with that. To stream or not to stream on Tuesday, Bailey Ober is home against the Yankees. Griffin Jacks is home against the Athletics. Davis Martin at the Guardians. Drew Anderson is at the Blue Jays. Shane Boz at the Mets. Sean Minaya home against the Orioles. Martin Perez is at the Cubs. Andre Palante home against the Giants. Patrick Sandoval at the Rangers. Ryan Johnson home against the Mariners. And Michael Soroka home against the Marlins.
Speaker 5So I think we said Palante. Soroka's probably only going to throw like 75 pitches, I think he only threw like 58 in his last rehab start, or his most recent... Did he make a start at the Major League level? Soroka? I think it was... It was bulk relief, four in each. Yeah. Okay, but I think it was only like 58 pitches, so I would guess he's going to be handled similar to how Corbin Burns was, and he threw 75, I think. So I think Soroka could give you five good innings, but probably not much more. Probably Griffin Jacks.
Speaker 4You said Palante, right? Yeah. Yeah. Palante ended up being the top sleeper pitcher for the week with all the upheaval.
Speaker 1You might be able to stream any pitcher against the Giants right now. Yeah.
Speaker 5It's Bryce Eldridge, Jung-Hoo Lee, and a bunch of quad A guys, so yeah.
Speaker 1Yeah. That does get put to the test on Wednesday because Matthew Liberatore is going up against the Giants. I don't think I could do that, but that's more commentary on Matthew Liberatore. On Tuesday, I do like Jacks and Palante. Fortune favors the... The brave or the bold. I would throw... It's the bold, Frank. The bold. Sean Mania and... Either side of that one. Ryan Johnson as the bold picks. On Wednesday, we have... Zebby Matthews home against the Yankees. Matthew Liberatore home against the Giants. Kader Montero is at the Blue Jays. Max Scherzer home against the Tigers. Jared Jones, who will be a top 30 starting pitcher next season, home against the Brewers. Top 30. Chris Bassett at the... Mets. J.R. Ritchie is at the Cubs. Christian Javier home against the Royals. Yusei Kikuchi home against the Mariners. And Merrill Kelly home against the Marlins.
Speaker 5I think Jared Jones is the fortune favors the bold... Because he's looked really good the last two starts, but that's a tough matchup with Milwaukee. They're actually... They're crushing the ball lately. They're like suddenly starting to hit for power as a team, which is scary because they don't really do that. So I think he's... He's got to be the top choice. Christian Javier...
Speaker 4Yeah, I would... I would say Christian Javier against the Royals and Yusei Kikuchi against the Mariners over him personally. But we all know I'm a Jared Jones hater apparently. And like, I don't love those two. Like, I'd rather not have to do that. It feels like risking a lot.
Speaker 3Yeah.
Speaker 4But if I'm just following the usual process for this troublesome segment we do every day, then I got Christian Javier one and Yusei Kikuchi.
Speaker 1Scott, the people love this segment. So... And I'm pretty sure... It's troublesome. That's why we do it. Eventually, you will love it too. I think. That's not how that works. It's got to be some Stockholm Syndrome. I'm not a man of the people. Are you kidding me? The Brewers, the number one team in Wobba last 30 days and the last 14 days. So they're pretty awesome. I'm still going to put Jared Jones at the top of the list just because I don't really love anyone else. But if I had to choose others, I would go Javier, Kikuchi, and Merrill Kelly in that order. We are... Going to wrap there. For Scott and Chris, I am Frank. Thanks as always for tuning in to Fantasy Baseball today. Please make sure to follow and leave a five-star rating on Apple or Spotify. And we will be back again tomorrow. Bye-bye!
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