The injury-plagued Yankees starting rotation received a much-needed youth infusion with the return of electric righty Domingo German. The 26-year-old struck out six batters over six innings of one-run ball in a win over the Mets in his first start after missing nearly a month with a left hip flexor strain. He generated 13 swinging strikes and was also extremely efficient, needing only 80 pitches to complete six frames. A leadoff homer by Jeff McNeil represented the lone tally against him in his stellar return performance against their crosstown rivals. With the victory, he improved to 10-2 with a 3.67 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 83/19 K/BB ratio across 13 starts. There is some risk that German’s first-half success isn’t sustainable based on some of his underlying metrics, most notably a 4.04 FIP and a .258 BABIP, which is well below league-average. However, he misses plenty of bats and has made considerable strides in the control department this year. While it would make sense for the Yankees to restrict or at least scale back his workload after the All-Star break, he profiles as an elite fantasy option on a per-start basis.
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La Stella Sidelined, Angels Summon Thaiss
It’s hard not to be romantic about baseball. It’s a grinding, six-month marathon. It’s a game which naturally lends itself to deep dives on compelling narratives, dissecting strange outlier performances and trends, discussions about player growth and decline and occasionally it offers up a genuine feel-good story. In a week filled with tragedy after the sudden passing of Tyler Skaggs, watching his former teammate Tommy La Stella head to the 2019 MLB All-Star game, after an out-of-nowhere breakout first-half performance in which he hit .300/.353/.495 with a career-high 16 home runs in 78 games, was exactly the type of feel-good moment we all needed. Sadly, it won’t happen now. The 30-year-old infielder was placed on the 10-day injured list with a fractured right tibia on Wednesday. He was originally diagnosed with a right shin contusion after fouling a ball hard into his right leg in the sixth inning of Tuesday night’s game against the Rangers. However, that was only the initial diagnosis as a CT scan revealed the fracture. Not only will the injury prevent La Stella from playing in his first All-Star game, but it has the potential to sideline him for at least the next 8-to-10 weeks, which would keep him out until at least September.
It’s a devastating loss for the Angels and fantasy owners alike, but it also opens the door for one of their top hitting prospects, Matt Thaiss, who was officially called up to the major leagues on Wednesday. The 24-year-old former first-round selection was hitting .274/.390/.477 with 63 runs scored, 14 homers, 49 RBI and one stolen base in 79 games at Triple-A Salt Lake City. More importantly, he showcased elite plate skills during that span, walking nearly as many times (59) as he struck out (64) in 372 plate appearances. It’s unclear how he fits into the Angels logjam at first base and designated hitter, and how the playing time will shake out. Yet, he profiles as an immediate three-category fantasy asset, capable of providing over-the-fence pop and counting stats without sacrificing batting average in traditional formats. He’s exponentially more valuable in on-base formats. Thaiss has some major appeal in AL-only fantasy leagues and could evolve into a mixed-league asset if he garners everyday at-bats in Los Angeles. [[ad:athena]]
Treinen Struggles, Hendriks Shines
There’s a potential closer battle brewing in Oakland. Yet, as far as closer controversies go, this one hasn’t generated a ton of noise. At least not yet. The juxtaposition between the respective performances of Blake Treinen and Liam Hendriks was quite striking in the Athletics’ loss to the Twins in extra innings on Wednesday. Let’s start with Treinen, who simply didn’t look sharp in his return from the 10-day injured list after missing missing a little under two weeks with a minor shoulder strain. He was summoned to work the 12th inning of a tie ballgame, failed to keep the Twins off the scoreboard and was saddled with a loss after allowing one run on a hit and a pair of walks. He struck out Jonathan Schoop to open the frame before issuing back-to-back walks to Byron Buxton and Max Kepler, respectively, and giving up a go-ahead RBI single to Mitch Garver.
Meanwhile, Hendriks reeled off a pair of scoreless innings earlier in the contest, allowing only one hit while striking out a pair of batters. The 30-year-old righty has filled in admirably for Treinen in recent weeks and hasn’t given up an earned run since June 5, a span of 13 appearances. He owns a microscopic 1.29 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 60/17 K/BB ratio across 48 2/3 innings of work. Relievers are extremely volatile fantasy assets, prone to wild swings in performance, but right now Hendriks is in a groove. Athletics manager Bob Melvin told reporters on Wednesday that Treinen will remain their closer after returning from the injured list, but he also added that the Athletics may put him into some lower leverage situations moving forward. It would be foolish to dismiss Treinen, who ranked among the elite closers in fantasy baseball a season ago. However, he’s really struggled this season, posting a 4.29 ERA over 31 appearances, and may need some time to get back to his previous form. Until that happens, fantasy owners should expect Hendriks to continue to garner the majority of the save chances in Oakland.
AL Quick Hits: Xander Bogaerts, Brandon Lowe and Jose Berrios were added to the American League All-Star team on Wednesday, replacing Hunter Pence, Tommy La Stella and Jake Odorizzi, respectively. … Justin Upton exited Wednesday’s game against the Rangers with tightness in his left quadricep. … Twins placed Jake Odorizzi on the 10-day injured list with a blister on his right middle finger. … Brandon Lowe (leg) was held out of the Rays’ starting lineup on Wednesday night against the Orioles. He was diagnosed with a contusion after fouling a ball hard off his right leg on Tuesday night. X-rays turned up negative and he is considered day-to-day. … Mike Trout homered twice and drove in four runs in the Angels’ victory over the Rangers. … Jaime Barria recorded a career-high eight strikeouts over five innings to pick up the win in that one. … Mike Clevinger whiffed nine batters over six shutout innings in a win over the Royals. … Whit Merrifield went 2-for-4 with his 12th stolen base of the season in the losing effort. … Alex Bregman reached base safely in three of four plate appearances and launched his 23rd round-tripper of the season to lead the Astros past the Rockies. … Roberto Osuna notched his 19th save in that contest. … Renato Nunez went 2-for-5 with a three-run homer to propel the Orioles to a win over the Rays. … Mike Brosseau went 2-for-4 and smacked his first major-league home run in that one. … Jose Alvarado melted down in spectacular fashion, giving up six runs without recording an out in that loss. … Chris Sale coughed up five runs over 5 2/3 innings in a loss to the Blue Jays. … Freddy Galvis reached base safely four times and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. walloped his 15th long ball in the victory. … Didi Gregorius and Gio Urshela left the yard in the Yankees win over the Mets. … Yoan Moncada and Ryan Cordell homered twice in the second game of a twin-billing to lead the White Sox to a sweep of a day-night doubleheader against the Tigers. … Nicholas Castellanos went 4-for-6 with a homer, a triple and three RBI in the losing effort. … Mitch Garver went 2-for-6 with a pair of RBI to lead the Twins to a win over the Athletics in extra innings. … Ramon Laureano went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer and a stolen base in the loss. … Jesus Luzardo (shoulder) exited a rehab start Tuesday night at Triple-A Las Vegas and has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 lat strain. … Kevin Kiermaier was scratched from Wednesday’s lineup against the Orioles do to a sore left wrist. … Marcus Stroman underwent treatment on his left chest on Wednesday and could miss his start on Thursday against the Red Sox. … Rays placed Ji-Man Choi on the 10-day injured list with a left ankle strain. … JaCoby Jones was removed from the first half of Wednesday’s doubleheader against the White Sox due to back spasms. … Jose Urquidy will start again for the Astros on Sunday against the Angels. ..: Sean Manaea (shoulder) will throw another bullpen session on Friday. … White Sox released Yonder Alonso.
NL Quick Hits: Nationals placed Max Scherzer on the paternity list. He will still make his scheduled start on Saturday. … Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters on Wednesday that it’s possible Corey Seager (hamstring) could be activated before the All-Star break. … Dinelson Lamet will start for the Padres against the Dodgers on Thursday. … Gregory Polanco (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis on Thursday. … Scooter Gennett left Wednesday’s game against the Brewers due to left groin tightness. … Cody Bellinger launched a pair of solo home runs, including a walk-off blast in the 10th inning, to power the Dodgers past the Diamondbacks. … Greg Holland imploded for the second straight appearance, allowing one run on two hits while recording just one out, in a blown save against the Dodgers. … Stephen Strasburg struck out a season-high 14 batters over 7 1/3 scoreless frames in a win over the Marlins. … Sean Doolittle notched his 19th save in that victory. … Josh Bell clubbed his 26th long ball in the Pirates eventual walk-off victory over the Cubs. … Victor Caratini homered twice and Javier Baez went 3-for-5 with a solo homer, his 22nd round-tripper of the season, in the losing effort. … Craig Kimbrel gave up two runs in the ninth to blow the save in that contest. … Yasiel Puig crushed his 19th homer to lead the Reds past the Brewers. … Sonny Gray whiffed a season-high 12 batters over eight shutout innings in that one. … Austin Riley slugged a three-run homer, his 15th long ball of the season, in the Braves’ win over the Phillies … Bryce Harper clubbed his 16th dinger in the loss. … Charlie Blackmon went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk in the Rockies’ loss to the Astros. … Evan Longoria clobbered a two-run to lead the Giants to a win over the Padres. … Fernando Tatis Jr. and Hunter Renfroe went deep in the loss … Will Smith notched his 22nd save in that contest. … Tommy Edman delivered a pinch-hit go-ahead three-run homer off Mariners closer Roenis Elias to lift the Cardinals past the Mariners. … The charges against Odubel Herrera, including simple assault and knowingly causing bodily injury, were dropped Wednesday morning in a New Jersey court. … Diamondbacks placed Taylor Clark on the 10-day injured list with left back inflammation and recalled Kevin Cron from Triple-A Reno. … Mets manager Mickey Callaway told reporters on Wednesday that Jed Lowrie (side) is not close to a rehab assignment. … Brewers sent Hernan Perez outright to Triple-A San Antonio.
