Esmerlyn Valdez homers again in doubleheader

Walker entered the event as one of the field’s biggest underdogs, but looked cool, calm and collected from the outset, launching 19 home runs on just 27 swings, including 13 in the first round, to cruise into the finals. He then eliminated one of the favorites, Junior Caminero, to earn a showdown with Kyle Schwarber in an electric final round. The 24-year-old burgeoning star went deep on each of his final six swings to become the first Cardinals hitter in franchise history to win the Home Run Derby. It was an unbelievable performance.

Schwarber’s defining characteristic is an uncanny ability to thrive under pressure, somehow always finding his swing and locking in on the biggest stages in baseball. The 33-year-old entered as the overwhelming favorite in his home ballpark and managed to overcome a frosty start to narrowly advance to the semifinals before outlasting former teammate Willson Contreras to reach the final round. He homered on seven of his first 10 swings in the finals and finished with a whopping 11 on 15 swings. It took a herculean effort from Cardinals emerging star Jordan Walker, who homered on each of his final six swings to pull off an incredible comeback.

Harris heads to Triple-A El Paso as extra outfield depth for San Diego. The 27-year-old has hit .233 (10-for-43) with five homers in 52 plate appearances across 17 games between the White Sox and Astros this season.

Cholowsky receives a $10.35 million signing bonus, which represents a roughly $1 million under-slot deal, as the top-overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft. The 21-year-old was universally regarded as the most polished collegiate shortstop in at least a decade with a real chance to be above average both at the plate and in the field. From a fantasy standpoint, he projects as a strong contributor in the power department with enough hit tool projection to envision a respectable batting average. He won’t help at all in the stolen base department, which caps his realistic upside. Still, he’s a phenomenal prospect with a chance to bolster Chicago’s rapidly improving young nucleus as one one of their franchise cornerstones.

Barnes has been removed from Los Angeles’ 40-man roster after surrendering seven runs over seven innings during a bulk relief appearance back on July 1. The 30-year-old has allowed 11 runs over 12 innings in the big leagues this season.

Raquet heads back to the minors after allowing three runs over 3 2/3 innings across four appearances for the Orioles. The 30-year-old lefty has made six relief appearances in the big leagues over the last two years.

Misiorowski has made the leap from hard-throwing phenom to top-of-the-rotation force within the last few months, posting a microscopic 1.62 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 167/27 K/BB ratio across 111 innings over 18 first-half starts. The 24-year-old flame-thrower won’t reach free agency until 2032, but with more teams prioritizing long-term extensions with their top young players, it feels a bit surprising that there haven’t even been preliminary talks yet. Misiorowski is slated to resume throwing this week after being scratched from his final first-half outing due to fatigue. It doesn’t appear to be a serious concern, but fantasy managers should continue monitoring his status coming out of the All-Star break.

Bride has gotten into 214 games in the big leagues between three different organizations since 2022. He was in Rangers camp as a non-roster invitee this spring. The 30-year-old has been cut loose after batting .271/.389/.418 with nine homers and eight steals in 357 plate appearances over 80 games for Triple-A Round Rock. He should be able to latch on elsewhere as organizational depth.

Ragans underwent a less invasive surgical operation to repair his UCL than a full Tommy John ligament replacement or even an internal brace procedure. Basically, the surgeon was able to repair his existing ligament with sutures. The exact nature of the procedure was unknown until he actually had the operation done earlier this month. The positive news is that it wasn’t his third career Tommy John surgery, but he’s still facing a lengthy rehabilitation process. There’s a chance he’s back in Kansas City’s rotation sometime around midseason in 2027.

Acuña played five innings in right field during his first rehab contest. The 28-year-old fantasy superstar appears on track to return to Atlanta’s lineup following the All-Star break. He’s been brought along slowly in his recovery from a left hamstring issue that has forced him to the injured list on a pair of occasions since early May. He’ll get in a handful of additional rehab contests in the Florida Coast League before his next steps come into focus.