MLB Player News

Bitsko is one of the biggest wild cards of the entire draft, in large part because he reclassified from the 2021 draft and did not pitch in front of scouts outside of a bullpen workout in March. He’s also a right-hander who can reportedly get his fastball into the high 90s, and he will also throw a hammer of a curveball that he can locate for strikes or bury down in the zone when ahead in the count. Bitsko repeats his delivery exceptionally well, and should have no issues as a starter. The risk here comes from just not being seen much due to the reclassification and the pandemic, but Bitsko’s upside is readily apparent.

Torres injured himself on a swing on Monday and will head back to the injured list after spending a month there earlier in the season with the same injury. Given that he reinjured himself, we’d expect Torres to be sidelined at least a month this time as well, if not more, to ensure he heals fully. Hao-Yu Lee will be the primary starting second baseman in the meantime.

It will be the 25-year-old’s first MLB start this season. He has pitched to a 3.65 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, and 77/30 K/BB ratio in 69 innings for Triple-A Sacramento this season. With both Trevor McDonald and Tyler Mahle struggling of late, a good start by Whisenhunt could put him in the mix for a rotation spot.

This is Torres’ second straight game on the bench after he left Monday’s game with pain in his left side following a swing. The Tigers have an off day on Thursday, so they likely want to give their second baseman at least one more day to rest before deciding if they need to play him on the injured list. Torres has already missed a month with an oblique strain in his left side and was hitting .341/.413/.585 in 11 games in June with two home runs, eight runs scored, and seven RBI. Another stint on the injured list would be a bummer. Hao-Yu Lee will continue to start at second base and bat eighth on Wednesday.

Garcia had two plate appearances on Tuesday before being removed with hand soreness. While the Royals have said it was precautionary, it’s fair to wonder if the 26-year-old has been playing through something. Over his last 30 games, he’s slashing .263/.317/.333 with no home runs, 15 RBI, and just one steal. He has a nearly 40 percent hard-hit rate over that span, but just an 80 wRC+. With Garcia not running like he did the last three seasons and also struggling to produce much power, he’s not giving fantasy managers much this year. Nick Loftin will start at third base and bat eighth on Wednesday.

With left-hander Nick Lodolo on the mound, the Mets will turn to Mark Vientos at first base and bat him fifth. Zack Short will also play shortstop and bat ninth, with Bo Bichette moving to third base and Brett Baty getting the day off. Young had been hitting well for the Mets, but he’s slashing just .147/.194/.265 over his last 10 games. He’s not the answer at first base.

Santana was removed from the game in the sixth inning, but the Diamondbacks could have very well just decided they didn’t want their 40-year-old first baseman to withstand any more abuse. Santana has been on the IL since April 7th with a groin injury and then suffered an oblique strain in early May while beginning a rehab assignment. In the meantime, Pavin Smith has returned to the Diamondbacks lineup, so it remains to be seen what happens to Santana’s playing time when he does return.

Meyers has been on the bench for the last two days as Brice Matthews has started four straight games for the Astros, but Matthews will head to the bench on Wednesday. Since June 1st, Meyers is hitting .189/.250/.297 in 40 plate appearances, which has opened the door for Matthews to take more playing time. Neither one of them has been a great fantasy option, but Matthews does have more power and speed upside.

Taylor has gone 9-for-31 (.355) with one home run, six runs scored, eight RBI, and three steals in nine games since being recalled from Triple-A, so the Padres will reward him by moving him up in the order. Those stats are great, and Taylor can certainly fly, but he also had just a 27 percent hard-hit rate in Triple-A and a league-average 85 percent zone contact rate. He’s hitting the ball on the ground 60 percent of the time and has the speed to beat out infield singles, the batting average and stolen bases could be there, but he’s a career .250/.313/.327 hitter in 118 MLB plate appearances, so don’t expect him to keep producing at this level.

The Astros are going with Tatsuya Imai, Spencer Arrighetti, and Kai-Wei Teng for the Guardians series this weekend. There was some question surrounding what the Astros would do with their rotation when Hunter Brown came off the injured list, and it appears, for now, that Burrows may be the odd man out. With a 5.86 ERA through 14 starts, he doesn’t need to be held in most league types.

Mahle threw just 33 of his 63 pitches for strikes and got three whiffs on 20 swings. His velocity was fine, sitting 93.2 mph on his four-seamer, which is better than we saw in recent MLB starts. However, given how inefficient he was, it would be shocking if the Giants brought him back later this week. We’d expect him to make at least one more start at Triple-A, which should allow Trevor McDonald to take another turn in the rotation.