Kansas City 3 – Toronto 2
W: Luke Hochevar (4-6) L: Ricky Romero (5-6) S: Joakim Soria (8)
SB: Jeff Francoeur (7)
CS: Mike Aviles (2)
- If you have space on your bench, you need to stow away Aaron Crow. Joakim Soria loaded the bases before getting out of the jam to earn the save but if you've watched anything he's done over the last three weeks he appears to be a shadow of his former self. Conversely, if you're a Soria owner I'd sell now even if you get 80 cents on the dollar.
- The big news of the day out of the Royals' camp was the demotion of Mike Aviles and more importantly the promotion of top prospect Mike Moustakas. He's at least worth a bench spot in standard leagues to see if he can carry over his recent hot streak at Triple-A.
- It's so hard to say "buy" on Adam Lind at this point but it's obvious that the hot streak of Jose Bautista has led to Lind being in the driver's seat in so many at-bats. Last night they intentionally loaded the bases and watched as Lind hit a grand slam. Today Lind went 3-for-4 to raise his average to .329. Needless to say, I think he outdoes his 2009 season this year.
- Interesting line from Mike McCoy today, 0-for-1 with four walks. He hasn't done bad the last three games and while I doubt this is sustainable keep an eye on him.
Detroit 4 – Seattle 1
W: Justin Verlander (7-3) L: Doug Fister (3-7) S: Jose Valverde (16)
HR: Brennan Boesch (8)
SB: Greg Halman (1)
- If these teams played 10 times, I'd be shocked if the Tigers didn't win at least eight with Justin Verlander on the mound opposing Doug Fister.
- Alex Avila is enjoying a breakout season in case you're late to the party. Avila had two triples which isn't an everyday occurrence at this position.
- Golden Sombrero (shower in my book) goes to Miguel Olivo with four Ks. In a daily league I picked him up and plugged him in since Matt Wieters wasn't playing today. Big mistake.
- Take note of Mike Carp in the deeper league/AL-only realm. He was torching the minors arguably as any person with 19 home runs, 58 RBI and a 1.078 OPS.
- Just when it seemed like he was slumping, Brennan Boesch has been tearing the cover off the ball in June. He now has three homes runs and a 1.204 OPS over eight June games. Not coincidentally the Tigers have gone 6-2 over that stretch.
Arizona 2- Pittsburgh 0
W: Micah Owings (2-0) L: Chris Resop (2-2) S: David Hernandez (2)
HR: Chris Young (12)
SB: Xavier Paul (7)
- Josh Collmenter and Jeff Karstens both didn't figure into the decision yet they combined for 12 scoreless innings.
- Xavier Paul is an interesting add as the Pirates appear to be ready to give him regular playing time. He's shown he can swipe a bag or two.
- Andrew McCutchen went 1-for-3 and now has hit safely in every game in June (eight games) and has a .500 batting average.
Atlanta 3 – Florida 2
W: Jair Jurrjens (8-2) L: Chris Volsad (2-6) S: Jonny Venters (2)
HR: Mike Stanton (14)
CS: Chipper Jones (1, no this isn't a typo, guessing a missed sign)
- The Marlins dropped their eighth straight which is surprising given the upside of this team. The loss of Josh Johnson hasn't helped and hopefully more innocent instructors won't be canned in the upcoming days.
- Jonny Venters threw a clean inning for his second save and lowered his ERA to 0.47. In any type of mixed league where you need WHIP/ERA help, he's worth a look.
- Beware Mike Stanton. I'd be shocked if healthy he doesn't surpass 35 homers this year.
Chicago 9 – Oakland 4
W: Mark Buehrle (6-4) L: Trevor Cahill (6-4)
HR: Adam Dunn (6), Paul Konerko (15), Hideki Matsui (4)
CS: Coco Crisp (6), Alex Rios (4)
- The window to buy Adam Dunn low could be closing. He clouted a HR after taking one for the team in his first at-bat. Paul Konerko is a monster; I so regret having him on zero of my teams.
- I'm starting to think something isn't right with Trevor Cahill. He's lost his last four decisions and the A's have lost his last six starts. Over his last four starts (22.1 innings) he's given up 18 earned runs (7.25 ERA). He's had some tough matchups but the 15:14 K:BB ratio over that time is not good to say the least.
New York 4 – Milwaukee 1
W: Jonathon Niese (5-5) L: Yovani Gallardo (8-3) S: Francisco Rodriguez (18)
SB: Justin Turner (4), Daniel Murphy (3), Angel Pagan (9)
- Yovani Gallardo was terrible tonight giving up 10 hits and allowing four runs over four innings. The truth is he wasn't that bad as nine of the ten hits were singles. Consider this a hiccup in the road to a great season for him.
- Prince Fielder didn't homer (shame on him) but went 2-for-3 with a double and his 55th RBI. Coming into the game he had a 1.608 OPS over seven June games with six homers and 12 RBI. I think he's earning himself a handsome contract this offseason. Too bad my Yankees can't play him at shortstop…
St. Louis 9 – Houston 4
W: Lance Lynn (1-1) L: J.A. Happ (3-8)
HR: Lance Berkman (15, for the second day in a row), Ryan Theriot (1)
SB: Tyler Greene (8)
CS: Michael Bourn (3)
- Houston was dismal as all seven of their hits were singles. Lynn was good enough to earn the win throwing five innings of one-run ball. His bullpen which consisted of four relievers with sub-2.40 ERAs (thanks Dave Duncan) threw four scoreless innings allowing only one run.
- I have zero stake in him yet I'd love to see more of Tyler Greene. He has to be better at the plate than most of the other infield options.
Minnesota 5 – Texas 4
W: Jim Hoey (1-2) L: Mark Lowe (1-1)
HR: Josh Hamilton (4), Nelson Cruz (15), Michael Cuddyer (8), Delmon Young (2)
CS: Nelson Cruz (2)
- Shockingly there were four homers in Target Field and while I can grasp that concept from the Rangers, it's a little harder to grasp from the Twins.
- Derek Holland didn't figure into the decision but despite giving up two homers he struck out 10 and walked only one.
- Holland's counter-part, Nick Blackburn should have gotten the win but the mishaps of the defense accounted for two of the four runs he gave up.
- If the Rangers have a weakness, it's their bullpen. Not many in the pen have any type of elite numbers and I wonder if Heath Bell makes for a nice fit here. Just my speculation.
- Denard Span landed on the seven-day DL with a concussion.
Colorado 9 – Los Angeles 7
W: Rafael Betancourt (2-0) L: Scott Elbert (0-1) S: Houston Street (18)
HR: Matt Kemp (18)
- Matt Kemp kept up his torrid hitting streak, missing the cycle by a single. He's now gone 16-for-36 (.444) with six homers and over 17 RBI over his last nine games.
- The two starters – Clayton Kershaw and Juan Nicasio – combined to allow 10 earned runs in only 11 innings of work.
- I was a big believer in Erick Young Jr., who was tearing up the minors before being called up. He finally took his first walk last night so maybe he'll be a tad more patient going forward. Coming into the game he had a 9:0 K:BB ratio over 32 at-bats.
San Diego 7 – Washington 3
W: Aaron Harang (7-2) L: Livan Hernandez (3-8)
HR: Chase Headley (2), Wilson Ramos (5)
SB: Rick Ankiel (7), Jayson Werth (8)
CS: Chris Denorfia (4), Rick Ankiel (2)
- Aaron Harang has shown he loves Petco, considering his 3.28 ERA in the pitcher-friendly confines. On the road it's a different story as he has a 4.84 ERA.
- Anthony Rizzo made his long waited debut going 1-for-2 with a triple and two walks. There is no reason he shouldn't get regular playing time going forward.
- Chase Headley has now hit safely in 17 of his last 19 games, raising his batting average from .254 to a respectable .281. The two homers are disappointing but the seven steals are a nice consolation. If he gets his power numbers up, he's worth looking at in most standard formats.
Cincinnati 3 – San Francisco 0
Johnny Cueto (3-2) L: Madison Bumgarner (2-8) S: Francisco Cordero (12)
CS: Brandon Phillips (2), Andres Torres (1)
- The two starting pitchers were dazzling, combining for a 15:2 K:BB ratio over 14 innings. Bumgarner continues to impress, allowing only one run over seven innings.
- Very quietly, Fancisco Cordero not only has 12 saves but has a tidy 1.48 ERA. Nothing in his numbers suggests this will last and now is the perfect time to sell-high if you don't need saves. His .175 BABIP is much higher than his career mark of .298 and his 96.4|PERCENT| strand rate is unsustainable. One stat that is helping him is his 2.37 BB/9 rate, down over two from last season.
Boston 8 – New York 3
W: Josh Beckett (5-2) L: C.C. Sabathia (7-4)
HR: Curtis Granderson (18)
SB: Jacoby Ellsbury (24), Derek Jeter (6)
CS: Curtis Granderson (4)
- After a lengthy rain delay pushing back the start of the game for a few hours, Beckett once again cruised through seven innings. He settled down after giving up a two-run shot to Curtis Granderson and struck out six while walking only two.
- Jorge Posada went 2-for-4; maybe he'll turn things around, maybe he won't. I'd give that a 50-50 chance either way but he's the type of player I'd gamble on in a two-catcher league if you're behind and need to take some chances.
- Joba Chamberlain is headed towards Tommy John surgery. Look for the Yankees to be in the market for a reliever.
- If you're redrafting today, how high would you take Jacoby Ellsbury? He's shown no signs of slowing down and is the poster boy for why you shouldn't devalue a young player coming off an injury-riddled season.
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