Dansby Swanson on fire highlights the Week That Was and Will Be. 

Player Blurbs

Dansby Swanson:  Dansby Swanson raked again Sunday going 2-5 with 2 runs, 2 RBI and a dinger.  He has been on fire to say the least!  On the year, Swanson already has 24 dingers, 70 RBI and a very solid .265 average (.265 is indeed very solid in this day and age).  However, if you look at the last 14 games, Swanson has 23 hits and 20 RBI.  That is a lot more than solid, that is smoking hot.  That Swanson continues to get better and better should come as no surprise. After all, this guy was not the first overall pick for nothing. 

For the Week That Will Be: Ride the hot streak, especially with Miami and Baltimore on the schedule this week. 

Yonny Hernandez:  Yonny Hernandez went 2-3 with 2 runs and an RBI Sunday hitting leadoff for the Rangers. For those in need of speed (and who isn’t), take notice.  Texas is giving Yonny a chance to play and the kid can run.  He had 21 swipes in just 192 AB in AAA this year after stealing 33 bags in 425 AB in the minors in 2019.  Oh, and the fact that Yonny is hitting .290 thus far does not hurt his case to keep playing.  

For the Week That Will Be:  Just pencil him in and watch him run. 

Jesús Aguilar:  Jesús Aguilar just keeps on raking.  Honestly, I had no idea he was having this good of a season until I jumped in this week.  On Sunday Jesus drove in his 84th run (yes, you read that correctly), with three hits and his 22nd dinger.  So, here is the list of players in the NL with more RBI than Aguilar: [blank space].  Yep, none. Indeed, in the entire major leagues, Aguilar trails only Devers, Guerrero, Abreu and Ohtani.  Wow.   

For the Week That Will Be:   No real debate here. 

Luke Voit:  Luke Voit went 3-5 with two runs, two RBI and a dinger on Sunday. Since returning from the IL, Voit had been stone cold.  I have a feeling this game will be a big turnaround for him.  Yes, Anthony Rizzo will return and play 1B but I think Voit will DH a lot.  The Yankees need to score runs and there really is no reason to protect Giancarlo Stanton any more.  So, I think there is a good chance Stanton goes out to the outfield in order to let Voit play. 

For the Week That Will Be:  Given that Rizzo is not yet back, there is no reason to think Voit will do anything but man 1B most of this week.  Send him up.

Josh Rojas:  Josh Rojas raked on Sunday going 3-4 with two runs, an RBI and his 11th dinger.  Since coming off the IL this week, Rojas is 10-21 with four runs and four RBI.  The kid can flat out hit.  In 2019 in the minors, Rojas hit well over .300, stole 33 bags and added 23 dingers – all in just 416 AB.  Yep, the kid can hit. 

For the Week That Will Be:  Lock and load.  Surely there is room at either 2b, SS or OF in your lineup for this kind of production.

What to do if your FAAB bids did not go as planned:

If you did not get the pitchers you want, consider these middle relievers on teams with weak or unsettled closing situations or potential openings in the rotation:  Nestor Cortes and his run of four solid starts; or Tyler Gilbert (I mean, he did throw a no-no in his first MLB start this week!)

If you are in the mood to gamble, how about Tyler Wade.  With Gleyber Torres out, Wade is playing every day, hitting and doing some running to boot. 

And Last But Not Least

The moment you have been waiting for (just play along) -- Schultz says: “Schultz is aghast and horrorstricken that the Royals returned Edward Olivares to the minor leagues shortly after Schultz touted his skills in last week’s column. Perhaps in a less roto-minded column, we could have a discussion as to whether this is a wise or prudent idea. However, this is not the place for such a diatribe. 

For this week, Schultz is cowed by his lack of foresight and poor roto-judgment.  Consequently, Schultz is giving himself a time out and putting himself in the corner. Schultz will be more verbose next week.”

Response:  I think it is the Royals, not Schultz guilty of poor foresight.  Just my view.