New York Yankees
The Yankees clinched a playoff spot last night, but they have not yet locked up home-field advantage, so they still have something to play for. They are facing off against Alex Cobb , who is making his first start after a quick DL stint, so we don’t know if he will be on any type of pitch limit today. He comes in giving up a .330 wOBA to lefties and a .359 wOBA to righties, with 1.15 HR/9 to lefties and 1.70 HR/9 to righties. The Yankees come in with the highest implied team total of the day set at 5.86, so we are expecting runs in this favorable hitter’s park. Aaron Judge .292 ISO. Luke Voit .288 ISO. Didi Gregorius .240. Miguel Andujar .221 ISO. Giancarlo Stanton .202 ISO.
Kansas City Royals
The Royals are up against Daniel Norris , who is giving up a .334 wOBA to lefties and a .329 wOBA to righties. He is also giving up 1.67 HR/9 to righties, which is where you want to load up on some hitters. This is a positive park shift for the Royals since they are away from home and now in Detroit. The Royals bats aren’t too expensive, so you should be able to fit them into your lineup with relative ease. Salvador Pérez .190 ISO. Ryan O’Hearn .182 ISO. Raul Mondesi .177 ISO. Whit Merrifield .168 ISO.
Houston Astros
The Astros are up against Tyler Skaggs , who has given up 17 earned runs in last 9.2 innings pitched. Those are some seriously bad numbers and if a pitcher isn’t on form right now, you want to be stacking against him while you can. The Astros come in with an implied total set at 4.89, which is third highest on the slate, so we should be in for some runs today. They are on the more expensive end of options today, but with the savings some of the pitchers bring, or a stack like the Royals, you should be able to play them in a solid lineup. Tyler White .288 ISO. Alex Bregman .273 ISO. Evan Gattis .253 ISO. Josh Reddick .244 ISO. George Springer .178 ISO.
Player News
Max Meyer allowed five hits and three earned runs with two walks and eight strikeouts over six innings in a loss to the Diamondbacks on Wednesday.
Meyer was excellent until faltering a bit the third time around the Diamondbacks’ lineup. He’d forced 10 swings-and-misses with strikeouts over the first three innings and looked unstoppable. His slider command was perfect as it darted just below the strike zone time and time again to leave his opponents spinning. He may have leaned on that pitch a bit too much though, throwing it more than twice as much as any other pitch in his arsenal. Arizona jumped ahead after Meyer threw Corbin Carroll two straight sliders in the bottom of the zone. The first he fouled off before lacing a single on the next one. Pavin Smith homered in the next inning when similarly Meyer threw him consecutive changeups with the second getting too much of the plate. Nevertheless, it was a solid start overall for Meyer who continues to grow as a pitcher. He’s lined up for a juicy two-start week against the Reds and Mariners next week.
Marlins optioned 3B Graham Pauley to Triple-A Jacksonville.
Pauley has been shipped back to the minors following Wednesday’s game against the Diamondbacks to make room for Connor Norby (oblique) to be activated from the injured list ahead of Thursday’s series finale at loanDepot park.
Tyler O’Neill is day-to-day with neck soreness.
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde didn’t seem too concerned regarding the issue after O’Neill was scratched from Wednesday’s lineup. The 29-year-old slugging corner outfielder could wind up missing Thursday’s series finale against Cleveland, but he doesn’t appear to be in jeopardy of missing a too much time.
Jackson Holliday went 1-for-4 with a home run, four RBI, and a run scored in a 9-1 win over the Guardians on Wednesday.
This one had to feel good for Holliday who was mired in an 0-for-17 slump entering play today. He smacked a back-door sweeper from Gavin Williams that sat right in the middle of the zone and sent it into the Orioles’ bullpen. He’s remained a starter – albeit in a strict lefty, righty platoon – since Gunnar Henderson returned from the injured list and towering, opposite field blasts like this one are a good reminder as to how high his ceiling is at the plate.
Dean Kremer allowed four hits and one earned run with one walk and two strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings in a win over the Guardians on Wednesday.
This was as classic a Dean Kremer start as can be. He mixed his five pitches relatively evenly, stayed around the edges of the zone, and while he didn’t miss many bats, he barely gave up any hard contact either. His splitter was his primary pitch, but it wasn’t very effective as he practically never threw it in the zone and the Guardians rarely chased it either. So, he wound up in many deep counts without much damage being done against him. He’s lined up for a two-start week coming up against the Nationals and Tigers.
Gabriel Arias went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk on Wednesday against the Orioles.
That makes it three homers in five games for Arias who has cemented himself as an every day player for the Guardians in the early going this season. He’s also 8-for-17 over that same five-game span with and doing well to access his tremendous raw power despite ample swing-and-miss in his game. His long ball in this one was tattooed at 108.9 mph and traveled an estimated 424 feet. He’s been a fun player to track so far.