Hitters ----
Play of the Day: Jose Altuve-- Only $1 separates Jose Altuve, and Brian Dozier tonight on Y!, and while both are in play, Altuve receives the slight nod over Dozier tonight. Altuve faces Ricky Nolasco tonight, who has allowed a homer, and at least three runs, in each of his last three starts. His 34 home runs allowed this season is third in the majors. Altuve is 7-for-14, with a homer off Nolasco.
Top Play: Trea Turner-- Not against paying up at first base for the hot hitting Hoskins, but Turner is holding his own as well lately. Turner has also had at least two hits in four of his last seven games, which includes two homers, and two stolen bases. Turner is 4-for-8, with a home run off of Folty.
Value Play: Matt Kemp -- The Braves have taken the first two games of their series vs. Washington, and are in another solid spot tonight if looking to go contrarian on the short slate. Kemp hit a grand slam last night, his fourth homer in his last 10 games, placing him one shy of 20 for the year. Kemp is 5-for-15, with two homers off of Roark. Pair him with Freeman, Markakis, and Ozzie in a four-pack stack.
GPP Play: Brian McCann-- Houston's bats have some great BvP numbers vs. Nolasco over their careers, and that very much includes Brian McCann. He is 22-for-66, with nine home runs off of him. Why in the GPP spot? Salvador Perez, at only $7, is 18-for-38, with a homer off of Tomlin, and has been batting in the middle of the Royals lineup.
Pitchers ----
Play of the Day: Brad Peacock-- Pitching is wide-open for tonight’s shorter slate. Peacock is the current favorite for the Astros, as they try to win the series vs. the Angels. He won’t pitch deep into games, but joins Berrios with the highest strikeout upside tonight. Peacock has at least eight strikeouts in four of his last five starts. .jpg)
Top Play: Josh Tomlin-- The Indians outscored the Royals 20-0 in their three-game sweep of them early on during their 21-game winning streak. Tomlin is 2-0, with a 2.53 ERA this month after returning from a DL stint. He is 1-1, with a 1.93 ERA in three starts vs. the Royals.
Pivot Play: Masahiro Tanaka-- Tanaka is a heavy favorite at home tonight vs. Baltimore after allowing seven runs over four innings in his last start. He has pitched well before then though, going 4-2, with a 3.65 ERA over his past nine starts. He hasn’t looked great vs the O’s this year, giving up 10 runs over 10.2 innings.
GPP Play: Tanner Roark-- While the Braves may be a high-risk GPP stack tonight, their opposing pitcher in Roark makes for a GPP play as well, just don’t do both in your lineups. Roark has improved his ERA each month this year, going from a 8.31 June ERA, to 3.48 in August, and now a 2.77 September ERA. Roark is 5-2, with a 2.79 ERA over 17 games vs. the Braves.
Player News
Daulton Varsho picked up three hits, three RBI and a homer in a win over the Angels on Thursday.
Varsho has only played in seven games this year, but they’ve been seven good ones. He’s homered three times already, and his slugging percentage is a remarkable — and entirely unsustainable — .727 over 22 at-bats. Varsho has been a mediocre offensive player in his two seasons with the Blue Jays, but it’s possible at the age of 28 he’s having a breakout campaign. Far from a guarantee, but possible.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in a loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday.
Ward, 31, gave the Angels a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Bassitt in the first inning. He’s now gone deep in two of his last three games, and it ‘improves’ his slash to .181/.224/.391. Ward has been one of the most hot/cold players players in the sport over the last few years, so fantasy managers who can afford to make some roster moves may want to look at Ward while the going is good.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. picked up three hits and scored twice in an 8-5 win over the Angels on Thursday.
Guerrero also drew a walk. It gives the first baseman multiple hits in back-to-back games, and it’s the third time in May that he’s reached that mark. That’s helped raise his average from .268 to .295, and the only thing fantasy managers can be disappointed with is his .432 slugging percentage. That number should continue to climb as the season unfolds, but Vladdy Jr. has had some inconsistent seasons when it comes to power production.
Chad Green picked up his first save of 2025 with a scoreless ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Green got the save after Jeff Hoffman worked in back-to-back games — and struggled — in the first two contests against the Angels. He struck out two and looked the part while needing just nine pitches to get through the inning. Hoffman should remain the closer, but Green is on his tail if the struggles were to continue.
Chris Bassitt allowed five runs — four earned — while working six-plus innings against the Angels on Thursday while picking up a win.
Bassitt allowed three runs over the first two innings on a pair of homers, but settled down over his next four frames. He came out to work the seventh, but ended up being charged for two more runs after leaving the contest. The 36-year-old veteran has forged a 3.35 ERA and outstanding 49/8 K/BB ratio over the first quarter of the season, but this wasn’t him at his best. He’ll get the Rays next week if the rotation order stays the same for Toronto.
José Soriano allowed three runs over five innings while not factoring in the decision Thursday against the Blue Jays.
Soriano left with a 4-3 lead, but it was erased quickly after his departure. The 26-year-old was not exactly dominant in his outing with eight hits allowed and four free passes, but he did strike out six to help balance things out a smidgen. Soriano takes an even ERA of 4.00 into a scheduled start against the Padres in San Diego on Tuesday. There should be better options for that one.