Fantasy Baseball July 11 Round Up: Wilmer Flores Has Huge Game
It is already Week 14 of the major league baseball season! This is the last full week of baseball before the All-Star break so before taking a look ahead at your fantasy baseball lineups for tonight and the rest of the week we first need to look back at the top MLB news and headlines from yesterday’s games. Highlights include The Red Sox showing the Yankees that they still have spunk, the Dodgers sweeping the Cubs series for the first time ever and Wilmer Flores and Austin Riley having big days at the plate. Do not forget to check out our updated June fantasy baseball player rankings before setting your lineups this week plus the latest MLB injury report, fantasy baseball player spotlight series, and players trending up and down in the fantasy baseball stock watch. Before we start another week let’s take a look back at the top performances and key injuries from Sunday as well as a look ahead to Monday’s slate...
FANTASY BASEBALL NEWS
ANOTHER RED SOX WIN
The Red Sox proved last night that they have plenty of fight left in them and that the year certainly is not lost. The great rivalry continued as the Red Sox depleted squad managed to take both weekend games in come-from-behind fashion to split this midsummer series with the top team in baseball. They scored the final nine runs in yesterday’s series finale to win 11-6 as Trevor Story had a huge game with two hits and three knocks.
DODGERS MAKE HISTORY IS SERIES SWEEP
Yesterdays’ crazy 11-9 comeback win over the Cubs capped the Dodgers’ first 10-1 homestand since 1980. It was a grueling 20-games-in-20-days, but the squad went 16-4 and extended their division lead that was just one game two weeks ago. The Dodgers have now swept the season series against the Cubs, and it is the first time in franchise history. Freddie Freeman led the way in yesterday’s win with four hits to add to his .304/.381/.494 season slash.
Austin Riley PROPELS BRAVES
The Braves inched even closer to the first place Mets yesterday as Austin Riley played hero in their 4-3 come from behind win. He tied the game with a 410-foot home run in the eighth inning and won it in the 12th when his single brought home Dansby Swanson. Over his last seven games, Riley is 13-for-29 (.448) with three homers as the Braves have now won their last four series.
Robinson Canó IS BACK…AGAIN
With the Braves thin on left-handed hitting and Ozzie Albies still out until at least mid-August they acquired veteran Robinson Canó from the Padres for cash considerations. After being released by the Mets in May, Cano signed with the Padres but was released shortly thereafter after refusing to report to Triple-A. After testing his options on the open market Cano re-signed with the Padres and hit well in Las Vegas over the last few weeks slashing .333/.375/.479.
The Braves see something in Cano, and this is a player that fantasy managers should keep an eye on after the team struck gold with struggling veterans Eddie Rosario, Joc Pederson, Jorge Soler and Adam Duvall last year.
ORIOLES KEEP ON CRUISING
The Orioles have risen from the ashes and become a real live baseball team. They won their eight straight games and are now only one game below .500 (43-44) and 2.5 games out of the American League Wild Card spot. They are 29-20 since May 19 which was only two days before the heralded arrival of the #1 prospect in baseball- Adley Rutschman.
YANKEES LEAD ALL STAR SELECTIONS
The Yankees, who lead MLB with a 61-25 record, will be represented by at least six players in next week’s Midsummer Classic at Dodger Stadium. It is the first time since 2011 that the Yankees have six or more All-Stars as they will be represented by starters Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton as well as subs Nestor Cortes, Clay Holmes, Gerrit Cole and Jose Trevino.
PIRATES SMASH BREW CREW
The Pirates may be in last place, but they looked like a contender yesterday as the big bats strutted their stuff against the Brewers. They smashed four home runs against the NL Central leaders and won consecutive games in Milwaukee for the first time since September 2018 and won a series there for just the second time since the 2019 season. Ke’Bryan Hayes hit his fourth bomb of the year and then was followed by Michael Chavis (10), Oneil Cruz (4), and Dan Vogelbach (12).
FLORES HAS A DAY
The Giants Wilmer Flores had the seventh double bomb game of his career as he finished yesterday’s 12-0 win over the Padres going 4-for-6 with 4 RBIs. Flores has been an important part of the Giants lineup as he plays all over the field- first base, second base, third base as well as DH; making him rosterable in many season-long formats.
INJURY NEWS
Yordan Alvarez HURTING
Astros star Yordan Alvarez is dealing with hand soreness and was placed on the 10-day Injured List. He will get extra time off with the All-Star break coming up and should be ready to return for the Astros series against Yankees. Alvarez is amid an MLP-like season with a .306//.405/.653 slash with an elite 1.058 OPS and 26 HR/60 RBI.
MORE RAYS HEADED TO INJURED LIST
With star shortstop Wander Franco already headed to the IL, the Rays announced yesterday that outfielder Kevin Kiermaier (left hip) and pitcher Jeffrey Springs (lower leg) would be following along. It was bad enough to lose a starting outfielder but losing Springs will be a blow to the Rays rotation. He is in the middle of a breakout season with a 2.53 ERA/1.05 WHIP and 70 strikeouts over 64 innings.
WHIT INJURY COULD MEAN GARCIA DEBUT
Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield left yesterday’s game against the Guardians with a sore toe. X-rays were negative but he will be undergoing an MRI. There are reports that the Royals are promoting shortstop Maikel Garcia from Double-A and that timing could be related to the Merrifield injury. A corresponding move will need to be made to fit Garcia into the active roster (Whit to the IL?) unless he is joining Kansas City as the extra 27th man for today’s doubleheader against the Tigers. Garcia, the cousin of longtime former Royal Alcides Escobar, is the 15th best prospect in the Royals farm system per Baseball America. This is his first season at Double-A but he is sashing a solid .283/.362/.395.
MONDAY’S PRIZE PICKS BEST BETS
Brayan Bello OVER 4.5 Strikeouts
Brayan Bello gets a chance to redeem himself after a poor MLB debut against this same Rays team. He allowed four runs over four innings with two strikeouts in that game but should fare better today. This is a strikeout pitcher that racked up 114 punch outs in 85 Triple-A innings and tonight will be facing a Rays lineup that strike out 24.7% of the time against right-handed pitching.
Padres/Rockies OVER 0.5 1st Inning Runs
Coors Field is back on the slate and the Rockies are running out right-handed José Ureña. This is a pitcher with a 5.31xFIP that gives up 48% hard contact and only strikes out 13% of his batters dating back to the start of 2021. He is even worse this season alone with a 8.9% strikeout rate, 12.9% walk rate and 6.18xERA. The Padres will be starting left-hander Sean Manaea, not a bad pitcher, but this is Coors and the Rockies hit much better at home and have been good against LHP this season. Take the Under here and thank me later.
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Player News
Trevor Rogers (knee) allowed four runs on four hits in 1 2/3 innings for Triple-A Norfolk on Tuesday.
He also walked three and struck out two on the day. The Orioles could certainly use some reinforcements in their rotation, and getting Rogers back and healthy could be the answer to their problems. Unfortunately, Rogers hasn’t been good since coming to Baltimore and does not appear close to 100 percent right now.
Phillies RHP prospect Mick Abel allowed one run on four hits in six innings with six strikeouts and two walks for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Abel is off to a great start in Triple-A, registering a 2.88 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and 36:13 K:BB ratio in 34 1/3 innings. After a rough 2024 season, it’s nice to see Abel demonstrate the skill that previously made him one of the top pitching prospects in baseball. With Ranger Suarez back from his injury, there is less of a chance for Abel to get a shot with the Phillies anytime soon.
Phillies INF prospect Otto Kemp went 3-for-5 with a walk, two home runs, two runs scored, and six RBI for Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday.
Kemp is on fire right now. The 25-year-old is hitting .327 with a 1.139 OPS with nine home runs and four steals. Kemp can play 2B, 3B, LF, and 1B and is playing his way onto the radar in Philadelphia.
Rays RHP prospect Ian Seymour threw six shutout innings for Triple-A Durham on Tuesday, allowing three hits and striking out three.
Seymour didn’t walk a batter and now has a 2.01 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 31 1/3 innings with a 38:8 K:BB ratio. He is one of the top pitching prospects in Tampa Bay’s organization but appears to be behind Joe Boyle for a promotion, should a spot open up in the Rays’ rotation.
Twins OF prospect Carson McCusker is off to a hot start at Triple-A and putting himself on the map for a call-up, according to The Athletic’s Aaron Gleeman.
McCusker is a massive 6'8" and 250-pound outfielder who was originally drafted by the Brewers in 2017 but wound up playing in the Independent Leagues, where the Twins signed him in 2023. As you would expect from his size, there is plenty of power in his bat and also plenty and swing-and-miss. So far this season, he’s batting .329 with seven homers and a 1.069 OPS in 23 games at Triple-A St. Paul and hit 26 homers with an .870 OPS in 145 games against Double-A and Triple-A pitching the past two seasons. Given all the injuries to the Twins’ lineup, it might be worth a look to see if he can hit for that kind of power at the big league level; although, he would likely be on a small side platoon with guys like Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner.
Nationals RHP prospect Cade Cavalli (elbow) has moved his rehab to Triple-A Rochester.
The 26-year-old had Tommy John surgery in 2023 and pitched just 8 1/3 innings last year in his return to the mound. So far this season, he has allowed three runs on six hits in 11 innings across three minor league innings while striking out nine and walking four. Cavalli had once been the top pitching prospect in the organization, and while there’s rust to shake off, he could be an asset for the Nationals in the second half of the season if he regains his previous form.