Corbin Burnes (MIL – SP) I’ve always been a big fan of Corbin Burnes . I love his upside as he could definitely be a #1 or #2 in a big-league rotation. He just cannot get over the free passes though, and that’ll potentially keep him from hitting his ceiling. He’s allowed 14 walks in 21 innings for a 6.00 BB/9. He’s only allowed one home run and touts a 3.00 ERA so the walks haven’t killed him… Yet. In his return to the Milwaukee rotation he looked pretty good against the Twins on Tuesday despite the walks and he’s averaging well over a strikeout per inning. His next two starts are projected to come against the Pittsburgh Pirates, who don’t hit right-handers very well. Although the last time I recommended a starting pitcher to use against the Bucs, he got lit up. Thanks DeSclafani.
Cristian Pache (ATL – OF) With Nick Markakis hitting the Injured List due to a possible exposure to COVID-19, the Braves made the move to call up top prospect, Christian Pache. Yes, we have yet another top prospect being called up to partake in this season’s bizarre festivities. Pache came into 2020 as the 12th-ranked prospect by Baseball America. His numbers from the minors a year ago are pretty modest, but he’s incredibly young and still a raw prospect that’s getting better. He turns 22 in November so while we can temper expectations he’s worth a shot based on the “fear of the unknown” regarding this season. He went 1-for-4 in his debut Friday night.
Jake Cronenworth (SD – SS/1B/2B) With Tommy Pham likely done for the rest of the year, the Padres have shifted Jurickson Profar to fill the void in the outfield which has opened the door for Cronenworth to get regular playing time the rest of the season at second base. He only has two home runs on the year, but still has a dozen extra base hits and he’s been collecting doubles almost on a per game basis the past few contests.
Brad Keller (KC – SP) At a certain point, he will cool off. But ride the hot hand while you can. Keller is 3-0 and he hasn’t allowed an earned run in 17.2 innings of work. He doesn’t generate a ton of strikeouts, and he allows nearly four walks per nine innings but the wins and ERA alone are enough to warrant a pickup. It looks as if he’ll be a two-start pitcher next week with both starts coming on the road against the Cardinals and White Sox.
Wilmer Flores (SF – 1B/2B) Flores has done nothing but rake so far this week. From Wednesday-Friday he went 7-for-11 with a home run in each game, ten RBI, and six runs scored. He raised his batting averages to .333 with 19 RBI and 15 runs scored on the years. At this point I’ve stressed how important hot streaks are this season and he’s currently riding one.
Joey Bart (SF – C) The prodigal son returns… Or at least got called up. But Bart is one of the best Catcher prospect in all of baseball. The Giants gave him the call up a couple days and he went 2-for-7 with an RBI and a walk. He did strike out three times, but at the same time he’s looked otherwise solid in a couple games. He hit the bench on Saturday but it looks like he’ll get utilized plenty going forward. He didn’t have a ton of experience at the Double-A level so this is a big jump for him to make. I’m a firm believer otherwise I wouldn’t have drafted him in 60% of my MDA’s.
Elieser Hernandez (MIA – SP) I know most people may flock to pick up Sixto Sánchez , but I’ll give Elieser a shoutout here. He doesn’t pitch terribly deep into games as he hasn’t made it out of the sixth inning in four starts this year. I like pitchers that rack up strikeouts and don’t walk many hitters. And he does both with 11.44 K/9 and 1.37 BB/9. He was due for a bit of a rough outing and he gave up two home runs in his last start against the Nationals. But he racks up strikeouts which really gets my blood flowing. His next start is supposed to come against the Mets on Thursday. However, the Mets have had some members of the organization test positive for COVID-19 so we’ll see if that series goes off without a hitch or if the games are postponed.
Closers Galore – In looking at the ownership numbers across most sites, there are still some closers available in an abundance of fantasy baseball leagues. Trevor Rosenthal ’s ownership rightly went up, but guys like Ryan Pressly , Rowan Wick , and Andrew Miller are available as well. I know Miller took the loss in his last appearance and Kimbrel got a save for the Cubbies on Wednesday, but at the very least Pressly needs to be picked up. Saves are still available on waivers so be sure to cover yourself especially if Pressly or Rosenthal are still available.
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