Although the headline’s misleading, Rafael Devers will miss time due to inflammation to his left shoulder, not a demotion. Devers seemed to be rounding into form of late after getting a tip from teammate J.D. Martínez . Over his previous 12 games before heading to the disabled list, Devers hit .289 (13-for-45) with three doubles and two home runs. Devers also produced a .475 slugging his prior 31 games with five home runs and 20 RBI. Boston’s playing well so they can overcome losing his bat in the short term, but if this injury persists, they could enter the third base trade market.

Those looking for a cheap replacement for Devers should kick the tires on Maikel Franco . He’s hitting .368 his last 22 games with six doubles, four home runs, 13 RBI, seven walks and a 1.059 on-base plus slugging percentage in them. Not too shabby.

 

Night Moves

Arizona placed both Shelby Miller (right elbow inflammation) and T.J. McFarland (strained neck) on the disabled list promoting Matt Koch and Silvino Bracho to fill their spots on the active roster.

Logan Morrison landed on the disabled list with a left hip impingement. Perhaps this has affected his power production this season.

Houston reported Carlos Correa would not return until the second half and will need a rehab assignment before rejoining the team. The latest trade rumor for the Astros centers on Wilson Ramos as a potential target.

Wade Miley will be activated and start tonight with a chance Brent Suter takes the mound on Saturday as well.

Angels starter Garrett Richards has opted for surgery, he can be dropped in redraft leagues and most keeper leagues as a result.

 

Name Game

Player A: Last 365 Days - 132 Runs, 44 Home Runs, 108 RBI, 23 SB; .296/.368/.567, 9.3 BB%, 14.8 K%, 148 wRC+

Player B: Last 365 Days - 108 Runs, 39 Home Runs, 100 RBI, 26 SB; .296/.377/.588, 11.1 BB%, 10.5 K%, 154 wRC+

 

That Just Happened

Another come from behind win for the A’s in Houston. Oakland’s now scored 69 runs in the eighth inning of games this year with three more this afternoon against a struggling Astros bullpen. Mark Canha finished 2-for-4 with two RBI and raised his average in July to .306 in 36 at-bats.

Lou Trivino racked up his fourth save striking out two in a clean ninth inning. Trivino’s won four games and saved four over his last 15 outings (19 innings) with a 0.47 ERA and 23 strikeouts. Deeper league players should not ignore his production.

As for the Houston bullpen, Ken Giles has been optioned to Triple-A after swearing at his manager upon his removal from a game on Tuesday night. Brad Peacock ’s allowed at least a run in each of his last four games with a 10.13 ERA and 1.69 WHIP in July. And today, Chris Devenski took the loss and blown save, retiring one hitter while giving up four hits leading to three earned runs. Devenski’s pitched in five games this month lasting three innings with an ERA of 15 and WHIP of three.

Collin McHugh stood to win the game before Devenski’s implosion. McHugh worked 1.2 clean innings with two strikeouts. He’s whiffed 59 in 45.2 innings this season in 31 games with a 0.99 ERA and 0.72 WHIP. Perhaps he should see more high leverage innings?

While many fawn over Kyle Tucker’s promotion, Tony Kemp keeps producing with a home run and a stolen base this afternoon. Kemp’s hit safely in 11 of his last 14 starts (15-for-41) with six runs, two doubles, two home runs, six RBI and four stolen bases. If searching for cheap steals, target this Kemp, not the All Star from Los Angeles.

Sort of a pitcher’s duel in Coors Field today with two southpaws facing off. Robbie Ray and Kyle Freeland each lasted 5.1 innings on their way to no-decisions. Ray struck out eight against three walks allowing two earned runs. He threw 102 pitches generating 14 swinging strikes with 16 called. Freeland yielded six hits, one earned run and walked one with four strikeouts. He produced 10 swinging strikes with 19 called. Over his last six games, Freeland’s 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA.

It’s been an up and down season for Wade Davis in Colorado but the did fire a clean outing with a strikeout in a non-save appearance. Davis has converted five straight saves and only given up one earned run his last eight games (1.13 ERA).

Trevor Story launched his 18th home run and remains hot with a .377 average (46-for-122) since June eighth and has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games.

 

Burning Questions

Who gets the best of a playoff rematch between the Yankees and Indians with Luis Severino facing off with Corey Kluber in Cleveland?

Will facing the Orioles on the road get Nick Pivetta back on track?

Can J.A. Happ save his trade stock with a strong start in Boston?

Blake Snell statement game in Minnesota after being snubbed by his peers?

Will James Paxton moving up to avoid Coors and facing the Angels be good news for his owners?

Check back in the morning for Fantasy Alarm’s Round Up to find out and stay ahead of your competition. As for the players:

Statistical Credits:

MLB.com

Fangraphs.com

BaseballSavant.com