Major League Baseball

Covered by Will Thompson

Charlie Morton, RHP BAL (MLB)

6.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 4 BB, 7 K, 2 HR allowed

In a seller’s market at the trade deadline, Morton is a guy I expect to garner a lot of interest at the trade deadline. There’s not a ton of starting pitching out there to trade for, so teams that miss out on Keller, Gallen, or Kelly could pivot to Morton, whose numbers for the season are ugly but have been much better lately. Over his last 10 starts, Morton has a 3.81 ERA and a 3.90 FIP. Teams shouldn’t expect a ton from the 41-year-old, but he’s a good veteran to throw at the back of the rotation if needed and the asking price would not be very high. 

💣💣Steven Kwan, LF CLE (MLB)

2-for-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB

A double dong day for who? That’s right, for Steven Kwan of all people, who registered the first double dong day of his career. Kwan has taken a small step back from his career year last year, but he’s still an excellent player with his ability to get on-base and elite LF defense. 

Joey Loperfido, LF TOR (MLB)

2-for-5, HR, R, RBI, 2 K

Loperfido has cut down his strikeouts in Triple-A and the big leagues significantly this season and it’s making a huge impact. Since getting called up on July 6, Loperfido has provided quite the spark to this Blue Jays lineup, hitting .324/.361/.529 with 2 HR and just a 19.4% K rate. It’s a small sample yes, but he struck out at a 36% clip in 81 big league games last season. I don’t think Loperfido will sustain this kind of performance and he definitely sacrificed power to make more contact, but he’s good enough to stick in the big league outfield this time around. 

Ernie Clement, 2B TOR (MLB)

2-for-4, HR, R, 4 RBI

Clement had a great day in the Jays win over the Tigers, although it surprisingly came against a RH starter. The Blue Jays stars have played well, but they’ve gotten a ton out of their platoon and other role guys like Clement to get them where they are. 

‼️Eric Lauer, LHP TOR (MLB)

8.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K

Lauer is one of the best stories in baseball this season, going from pitching in Triple-A and Korea last season to dominating as a big league starter in 2025. He now has a 2.61 ERA and a 3.32 FIP in 69 IP and he’s having that success despite not having great stuff. The lefty leans on his fastball and cutter and while neither light up the radar gun, his command has been excellent this year and has made the fastball extremely effective. Toronto’s starting pitching has been a strength this year and Lauer’s emergence has played a huge role. 

Manny Machado, 3B SD (MLB)

3-for-5, HR, R, 2 RBI, K

It’s flown under the radar a bit, but Machado is having another great season for the Padres. He’s got a 137 wRC+ now and is doing so with a career high barrel rate of 13.9% and the highest hard-hit rate (51.5%) and lowest K rate (17.3%) since 2021. 

Yu Darvish, RHP SD (MLB)

3.1 IP, 8 H, 8 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 2 HR allowed

I think most people figured it would take some time for Yu Darvish to get back in the swing of things after missing the first three months of the season with an elbow injury, but the 38-year-old has allowed 17 ER in his first 16.2 IP. His velocity has been fine, but he’s totally gone away from the four-seamer and gone with a majority sinker, sweeper, curveball mix that has not had much success. Darvish hasn’t been able to generate any whiffs so far either and while he won’t be this bad all year, he is 38 years old. The Padres are contending for a World Series but they don’t exactly have the pitching depth to potentially replace Darvish. They’ll give the veteran time to figure it out. 

Brendan Donovan, 2B STL (MLB)

3-for-5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI

Donovan was the star of yesterday’s wild win for the Cardinals and had the swing of the game against Darvish, launching a three-run homer off a hanging sweeper. Donovan is a really good player who doesn’t get the national recognition he deserves outside of St. Louis. He’s a perfect leadoff hitter for your lineup who rarely whiffs or strikes out. 

Nick Kurtz, 1B SAC (MLB)

3-for-5, 2 2B, RBI

Nick Kurtz is legitimately turning into a star quicker than I think anyone anticipated. Since coming back over a month ago, Kurtz is hitting .317/.391/.741 with a 470 wOBA and a 204 wRC+. He’s still striking out over 30% of the time, but he’s doing so much damage when he makes contact that it doesn’t matter. 

‼️Luis Severino, RHP SAC (MLB)

7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 8 K

Severino has had a rough season, but whenever he gets out of Sacramento he actually has thrown the ball really well. He shut down the Astros in Houston yesterday and now has a 3.03 ERA in 10 road starts this season compared to a 6.68 ERA in 12 home starts. Does that mean in fantasy you start him when he’s on the road and bench him at home? That sounds ridiculous normally, but given the whole Sacramento mound mess it might not be. 

🍔🍟Julio Rodriguez, CF SEA (MLB)

2-for-5, HR, R, RBI, K, SB

J-Rod had a strong month of June, then slumped for the first 10 days of July but is back now. Over his last 10 games, Rodriguez has hit .350 with 4 HR and 5 SB. When he’s right, you’re going to see a lot of combo meals. Being more consistent will be the key here, we know how amazing the raw tools are that JRod has. 

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Triple-A 

Covered by Rhys White

💣💣💣 Spencer Jones, CF NYY (Triple-A)

3-for-5, 3 HR, 3 R, 4 RBI 

Spencer "MFing" Jones, a throng of dongs is exactly what will get the wishy-washy Yankee fans going! He changes his batting stance more than some people change their underwear, but that is fine, I guess, because he has been raking. I am excited to see if the Yankees use him in a trade, now that they have traded for Ryan McMahon, which is an interesting choice.

Hector Rodriguez, LF CLE (Triple-A)

2-for-3, 2B, R, RBI, BB, SB 

A long-time favorite of mine, Hrod is out here showing off the contact and some speed. Hrod has an aggressive approach that I think will get him in trouble when he faces major league pitchers, but that is a problem for future us to deal with.

Nolan McLean, RHP NYM (Triple-A)

7.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R (2 ER), 6 K 

Nolan McLean is throwing a kick-change? Oh, baby, it is over for the rest of the league. I like McLean more than Tong because he hits all the traditional scouty stuff I like: better pitches, durable frame, former two-way guy. The command taking a step forward has been a surprise, but that happens with some of these arms when they focus solely on pitching. The stuff is hellacious. Part of me wonders if the Mets will bullpen him to close out the season because he could give you an inning or two right now; then you can give him a soft landing to the majors.