Fantasy Baseball Today - Royals Break Out, Lance Lynn Struggles & Hitters Slowing Down (7/12 Fantasy Baseball Podcast)

Episode Date: July 12, 2022

If you support the show, please nominate Fantasy Baseball Today for The People's Choice Podcast Awards in the "Sports" Category: https://www.podcastawards.com/app/signup/ Vinnie Pasquantino week has begun (1:12)! Bobby Witt Jr. has been great recently. ... Let's check in on Riley Greene, Nolan Jones and CJ Abrams (8:35). ... Is Ramon Laureano a must-add (14:40)? ... What's going on with Lance Lynn (20:10)? ... Drop Alex Cobb and Brayan Bello (22:38)? ... Do we add Brad and/or Mitch Keller (26:55)? ... News and notes (31:41): Jacob deGrom will make another rehab start Thursday. ... What do we do with Daulton Varsho, Alek Thomas and Taylor Ward (39:30)? ... We wrap up with leftovers, bullpens and streamers (51:47). Fantasy Baseball Today' is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Castbox and wherever else you listen to podcasts.  Get 20% off Fantasy Baseball Today merch: https://store.cbssports.com/collections/fantasy-baseball-today?utm_source=podcast-apple-com&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=buy-our-merch&utm_content=fantasy-baseball-collection Follow our FBT team on Twitter: @FBTPod, @CTowersCBS, @CBSScottWhite, @Roto_Frank Join our Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/fantasybaseballtoday Sign up for the FBT Newsletter at https://www.cbssports.com/newsletters/fantasy-baseball-today/ For more fantasy baseball coverage from CBS Sports, visit https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/baseball/ To hear more from the CBS Sports Podcast Network, visit https://www.cbssports.com/podcasts/ Subscribe to our YouTube channel: youtube.com/FantasyBaseballToday You can listen to Fantasy Baseball Today on your smart speakers! Simply say "Alexa, play the latest episode of the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast" or "Hey Google, play the latest episode of the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast from CBS Sports. Got a fantasy question? Email Fantasy Baseball at CBSI.com. Get ready to win your lead. Where fantasy becomes reality. Now here's Frank Scott and Chris. Hey, Vinnie Pass Quarantino Week has begun. Welcome in to Fantasy Baseball today on Monday.

Not Monday. Tuesday, July 12th. Frank Stamphill, joined by. Scott White. Today on the show, the Royals rookies put on a show. Lance Lynn was yucky once again. Players who have slowed down. I have a whole slew of hitters. What do we do with guys like Taylor Ward who have really slowed down over the past month or so? And team name Tuesday, which is Scott and myself. So that should be a lot of fun as always. How's it going, Scottie? Oh good. I'm just here celebrating the Vinnie Pasquantino coming out party. That's right.

Day one. Day one. And already it feels like a win. It does indeed, which will bring us to oh my goodness gracious. Oh my goodness gracious. All right. I mentioned Vinnie Pass Guantino week. It has begun. It has begun. I feel like I just played two sound bites too close to each other, Scott.

Are there rules for playing soundbites too frequently? I don't know. I didn't recognize that a second. What was that? That's from the Moral Combat movie back in the 90s. Okay. Did you ever see it? I did see that once, yes.

Yeah, I watched it way too many times growing up, big Mortal Kombat fan. Not that I was great at the video game or anything, but the movie, the original, was great. Yeah, this one that came out like two years ago, last year, not so good. Anyway, let's talk about Vinnie Pasquantino, Scott, because he was awesome on Monday. Yeah, he was. So this was double-hatter day. This is the day that gave the Royals an eight-game week. And Pasquantino was good in both of those games.

Overall, he went four for seven. He hit his second home run. He walked twice. He also struck out twice, but, you know, nine plate appearances. That's bound to happen. It was great. He was great. He's been hitting the ball hard along.

The plate discipline's been good all along. It's nice to see him get over the Mendoza line. And I think it is the start of big things for all Vinnie P., the Italian breakfast. as some might call him. And I, for one, am excited about it. I keep getting the Vinny Pasquantino or Alex Kirillov question. You know how much I love Kirillov, but...

It's tough. No, I think it's Vinny P. Yeah, you think so? Just for, if nothing else, for plate discipline reasons. You know, it's even easier in a points league because of all the points he's going to gain on that. I mean, Keraloff, he was walking a lot. latest at AAA, but that's not something he has a long track record of doing, whether you're

looking in the majors or the minors. So I think he might actually be hurt by it while Pasquantino has helped. But in terms of what kind of hitters they profile as, what they're going to do with the contact they make, I think they're very similar. I feel bad because I feel like I, for one, keep flip-flopping between Kirillov and Pasquantino. There's a lot to like for both big prospects and strong plate discipline hit the ball hard but yeah I mean Vinnie P we've referenced it a few times now as well as he's hitting the ball as hard as he hitting the ball it hasn't really come to fruition until Monday obviously so massive day for him Scott is taking Vinnie P over Kirilloff would you drop

hmm would you drop like Max Muncie for Vinnie Pasquantino at this point I believe I would I believe I would Frank I think so too I am pretty much out on Muncie I think he's just messed up, probably because of the elbow. I mean, the fact that he had an aisle stint a few weeks back for it after, you know, avoiding surgery in the offseason. So pretty much a dead giveaway. There are some leagues where, you know, the fact he's eligible is second base, third base, two-week positions, you know, you can't help but hang on and hope for the best.

But it is a thin hope at this point for Max Muncie as far as I'm concerned. Last one, Scott, Andrew Vaughn or Vinny Pasquantino? You know what? I'm going to say Pasquantino. Yeah. Not that I don't like Vaughn, but I'll take Vinnie P. I think it's really, really close between Pasquantino, Kiroloff, and Vaughn. Again, for obvious reasons, all, you know, either former or current top prospects in the game

and lots to like for each of them. But I think Pasquantino, just, I was watching the game earlier today, and he blasted a home run to right field. It was like over 400 feet. By the way, he has two home runs in his career so far. They both come off Michael Paneda. They were both in the fourth innings of those games. Like, that is just the most random thing that has happened. And then his next time up, he's got a runner in scoring position,

and he goes the opposite way, line drive. I'm just like, the approach looks so good right now for Vinny P. So I think I agree. I'm going to take Vinny Pass Quintino over both Kiroloff and Andrew Vaughn myself. Let's talk about his teammate. Oh my goodness gracious for me. Bobby Wood Jr. I mean, have yourself a double header as well.

Six hits, two runs scored, three RBI, three steals across the two games. Now has 12 homers and 16 steals total on the season. And if you remember, got off to a very, very slow start. April 21st, he's dropped in the order by the Kansas City Royals. Since then, obviously, I mean, this has been the majority of the season. He's betting 269 and since then has obviously moved back up the lineup. But, I mean, we're talking about Scott, a near 270 hitter on a, a 25 homer 30 steel pace since April 21st.

This guy is not in points leagues yet because there's some plate discipline concerns. He doesn't walk all that much, but in terms of Roto, he is the fastest player in baseball right now. 100th percentile in sprint speed. He's got the pop. I know we're going to have a podcast coming up soon

where we redraft the first two rounds for the rest of season. I don't think Bobby Witt Jr. is in that mix yet, but like I kind of think in, Roto Leagues, he's knocking on that door. What do you think? Well, especially because he's third base eligible. And it was, you know, I was starting to put together the article that's going to

correspond with that podcast, redrafing the first two rounds for the second half, basically. And I kind of was tempted to make the first round all outfielders and third baseman. Because like the drop off at both of those positions is so, steep. There are great, great options at the top. And if you don't get those, you're kind of just, you're out of luck, you know? I didn't ultimately do that. I mean, Trey Turner obviously has to be in the first round and is not an outfield or a third baseman. But the temptation was there. And so Bobby Wood is one of those. I didn't really consider him for the first two rounds, but he's one of those

third base eligible players who is kind of, you know, bridging the divide between the haves and the have-nots. I was just checking to see, did he get, because he's played almost exclusively shortstop since at Alberto Mondes, well, maybe a little later than that. But he started playing shortstop more regularly than third base, but he has already secured third base eligibility for next season as well. So that's something that's going to.

Let's go. Yeah, that's still going to be there for Witt next year. All right. I know, you know, many people made this comp while Bobby Witt Jr. was in the minors, Trevor Story, we heard a lot. You know, story, 30 homers, 20 steals. I think Bobauchette, like last year, you know, Bobbichette's like sealing season

is something like what we could see at a Bobby Wood Jr. Once he really gets going, you know, in his prime, maybe 30 homers, 30 seals, something like that. I think he's just going to be absolutely awesome. And we've really seen that basically since the middle of April until now. Not really anything else to do. Just, you know, basking his greatness if you have him on your fantasy team. Let's check in on a few more prospects,

something we did last week. but we didn't talk about some of these names. Riley Green went two for four on Monday and has consistently been leading off for the Detroit Tigers the past few weeks. He's batting 256 with a 703 OPS overall that seems underwhelming, but he's doing so with a 13% walk rate,

20% strikeout rate, that's definitely manageable, and his expected numbers are much better. 299XBA, 500X-slug. It does put the ball on the ground a little bit too much, Scott. But what have you seen overall from Riley Green to the show? this point. Yeah, I'm pretty excited about him too. We haven't talked about him as much, but the plate discipline has been impressive for him as well, getting moved to the leadoff

spot already. He's been impressive. He was my number two sleeper hitter for this week. He didn't start both games in the double header, unfortunately. So it didn't have as big of a day as Pasquantino did on the other side. But yeah, I would say Riley Green should be rostered in in just about all leagues, even in like a 12-team three outfielder points league. I know I haven't been one of those and haven't given much thought to dropping him. So I would say, yeah, I would say better days are ahead for Riley Green too. All right. Well, I don't know if you can get much better than what Nolan Jones has done so far to start his MLB career.

He is scorching hot. His first four games, he now has seven hits and eight RBI. had another big game here on Monday. Two more hits, including a double that was 110 miles per hour off the bat. Still just 31% rostered. We don't know if he's going to play against left-handed pitching. He has not faced a lefty starter yet. But Scott, I mean, given this third base eligibility,

he's going to gain outfield eligibility. 31% rostered. I don't want to overreact to just four games, but that seems too low. Well, it's gone up a lot just in a day. It basically doubled. So that's interesting. You know, I feel like I've been less than enthusiastic about Nolan Jones, and I put in some pretty modest bids for him.

Pretty much all my leagues, you know, they just have one weekly run of waivers, and it's Sunday night just because it's hard to manage 12 teams if you don't do that. So, you know, it was my one time to make a bid on Nolan Jones. my bids were pretty modest, and yet I won him in a couple of those leagues, which surprised me. So I guess I wasn't alone in being skeptical. I think he is going to have trouble with strikeouts,

even though he hasn't yet. And, you know, is he going to remain impactful enough on the contact he makes to overcome that, potentially? But it remains to be seen. It also remains to be seen if he's going to start against left-handers. The guardians haven't faced one since he got called up. And I don't think they're scheduled to face any this week. So that's a question we're going to wonder about for a long time with Nolan Jones.

But yeah, every time he goes out and has a big game, I'm all the more interested in him. You mentioned third base eligibility, picking up outfield. Those are the two positions I was saying where those steep drop-offs are and you're probably, you're most likely to be hurting at those two positions. So it makes Nolan Jones a pretty handy player if you can come through. Scott, let's say you play in a shallow league. Would you drop someone like Brian Hayes for Nolan Jones? Cabrion Hayes, 88% rostered still.

Yeah, and he stole a base today. I think that gives him, how many stolen bases now? I think that's 10 for the season. 10 to go along with like two homers, right? Yeah, it's not many. He's a vexing. He's got four homers, four homers, and 10 steals. He's betting 250 overall.

I sold him short. But the point is he's on pace for single-digit home runs is Brian Hayes, even though he impacts the ball. Well, the exit velocity is high. He makes a lot of contact, just apparently not at the right angles to get the most out of it. And he's kind of just picked up where he left off last year, which isn't a good thing. So unless it's a deep roto league where you're straining for every stolen base you could get, I think I'd be willing to swap out Hayes for Jones at this point, just chasing the upside.

because I'm not seeing a lot of upside for Hayes, at least not without some swing changes that maybe he could make in the future. Last prospect I wanted to ask you about here, CJ Abrams, who went two for four with his second home run of the season on Monday. I think he likes playing in Corres Field. It was a bomb.

He had 427 feet, and he knew it immediately. 19 games since being recalled. He's batting 286, that one home run, of course. Three doubles, zero walks, zero C. deals. Not hitting the ball that hard. He's 34% rostered. I mean, does that number sound right? Should it be higher? I like that he's hitting for batting average, but just not really providing much else. And he's not starting against lefties either. And the Padres had four of those on the schedule

this week. So I'm seeing enough glimmers here for C.J. Abrams that I have him rostered, I think in all of my 15-team Roto leagues, and maybe even a 12th team Roto league, just in the hope he gets more regular playing time, he gets more consistent at the plate, and he starts running. I mean, that's a lot of hope on top of hope, right? But the weirdest thing for me is that C.J. Abrams,

with his 80-grade speed is not running at all. Like, that's the main thing I expected him to contribute. So until he does this, that, it's going to be hard to endorse him in fantasy, even if he does start getting the batting average up. Let's talk about some other waiver wire hitters in the shallowest of leagues. Fran Mill Reyes went three for four on Monday with his first stolen base. Not that we're expecting any speed out of him, but since returning 19 games, he's betting 270 with five home runs. That is a 39 home run pace over 150 games, which is basically what we're, we're expecting for

Fran Mill Reyes. He is 75% rostered. It's got to use. this number needs to get back up to universal. Like, you know, 90 plus, closer to 100%. No, I don't think so. I mean, just because of the points leagues, you know, that Franville Reyes with that strikeout rate is just,

I feel like unapproachable in that scoring form, unless it's especially deep, of course. All right. What about Ramon Luriano, who went two for five, hit his seventh home run, and over his last 18 games, he's batting 265, he's got five homers, three steals, striking out quite a,

bit, but also does have eight walks during that time. The barrel rate during these last 18 games, 18%. It's very good. And I think he's likely to be traded, so could wind up on a better team, better offense, more opportunities. He's only 49% rostered, Scott. I feel like that number is a little bit low based on what we've seen Luriano do in the past.

Well, what have we seen him do in the past? Just power speed combination. And if he's walking this much, it could help in points leagues. Well, I guess the walk rate is. better than we're used to seeing from him. I don't think he's going to be like a walk a guy who walks a guy who walks a lot though. And, you know, in terms of the power speed he's provided,

it's, I don't know. I feel like if you're interested in Ramon Luriano, you should probably be interested in Aaron Hicks as well because it's like 1515 guy, maybe. And I don't think that many people are interested in Aaron Hicks. So I don't know. I'm not that excited about him. Scotty.

I think you're selling Luriano a little bit short here, man. 14 homers, 12 steals, and 88 games last year. Yeah. That's... In 88 games, he hit 246. Yeah. That doesn't sound like Aaron Hicks to you. That's almost like a 25 homer 20 steel paste over a full season.

It's a pretty good ball player. But the year before, six home runs and 54 games. Come on. That's a short season. That doesn't count. You pick out. the best 88 games stretch. I mean, even 2019, Sky, it was, you know,

123 games, 24 homers, 13 steals, 288. That's pretty awesome. 2019, it did look like Ramone Luriano could become a special rotissory player, but that was 2019 where everybody hit a career high in home runs, basically, seems like. I don't know. I think he's pretty fringy.

Hey, Scott's not buying Luriano as much as I am, but I'm pretty excited about Razor Ramon, Luriano. I know I keep mentioning this player, but what do you think, Scott? I mean, do we need to do anything with this? Yandy Diaz, he went three for three doubles, three runs, three RBI.

It's pretty massive game here. He's been consistently leading off for the Tampa Bay raise. He's only 32% rostered. He's batting 307 with a 418 OBP. What do you think? He's a better real-life player than fantasy player, I would say. There's just, you know, he's batting over 500 in July with no home runs. Does have some doubles.

He walks more. then he strikes out. I mean, obviously a more valuable player in points leagues than Roto is Yondi Diaz, but points leagues tend to have smaller roster sizes. So I still don't think it's standard-sized leagues. You're going to get much use out of him. All right. How about in deeper leagues? Do these names excite you at all, Scott? Jonathan Aranda with the Tampa Bay raise, he went two for four with an RBI. He had two batted balls over 101 miles per hour exit velocity. One of them was 108. He's only 5% rostered. He's a little. He's a little. lefty, so I assume that means he's going to be in a platoon as long as he's with Tampa.

And then Lioti Tavares has some interesting things going on right now. He went three for four with two doubles. His second still on base. He's vetting 317 overall. Not playing every day yet, but he is playing well when he gets an opportunity. 4% rostered there. What do you think, Scott, in deeper leagues? Aranda, Lioti Tavaris.

I mean, in a deeper league, they're at least worth keeping an eye on. We've seen, even at the major league level, Tavaris, be a pretty good base dealer and not do much else. He's hitting well so far this year and was hitting better than we're used to seeing at AAA as well. But the play discipline's still pretty awful. And he's putting the ball in the air a lot, but if they're not going over the fence, that's going to be more of a detriment than help. So I'm still pretty skeptical.

But worth keeping an eye on because of the speed there for Laot-e-Tavaris. All right. Anything on Miranda? I mean, we haven't seen a lot yet. He showed good contact skills in the minors with a little bit of pop. But, you know, that's a difficult profile for finding regular bats, particularly on the Rays, a team like the Rays, and in this environment where home runs don't come as easily.

So, yeah, I mean, I have a lot. hard time seeing Jonathan Oranda be like a standard 12 team guy. I just don't know that he has the ceiling for that or is going to get the chances for that. But, you know, keep an eye on him. There's some skill there for sure. All right. What do we do with these pitchers? It's time. Let's talk about Lance Lynn. If you started him in any type of roto or head to head categories league, I am sorry for what he did to your ratios. That's an 18.0 ERA 2.75 whip here on Monday. He gave up eight runs. What happened there?

I almost just lost it. Eight runs on nine hits and two walks over four innings pitched against the Cleveland Guardians. Fastball velocity remains an issue. Scott, 92.5 miles per hour here for Lance Lynn. Last year, he averaged 94. And I feel like it matters even more for him because he relies so heavily on his

fastball. The ERA overall is up near seven now. What are you thinking with Lance Lynn? I don't know that I'm as concerned about the velocity. I mean, obviously, these results are bad. And, you know, if his second start this week goes as poorly as his first start, then obviously it's going to be another one of those situations like we faced earlier this year with Charlie Morton or Jose Barrios where you just have to sit him until he shows signs of coming around.

In this start, as bad as it was, average exit velocity, against him was only 87 miles per hour. Only one of the nine hits against him was an extra base hit, a double. So, you know, I feel like he... It wasn't as bad as it looked for Lance Lynn. But at some points, he needs to start getting results, and this is two pretty awful starts in a row.

I believe his XERA, too, speaking of quality of contact, at least coming into this game, it was below four. and yeah, I mean, that's not a great XERA, but it certainly suggests that he hasn't pitched as poorly as the results would suggest. Entering this start, he had a 5.33 ERA, 3.90 XERA, according to Statcast.

And yeah, you're right, Scott. Like the first inning of this start, he gave up five runs with two outs, all on singles, which, I mean, how often do you see that happen? That many singles, like, strung together in a row. it just doesn't really happen that often in today's game. So I'm more on the side of like, yeah, buy low on Lance Lynn if you could,

but if I have them on my team, I might already be at the point where I want to bench him just until he shows me something, anything. Alex Cobb, with the most, ma' quality start against the Arizona Diamondback, six innings, six hits, three runs, four walks, four strikeouts, only seven swinging strikes on 100 pitches,

did not have a splitter at all in the start, only through 57 pitches, 57 of his 100 pitches for strikes in this one. And the swinging strikes and the strikeouts have actually been way down since returning from the IL. The ERA, 4.57 overall. But the underlying numbers remain very good, Scott. What do you think about Alex Cobbs? 77% rostered.

Do you think about maybe dropping him for someone else more enticing? I am surprised he's rostered in that many leagues. It was going into a two-star week, so maybe that explains it. Yeah, I mean, you're right. He's, even though the underlying numbers are strong, they haven't been that great since he came back from the IL. So I just, I don't know that, I don't know that there's much benefit to stashing him.

I'm not saying he can't turn his season around because that splitter when it's on, particularly with more velocity this year. That's a weapon. That's a real weapon for Alex Cobb. But I don't know who's going to be clambered. to pick them up if you drop them, you know? And I feel like we're kind of going through a lull right now in terms of waiver

wire pitchers guys. You know, there's no one that's really emerged. Nick Lodolo is kind of interesting, but I don't think there's any. Oh, it's a lull. It's, it is a low. Like, it was nice, actually, when I was putting in my claims this weekend. Because, you know, normally, you know, in some of these leagues, I'm going to have, my claims are going to be 30, 40 names long.

And, uh, not names. long, but you know, you got to, okay, this is my first choice to drop, but if I've already dropped them for this guy, this is my second choice to drop. And, you know, all the way down, this like cascade of claims, it ends up being, you know, sometimes as many as 70. Yeah. And this week I had in most of my leagues four, you know, like four or five or six, something like that. So it's just, there's, and writing the waiver wire column, man, there's not, it's like everything feels really settled right now. And I know it's not going to remain that way. We're going to have down the stretch whoever this year's Ranger Suarez is, whoever this year's Frank Schwendell is,

Connor Joe was another guy who in the second half last year. Like new players are going to emerge. But right now, it's a lull. Hey, look, Nolan Jones is one of those guys. The problem is he can't pitch. So we don't have, we don't have many pitchers emerging. But yeah, yeah, I mean, there are some prospect hitters that have gotten called up recently. A prospect pitcher who was called up, who really has not been great so far. Brian Beow made his second start two in a row against the Tampa Bay Rays, so you don't really love that for a young pitcher

having to face the same offense in his first two starts. But he allows five runs on seven hits, three walks, over four innings pitched. He did rack up five strikeouts, so that was nice to see, but not that many whiffs. you know, CSW not impressive here in this start. He's 50% rostered, Scott. I assume that went up because he was projected for two starts, but if you had Brian Beow, do you maybe look to cut bait after the start?

Yes, I think he's going to get zint down. I mean, two starts that were that bad. It was weird that, you know, his most used pitches in the first start were the sinker and the change-up, which were the pitches we heard about the most. they were, I believe, his third and fourth most used pitches in this one. Like, he really changed up his arsenal. The results were almost exactly the same. So a lot of good it did him.

But, yeah, I mean, it doesn't seem like Brian Beow is quite up to the task yet, not that there isn't a lot of talent there. Yeah, I mean, obviously, if you have the guy in Dynasty, I still think you should be very excited about him. But I think Nathan Avaldi is getting ready to return on Friday. and obviously Chris Sale's coming back, so that unfortunately might bump Bayo from the rotation. All right, I just mentioned there's no waiver wire pitchers.

What about the Kellers? It was a huge day for the Kellers on Monday. Brad Keller and Mitch Keller. Brad Keller posted a season high, eight strikeouts over seven innings of one-run ball against the Detroit Tigers. He had 15 swinging strikes, and he did change his pitch mix in this one.

He ditched the sinker, which he normally uses 26% of the time. he only threw it 8% in this start and it helped. He went four seam, he went slider, and his sinker is a pitch that gets hit very, very hard. He's 34% rostered and then of course one of our favorites, Mitch Keller. What's dead may never die.

Seven innings, one run, five strikeouts to zero walks, the velocity down across the board. But maybe that helped him command his pitches a little better, Scott. What do you think about this theory? Because he didn't walk anyone in the start and that really has been one of the biggest issues in Mitch Keller's career. So, you know, maybe dialing it back a little bit, helped him command some of his pitches. Eight starts since rejoining the rotation.

He's got a 3.88 ERA, which is not great, but, you know, could be serviceable in deeper leagues. The Kellers, do you like any of them? Oh, man. Yeah, I mean, that's a theory for why Mitch Keller was performed well in this start. I don't know that it's going to be a permanent solution for him. You said his velocity was down on everything, and it was. His velocity was down 4.2 miles per hour on average on the slider specifically. Yeah.

And it wasn't a sample size thing. Like, he threw the slider more than any other pitch this started. It was almost like it was a completely different pitch. But not a lot of whiffs, especially against the Marlins team that strikes out a lot. So I'm kind of tired of talking about Mitch Keller because... I get it. I get it. Like, this is... If this is as good as it gets, I'm...

I'm just not moved by it, particularly since all the pitch selection keeps changing and the way the pitches play keeps changing. And it's just, and then he pitches for the pirates to top it all off. So, like, you have no idea what to expect from Mitch Keller one start to the next. And even at his best, it's just not that great. What about Brad Keller? I feel like you could just insert everything you just said for Mitch Keller for Brad Keller. Well, I think we have a better idea who Brad Keller is.

Good ground ball pitcher. Occasionally he'll surprise you with the strikeouts, particularly with a bad team like the Tigers against a bad team, I should say. And so I think he's a serviceable streamer. You know, you're kind of playing with fire every time you use them, but you know that going in. Would you drop either Alex Cobb or Brian Bayo for? either of the Kellers.

I mean, I'd be willing to drop Brian Beow for pretty much anybody. But for these two, it's just kind of like, why bother? Yeah, no, I get it. All right, before we hit the break, just want to remind everyone that we are a nominee for the best sports podcast category in the People's Choice Podcast Awards. We appreciate all your support

and hope that you'll nominate us to advance to the final round. To nominate fantasy baseball today, go to podcastawards.com slash app slash sign up and then toggle down the sports category. The whole process takes less than 60 seconds. I did it recently and it was quick, easy, painless. And if you're watching us on YouTube, feel free to scan the QR code in the top right,

which will bring you right to the website. And we've included the link in the podcast and YouTube descriptions as well. Let's hit the break. And when we return, we'll get to the news and notes here on Fantasy Baseball today. The news and notes, Jacob deGrom will indeed make another rehab start at AAA on Thursday. He's expected to throw at least 50 pitches in that one.

I think it seems pretty obvious post-all-star break. We will get Jacob de Grom. Maybe not right after the All-Star break, but I think soon thereafter. Wander Franco will indeed undergo surgery on Tuesday to repair his hamate bone and is slated to miss five to eight weeks. Scott, do you drop Wander Franco in leagues without IL spots. I think it's something to consider five to eight weeks. I mean, the eight weeks is basically the end of the season.

So yeah, I think it's, you know, it's always better to hold on to him, but it leaves without aisle spots. You just may have no choice. All right. Kenley Jansen threw a bullpen on Monday and is expected to be activated in the coming days. The A's are hopeful that Frankie Montaise will rejoin the rotation this weekend in Houston. He's missed more than a week with a shoulder issue

and they need him to get back on track so that they could trade him for as much as they could possibly get. Chris Bryant was officially placed on the paternity list Monday and will miss one to three games in Coresfield, unfortunately. Brian Reynolds was placed on the aisle with a right oblique strain and the severity of the injury is not yet known. I saw that he left on Sunday, but I didn't think it was. was going to be this serious, but yeah, placed on the IL, unfortunately, for Brian Reynolds.

Whitmerfield said on Monday that he's dealing with swelling and a bone bruise to a ligament in his right big toe, and is hopeful to return following the All-Star break. And I believe he had a game streak going, Scott, that was like near 600 games. And so Monday was like the first time you missed a game in, I guess that would be, what, like three or four years? It's pretty crazy stuff. Wow. Yeah. Well, I mean, one of those seasons was 60 games, so maybe even, let's see. When's the last time Whitmaneryfield missed the game?

2018. Yeah, June 24th, 2018. 553 consecutive games. That is wild. I don't think Ripkin's record was in jeopardy, but, yeah, that's impressive. You don't see that a lot these days especially. Jazz Chisholm was able to play catch from 90 feet on. Monday. He's been on the IL since June 29th with a back strain and does not sound like he will

be ready to return right after the All-Star break, but maybe sometime in late July. Brandon Lau could be activated from the IL Friday against the Orioles, and he's been on the aisle for nearly two months with a lower back stress reaction. Those brave, Scotty, they're wheeling and dealing. Another trade on Monday. They sent prospects Drew Waters, Andrew Hoffman and C.J. Alexander to the Royals in exchange for the 35th overall pick in this year's first year player draft, which is actually coming up on Sunday, this Sunday. And once one of the top prospects in the game, you know, Drew Waters, he was batting just 252 with six homers, five steals across 52 games.

I don't know. Is there any hope here that maybe he gets an opportunity to play with Kansas City? I mean, it's more likely than it was with Atlanta. I don't know how excited we should be about it. He's got tools, athletic player, but just doesn't, has yet, and it's been going on for a while now, doesn't seem to have the, hasn't developed the skills necessary to tap into those tools. And clearly the Braves are moving on. They're moving on and going to try their luck with a sandwich pick instead.

Well, that's about the point where they're drafted Drew Waters, actually. 35th overall. He was in that range of that draft. I... He was, yeah, 41st overall. Back in 2017 was Drew Waters. Yep. I know those sandwich picks. I don't know if they're called sandwich picks anymore, but...

I think they're like compensatory picks or something like that. Does that sound right? Yeah. Yeah, we'll go with that. Jorge Saler is starting a rehab assignment at AA on Tuesday. He's been on the IL with pelvis inflammation since July 1st. Jesus Lazzardo is scheduled to throw a two-enning live batting practice session on Tuesday, and if that goes well, he could start a rehab assignment soon thereafter.

He's been on the IL since May 15th with a left forearm strain. Tyler McGill is set to begin a throwing program on Friday. He's been on the IL since mid-June with a strained right shoulder. Speaking of shoulders, unfortunately, the Cardinals transferred Jack Flaherty to the 60-day IL, which means he cannot return until late August at the earliest. And even then, I don't know how viable or useful Jack Flourty will be. Jeff McNeil was placed on the paternity list and we'll miss a few days with the Mets. George Kirby is set to rejoin the Mariners rotation following the All-Star break, which we speculated yesterday.

Alec Boem left Monday's game after injuring his finger on a slide into second base and believe that was ruled a dislocated thumb finger. So probably going to miss some time there. You would think. I don't know if, do the Phillies have anyone interesting that would fill in, Scott? Probably not, right? What are we going to get? No fill-ins for the Phillies. The ghost of Scott Kingery returning to the Phillies here, potentially.

We'll see. Speaking of Boehm, he'll join J.T. Real Muto, Aranola, and Kyle Gibson on the restricted list when the Phillies head to Toronto on Tuesday. Dane Dunning went to the aisle with a right ankle impingement. Evalongoria is expected to begin a rehab assignment on Thursday. he's been on the IL with a left oblique strain. Padre's prospect and one that we've mentioned quite a bit on FBT and 5. Estuary Ruiz has to be close because Padre's either beat writer or broadcaster accidentally tweeted on Monday that he was getting called up and he's just a name,

especially in category leagues, that you should be stashing. If you need steals, he's got like 60 steals, 13 homers, 300 batting average. He's 33% rostered. He's 33% rostered. name there, Estuary Ruiz. How would that happen? What do you mean? Like, why, how would, how would somebody accidentally tweet he was getting called? Like, I guess, I guess we have no idea. It could be any number of reasons.

Yeah, I don't know. I saw the apology. I don't have the person's name who tweeted out, but I saw that they tweeted an apology afterwards and, yeah, they messed it up. So I don't know. Okay. Maybe they got, you know, one of their sources told them that he was going to get called up and then, you know, didn't.

double check with someone else, but yeah, overall. I think we're close, but, you know, just hasn't happened yet. Trade deadline season is approaching, and obviously, you know, I'm sure we'll have some big ones closer to that exact deadline, but the Dodgers have talked to the Reds about Luis Castillo. They've had some preliminary talks, and I think obviously that would be fantastic for his value, getting out of Great American Ballpark and just everything the Dodgers have been able to do with pitchers.

I think it would be a nice boon to Luis Castillo's value. Last news item I saw here just now, Akele Badoo will be recalled from AAA on Tuesday to the Tigers. And he's been very good recently, apparently, batting 300 with three homers, seven seals, over 30 games at Toledo. So just a name to watch in deeper leagues. You know, we've seen Akeel Badoo have some value in the past.

All right, Scott, let's talk about some players who have slowed down recently. What do we do with these guys? Do we stick with them, cut, bench, By low if they're available via trade, whatever it might be. Let's talk about Dalton Varsho. Since the start of June, he is batting below 200, 197, four homers, two steals, a 564 OPS, just hitting a lot of ground balls. Pull rate is very high, so I mean, those are nearly automatic outs with the shift

and, you know, just hitting ground balls right into those. What do you think? I mean, it's hard to say benched Dalton Varsow just because catcher is so bad, but what do you think about this recent stretch? Well, you know, the fact that he is catcher eligible saves him, the fact that he plays so much as a catcher eligible player. He hasn't run as much as I hoped he would, but his year-to-date production still has him in the must-start range of catcher. And I suspect they'll get hot again. I'm not that worried.

All right. Let's move over to Tommy Edmund. His last 21 games, he's batting 152 with three extra base hits. Does have four steals during that time, but hitting a lot of ground balls and not making a lot of hard contact. The power has really, really fallen off the map here, Scott. Tommy Edmund, what do you think? You know, he has a pretty good track record as a hitter, not pitting for power, obviously, but I don't think we have to worry about him just dropping off the map and not being a

serviceable starter anymore. And we know he's going to steal bases. So he was playing well over his head in the early stages of the season. And I think this is just, you know, the sort of ups and downs that happen over the course of the baseball season. I know, I don't think Tommy Edmonds, anybody you need to move on from either. Yeah, I think that's exactly right. I mean, I know he's really, really slowed down, but these are just the ebs and flows of a baseball season. If you look at his batting average now, 254 overall, the past two seasons, he's been 262 and 250. That's basically right in line with that. I mean, his OPS is below 700. His OPS last year, 695. OPS in 2020, 685. I mean, this is basically who Tommy Edmund is. It's just these are the ebbs and flows of

a baseball season. So just sometimes works out that way. Francisco Lindorra, he did have three hits on Monday, so nice to see him hopefully start to get back on track. But since the start of June, he's betting just 209. Does have seven homers, so that helps. He's got two steals during that time. But a 655 OPS, 47% fly ball rate. He doesn't hit the ball that hard. So that leads me to believe just a lot of lazy fly balls that are turning into easy outs for Lindor. And I mean, Scott, I know this was part of, you know, your concern with him.

I know the overall line still looks pretty good for Lindor, but what do you think? Yeah, the confirmation bias is kicking in because this is, uh, it's, it's a premature but I'll go ahead and claim it right now just because I feel like I was alone in my my pessimism over Francisco Lendor and my concerns that last year was the start of a new normal for him. Yeah, that's compared to a guy who in his prime used to be drafted in the first round. So it's not like in terms of what you do with him in fantasy. it doesn't mean much.

It's more of something that would have been valuable to know in the preseason when you were drafting and maybe passing him up at his going right. But obviously, he's no matter who you are, he's probably the best you can do at shortstop, even if he's on the down swing right now. Yeah, I'll point out, like, his expected batting average is 260. So, I mean, I think he's probably closer to Matt to that than the 240 hitter he's been, you know, overall. And his expected slug is a little bit better

than his slugging percentage. So I think we could see some, you know, positive regression back the other way. But yeah, I would say his batting average is more likely to go up than down from here. But I think he's going to be nothing special in terms of batting average. You know, the shortstop position in general, Scott,

it has not been very good. Like, Trey Turner has been fine. He's been Trey Turner. Danesby Swanson obviously has You know unlocked a new level that we've never seen before he's the second best catcher in both Roto and heads head points And then Lendor Lindor is the third best catcher in both formats and you know he's the 32nd overall player in Roto He's still got 15 homers nine steals counting stats are there for Lindore, but yeah, it's it's really just a batting average that Has kind of dragged him down recently so yeah, I mean you're right and it's

Putting together these first two rounds for a mid-season season redraft. You know how many short stops I have in there? Just one. And you're more likely to play him at second base. Trey Turner. Spoiler alert, I kicked Bo Bichette out even. And when I go and do my rest of season rankings,

update them at shortstop. You know, I've held Bo Bichette in the number two spot there behind only Turner just because at no point is anybody deserved to surpass him. But figuring out who belongs third. And my rest of season shortstop rankings has been a season-long struggle. I mean, at this point, it might be Corey Seeger, because Corey Seeger is now homered in four straight.

He's homered in five of six. We expected him to regress this direction based on all his expected stats, which still looked as studly as ever for Corey Seeger. And I think he's poised for a huge second half. So he might be the shortstop I want third most rest of season. I'm sure he's not anywhere close to that in my rankings because there's this glob of short stops

that we were waiting to, we're waiting for somebody to stand out from the pack. And I think maybe Seeger's the guy. Yeah. You've got Seeger down at 10. I've got him, oh, geez, 14th, is that right?

Oh, man. Well, yeah, I mean, you say shortstop has been bad. It has a lot of players who are like quality starters, but it hasn't had the studs. At least they haven't performed like studs. Like they have in the recent past like we expected them to. Yeah, Bichette's been a letdown. Zander Bogartz, I think the batting average is fine,

but like no power and next to no speed for Zander Bogart's either. And jazz chisholm is hurt now. You know, Semion has come around too with with Corey Seeger. But yeah, I think I could see that argument where, you know, Seeger, especially in a pointsly, he could be the third best shortstop or third ranked shortstop. And, you know, honestly, in Roto Scott Category, stories. Yeah, maybe Bobby Witt isn't that mix, man. I think he's climbing.

I was about to say Dansby Swanson. Yeah. Like, I don't think Danesby Swanson can sustain this over the course of the season because none of the underlying numbers appear to have changed that much. And yet he's been so much more productive. But certainly, I think he's been the second best shortstop this year after Turner, right? In either format. Yep. So, you know, just from that perspective, if there aren't any other clear standouts, you can understand putting him in the top five rest of season. I don't think I'm going to, but, you know, he's been running a lot more too, and that's something that goes beyond, you know, regression and all the stuff we normally talk about. If he's willing to run more, then that's something he can keep doing. All right.

Let's run through a few more of these names, hitters, players that have slowed down over the past month. So I mentioned Kibbrien Hayes earlier. I mean, really since the start of May, he's hitting 226. He's got four homerers, eight steals. You know, the speed helps, I guess, in categories, but just no pop

and the batting average is lower than expected. He hits the ball hard, but everything's on the ground, Scott. So, I mean, are there any formats where you might look into dropping Cabrian Hayes, I guess? Or just talking about it earlier, right? I think in all but deep roto leagues, it's something to consider.

And those leagues, where you're desperate for steals, he gives you enough that you might want to stick with them. But anything else, I think, could Brian Hayes on, you know, on the heels of last season, him doing this? I think he's totally dispensable. Alec Thomas, since the start of June, is hitting 229, four homers and four steals. You know, you like that power speed combination, but a 650 OPS, way too many ground balls. I mean, 62% ground ball rate, it just, it hampers the power. especially as a lefty, that many ground balls,

a lot of those are going to turn into outs. So if you picked up Alex Thomas, let's say in a three outfielder league, do you think you can cut bait? Yeah, I mean, obviously he could get hot again and we could look into him again. There's definitely a certain talent level there that could yield good results, but I'm not seeing enough right now

specifically in three outfielder leagues that I feel like you need to stick with. Five outfielder leagues you probably are hanging on. just because of the upside and the lack of viable alternatives. What about Taylor Ward? Someone we haven't really talked about much recently, but since returning from the IL in mid-June, he's hitting 245.

He's only got two homers, 652 OPS, still hitting the ball decently hard, right around 90 mile per hour, average exit velocity, lots of line drives. What do you think, Scott? I mean, I'm starting to get some questions. Can I drop Taylor Ward? It would have to be a pretty shallow league.

I mean, his per-game production is still so high. Remember, he was ridiculous for the first six weeks or so. He was like the best player in fantasy. So, you know, it's going to take a long time for his numbers to regress to a level where he looks like just an ordinary player. And maybe he is trending that way. I mean, certainly for all of his career up to this year, that's who he was. But I think he's earned the right to play out the strings. so to speak, to actually see those numbers regress all the way before you turn the page on him, because it could just be a cold stretch.

You know, it'd been banged up for a while. Maybe he got out of rhythm, but he's certainly earned the right to get consistent opportunities for the Angels, and that gives him a chance to snap out of it. All right, I was going to ask you about George Springer, but I'm not actually worried about George Springer at all. So I will ask you about Taylor Rogers. There's this one pitcher involved here. He's allowed runs in five straight outings, including on Monday. And I mean, the ERA is like up over nine, basically over his last 16 games.

Underlying numbers still look a little bit better than that. But Scott Taylor Rogers is starting to get hit around a little bit here. What do you think about him? And can the Padres maybe be in the market for a closer if he continues to struggle? Hmm. Yeah, I mean, I guess it's possible. Obviously, trying to keep pace with the Dodgers. They're going to have to do something to upgrade their team and requiring a reliever is usually a pretty easy way to do that.

So it's possible. You know, Taylor Rogers, it's not like he has a long track record of closing. The twins had him in and out of the role. And I feel like he had stretches like this with the twins too that probably contributed to him not being a true closer for much of his time there. So it's possible. I don't think they have, let's see, I'm pulling up their, their stats now,

if there's anyone else in that bullpen who could usurp him, it seems unlikely. You know, Nabil Nabil Krizmat has some pretty good numbers. Luis Garcia, who got talked up as a potential

closer candidate at the start of the year. You know, it seems like a stretch. I think Taylor Rogers is probably safe unless there is a trade or unless this continues for like another another week or so. All right, let's get into some leftovers from Monday's action, and I'll run through a few pitchers here.

Miles Michaelis has allowed three earned runs or fewer in 16 of 18 starts this season, and he was up against the Phillies. He gave up one run over seven and a third innings, five strikeouts, and he drops his ERA down to 2.62 for the season. Max Scher looks awesome since returning. He went seven innings, one run, nine strikeouts to zero walks, 21 swinging strikes against the Braves. He averaged 95 miles per hour on his fastball.

That's now two starts in a row where his velocity has been up. Max Fried, unusual lack of control on the other side of that start. He walked five over five innings pitched. He did have five strikeouts. ERA still 2.56 overall. Sean Mania got back on track

with a quality start in Corse Field. Six and a third, two runs, five strikeouts, only had seven swinging strikes really, really leaned into the sinker in this start. His walks have been up this year, which is surprising because he's always had great control. So that one's kind of interesting for me with Chalmaniah. And then Merrill Kelly had a very strong start at the Giants.

He went seven plus, two runs, four strikeouts, his ERA, 3.36. I know it's kind of been a rocky road, you know, some ups early, some downs. But overall, Merrill Kelly has been a viable pitching option. Scott, what do you think? of these five, if you have anything. Merrill Kelly, Mania, Freed, Scherzer, Michaelis. I think there's a good chance.

Max Fried winds up on the I.L. After this start, I mean, the five walks, he hadn't issued more than three in any start this season, and only one he had three. And the five were the most he's had in any start, I believe since 2019. And remember, he left his previous start either

with, has left his previous start with a tight glute. And so I can't but wonder if that was having an impact on him in this start against the Mets. So he might need a little extra time off. Just don't be surprised if that happens. Okay. I expect Merrill Kelly and Miles Michaels. I know I say this basically every time they have a good start, but I expect them to regress. Not saying you shouldn't continue to run.

foster them, use them when the matchups are right, especially Michaelis. But they both are going to finish with the RAs closer to four, I think. You know, it might be hard for Michaelis to get there, but three five for him, let's say. It goes up a run before season's end. A few other pitchers here at Trevor Rogers. I know, unfortunately, we talk about him way too much, but he has now just one quality start in 17 tries. He was going up against a Pirates lineup that did not have Brian Reynolds on Monday. And he was just Trevor Rogers.

Again, five and a third, three runs, three walks, seven strikeouts. It was one of his best starts of the year. I mean, the whiffs were up in this one, but man, it's, they're just, there's not really any redeeming qualities right now, Scott, at all. I mean, four and a half walks per nine, over a hit per inning this season. it's the swinging strikes are way down. It's just, it's been a absolute disaster

for Trevor Rogers this season. And he's still rostered in a lot of leagues, 69%. I think it's one of those things where people are just going down with the ship, right? Like, they drafted him as a top 30 starting pitcher and they probably just don't want to let go. Could be it.

Yes, I have, I would have moved on. I don't think I drafted him in any leagues. He was another one of my preseason bus picks. So big day for patting myself on the best. apparently. Could all change. There's another half

a season to go. Famous last words, I guess. But yeah, Trevor Rogers. I am out on him. Not forever, but not expecting a big turnaround this year. I'm pretty sure I know the answer,

but does this matter? Jose Urania has two quality starts with the Rockies. Does not matter. All right, fair enough. Some hitting leftovers, Reese Hoskins went two for four with his 18th home run,

and over his last 30 games, games. He's betting 324 with nine home runs. He has been amazing. Austin Riley has also been amazing. One for four with his 24th home run. That one came off of Max Scherzer. Mani Machado went two for five with his 15th home run. Now has three homers over his last five games. And Scott, I don't know if you saw my tweet, but, and there are a few different hitters that are in this discussion. I think Mani Machado has the sweetest swing in baseball right now. Not ever, obviously. Ken Griffey has probably the best swing ever, but is there anyone else that comes to mine off the top of your head? Sweetest swings in baseball.

Putting you on the spot. I know. I know. I'm not good at these like superlatives out of nowhere. I got to cycle through the entire database of names to come to the one that is the most whatever. A few people responded with Yerdot Alvarez. He has a pretty sweet swing too. Yeah.

You know what? I don't even know necessarily what is meant by sweet swing. I mean, of course, you always hear that for Griffey. You just know it. What makes the swing sweet? You just know it when you see it's got. It's just, it just looks so pure. Is Shohay Otani's swing sweet sweet?

That's a pretty sweet swing. Yeah, I would say so. It's a pretty nice one. It's just aesthetically pleasing. Is that the idea? Machado just looks so effortless, you know? It's just a follow through everything. It's, oh, man.

Yeah, I can picture what you're talking. about with him. Yeah. It's awesome. I'm not sure what to do with him, by the way, in the redraft of the first two rounds. That was one of the ones I was stressing over. Because remember, I had him, like, at the quarter way point of the season, I had him, like, going eighth overall. Not anymore. Yeah. He's had a rough couple months. I think he's just kind of Mani Machado. Like, he's probably just a second round pick, which is fine for him. Corey Seeger went one for four, hit his 20th home run. We spoke about him a little bit earlier. Jake Cronoward had a big game in Corris Field as well.

He went three for four, hit his eighth home run of the season. The call to the bullpen for the Royals, Scott Barlow, picked up his 14th save in game one of the doubleheader. I saw that he also pitched in game two. However, it was not a save opportunity. For the pirates, Yeri de Los Santos recorded the final four outs, all via strikeout for his third save of the season. David Bednar pitched both on Saturday and Sunday.

I don't think that the pirates are going to trade David Bednar. fact, I think people have already said that they're not going to do it. But just in case they do, De Los Santos, I think, is the next name up there. Yeri De Los Santos, you mentioned it was his third save. All have come in the last two weeks. So I'm wondering if he's kind of taken on that role that they envisioned for Chris Stratton at the start of the season where he does spell Bednar more than the average closer gets spelled.

Maybe. I know Bednar, I feel like he's been dealing with some kind of ailment. recently and maybe they were giving them a few days off here and there. Might have been like a back thing or something, but I remember seeing something for David Bednar. Oh, he's an all-star, by the way. He is an all-star. You know what? I hate watching baseball games now, and they're like, this player could have been an all-star.

This player could... I'm watching the Mets game, and they're talking about Brandon Nimmo could have been an all-star. They could have been an all-star. Anybody could have been an all-star. I watch the Padres. They talk about Chris Matt, the reliever. He could have been an all-star. How much?

How many All-Stars do you want? I mean, you know, there's a finite amount. Oh, geez, it's just so frustrating. Anyway, for the Mets, Edwin Diaz struck out the side for his 19th save. He has been amazing this season. For Tampa Bay, Colin Poshay pitched in the eighth inning with a two-run lead, and then Jason Adam pitched in the ninth. However, they tacked on a few more runs.

That was with a five-run lead. Jason Adam does have the last two saves in Tampa Bay. For the Rangers, Brett Martin gave up a hit and a walk, but struck out two for his. his third save. And I don't know how long Joe Barlow is going to need this mental break or whatever kind of break it is. But right now, Scott, Brett Martin is the closer of the Texas Rangers.

Yeah. Well, and they didn't refer to it as a mental break. They said they wanted to take stress off of them. So I'm not seeing it as a temporary thing. I mean, if everybody else stinks in the role, then maybe they put Barlow back in. But I was happy to scoop up Martin in a bunch of leagues this weekend. I saw that you added them in the Dynasty League. How dare you?

Yep. Dynasty League, Memorial Mag, Tout Wars, TGFBI, my main event team. I just saw that. I'm not sure I got him in TGFBI actually, but I got him in a bunch of leagues. Mark Malanson just picked up his 12th save of the season. That game is over.

The Diamondbacks won. That is his first save since June 3rd. Over a month of Mark Malanson getting you no saves. That is not great, Bob. To stream or not to stream, let's start with Tuesday. Daniel Cassano versus the Pirates, Chris Flexson at the Nationals, David Peterson at the Braves, Josh Winder versus the Brewers, Mitch White at the Cardinals,

Adrian Samson versus the Orioles, Jordan Lyles at the Cubs, Glenn Otto versus the A's, James Caprillion at the Rangers, and Bo Briskey at the Royals. Chris Flexon and even more than him, I would say David Peterson, despite it being out Atlanta. I think I'll get a lot of whiffs against that lineup. I don't mind Glenn Otto or Adrian Samson. Samson has pitched well and I still think the Orioles lineup is not great.

For Wednesday, Brady Singer, Scott does not approve. Brady Singer versus the Tires J.T. Brubaker at the Marlins. Connor Seabold at the Rays. Aaron Savali versus the White Sox, Spencer Watkins at the Cubs, and Justin Steele versus the Orioles. I guess Steel? I don't know. Brewbaker.

This is Choose the form of your destructor, I think. Choose and perish. The Marlins without Salair and Jazz Chisham, I could basically get behind streaming anybody against them right now. So, okay. J.T. Brubaker, he's somebody. Team name Tuesday. This one's from Robert.

I like my sugar with coffee and creamer. Spelled like Kramer, Dean Kramer. Yeah. I'm not impressed, but okay. Probably should have said Kramer. From Colin, Judge, Drury, and Exekelevenger. Oof. That's a rough one.

Well, it's okay. I mean, I mean getting Judge and Drury on the same team, if you happen to have them on the team, maybe just name them after it anyway. But yeah, that exa Clevenger is such a stretch. I don't know.

Makes me say, oof. I'm pretty hard with team. By the way, I do this with my own team names. This is why I usually don't give my team a clever name anymore. I just keep the same name for years because I'm like, oh, it's so hard to think of a new one that I actually like. I have one in my home league. I did something with George Kirby.

What did I make that? Oh, Kirby Your Enthusiasm. And then I have an avatar of Kirby. Although I've never watched Kirby Your Enthusiasm. So I'm just a big phony. I don't know. It made sense. You don't like Seinfeld.

So that's... Oh, God. Seinfeld. I don't mind that team name. That's a pretty good team name. Thank you. This one's also from Colin for Kid Cuddy fans out there. Mr. Solo Lidolo.

I like it. You get my approval. From David, in honor of Wander Franco, only getting one hit per night when he was healthy. One hit Wander. Yeah. I like that. From Robert, from the rough to the green, birdie.

I think it's just a golf reference. Although he wrote birdie as in like the way you spell a birdie in golf, but I think you also could have just used John Birdie. That would have completed it. Oh, is that? Okay. Yeah, I was trying to figure out if, if Bertie was part of the cleverness or not. Okay.

Okay. Yeah, if you have, yeah, if you get rough and green and birdie, all in there, that's a pretty good one. From Michael, Mo, Moniac, Mo Problems. I mean, Heath has ruined that whole naming convention for me. They just all sound terrible now

because of Yasmani, money, Tomas problems, come on. Oh, gosh, that is... That's a real throwback there. Yeah, that's a long team name. And this last one's from Joel. Polar Bear Express. Classic.

Oh, because of Pete Alonzo. Okay. Yes, who will be in the home run Derby once again, along with Ronald Cunia, Albert Pooholz. I think Juan Soto's going to be in it, but whatever. Peter Lanzas is an all-star. I won't be watching it because I will be in Aruba somewhere

and, spoiler alert, but I will not be here for the podcast next week. I'll let you know more about that as the week goes on. But we're going to wrap there. For Scott, I am Frank. Thank you all for listening and watching Fantasy Baseball today. We'll be back again tomorrow. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.