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Beltre snubbed; Belts Bombs
Adrian Beltre is probably the most glaring All-Star snub of 2013. With Miguel Cabrera at third base, Beltre, a future Hall-of-Famer, had no shot of being the leading vote-getter at the position. What surprised me was the willingness of the masses to vote for Manny Machado over Beltre. Call me old fashioned, but I would rather see a veteran stud get the nod over a sensational second-year player. While Machado is certainly no slouch, hitting .314 with seven HR, 44 RBI and 54 runs scored, those numbers aren’t superior to Beltre’s. Since failing to make the Midsummer Classic roster, Beltre has erupted offensively adding six homers and ten RBI since July 4 (which is all post-tally for ASG votes). His current .319 average, 20 HR and 52 RBI with 53 runs scored have him ranked third in standard roto scoring at 3B, behind only Miguel Cabrera and Edwin Encarnacion.
Waino is Bueno
Adam Wainwright twirled another beauty on Tuesday, striking out nine batters and allowing one earned run over seven innings to improve to 12-5 on the season. The performance was the third straight outing in which he lasted at least seven innings. Wainwright has a 2.30 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and a 126/14 K/BB ratio this season with four complete games and two shutouts to his credit through 140+ innings pitched. He will face the Cubs on Sunday, against whom he is 1-1 with a 2.57 ERA this season.
AL Hot Shots
- Alex Rios turned in a spectacular 6-for-6 night with two RBI, two steals and a run scored. Rios could potentially be traded at the deadline, and this performance surely won't hurt his value.
- Adam Dunn went deep for the 24th time on Tuesday, going 3-for-5 with three RBI. He’s got his average above the Mendoza line and has been a fantastic source of power for owners willing to take a hit in average.
- Sonny Gray has been promoted by the Athletics to be used in the bullpen (for now). I believe that Gray will finagle his way into the rotation sooner than later, and thus he's a worthy add in deeper mixed leagues and AL-only, for sure. FAAB Value: Deep Mixed: $1 AL Only: $3
- Jackie Bradley, Jr. made his presence felt in his first start back with the Red Sox, going 1-for-4 with a solo homer off Blake Beavan. Shane Victorino, David Ortiz and Mike Napoli also homered in the wild game.
- Koji Uehara high-fived his way to his sixth save of the season, tossing a perfect ninth in the Red Sox 11-8 win over the Mariners. Andrew Bailey also retired all five batters he faced in relief to set-up Uehara’s save. Bailey now has allowed just one hit in his last 4.1 innings and could be primed to take over closing if Uehara were to falter.
- Dayan Viciedo homered twice for the White Sox as they pummeled Justin Verlander for five runs and 12 hits on Tuesday. “Tank” now has a measly seven bombs on the season after swatting 24 longballs in 2012.
- Grant Balfour stayed perfect on the year as he slammed the door on the Pirates for his 24th save. Balfour ran his consecutive saves streak to 42 straight dating back to April of last season. With his current workload, though, you should be wary of a second half slow-down. Ryan Cook is a valuable handcuff for Balfour owners, as Cook logged 14 saves in 2012 when Balfour was injured.
NL Hot Shots
- Cole Hamels notched his second straight victory with eight strong innings against the Nationals. His first consecutive wins of the season have Hamels looking like a nice second-half bounce back candidate. With a 4.58 ERA over his first 17 starts he looks like a new man with a 1.20 ERA over his last two outings.
- Pedro Alvarez smacked his 23rd homer of the year in a losing effort to Oakland. El Toro now has a .250 average with 58 RBI.
- Justin Upton may be on the verge of getting hot. He went 3-for-5 on Tuesday with two doubles and a homer. He added two RBI on the night giving him 44 on the year. After hitting .226 in June, it seems he is poised to turn it around in July.
- Jayson Werth homered off of Cole Hamels Tuesday giving him 4 homers to go with a .363 BA over his last 23 games.
- Alfonso Soriano belted two solo homers in a 2-for-3 performance versus the Angels giving the veteran slugger 15 on the year with 47 RBI. He is an obvious trade chip, but we say that every year.
- Wily Peralta turned in a doozy on Tuesday twirling a three-hit shutout of the Reds. His last start was shortened by a hammy issue but he showed no ill-affects striking out six and cruising to his sixth win.
Injury Notes:
- Troy Tulowitzki and Dexter Fowler may both be returning to the Rockies on Thursday.
- Brett Lawrie hit a homer and stole a base for Triple-A Buffalo on Tuesday starting at second base. He’s set to return after the break.
- Derek Jeter is aiming to return to the Yankees this weekend after playing back to back games today and tomorrow.
- Antonio Bastardo recorded a save Tuesday as Jonathan Papelbon wasn't available due to hip soreness. The break should give him time to bounce back as the injury is apparently minor.
- Matt Kemp is expected to spend the minimum of 15 days on the DL with his AC joint soreness.
- Brandon Beachy allowed two runs in three innings during his rehab start for Triple-A Gwinnett. Beachy will need some time to stretch out and prove his health before becoming a significant factor, but he's worth a stash in standard mixed leagues just in case he gets off to a strong start.
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