July 13, 2025
Los Angeles Angels outfielder/designated hitter
Mike Trout had a huge night in his team's 10-5 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday. The hall-of-fame-bound veteran went two-for-four with a walk, home run, and four RBI. Trout may not be the MVP-level player he was in his prime, but he's still posted an .830 OPS with 17 home runs, 40 RBI, and 36 runs scored. Trout's hard-hit rate is back over 50% after it dropped under that mark for the first time in four seasons in 2024, and his expected stats suggest he's actually been unlucky in both the batting average and slugging department. Health is always the key for Trout, but he should be a productive power bat for fantasy managers if he can stay on the field the rest of the way.
--Will BradySource: MLB.com
July 13, 2025
Minnesota Twins utility man
Willi Castro went 3-for-4 with a walk, home run, and three RBI in his team's 12-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday. Castro is having a solid season overall, hitting .269 with nine home runs, 24 RBI, 41 runs, and eight stolen bases. The versatile switch-hitter has also logged double-digit games at second base, third base, and both corner outfield positions. Castro's 10.1% walk rate is the best of his career, as is his 43.5% hard-hit rate (entering play on Saturday). With his multi-position eligibility and modest power/speed ability, Castro is an underrated piece in fantasy.
--Will BradySource: MLB.com
July 13, 2025
Seattle Mariners outfielder
Julio Rodriguez had a monster game in his team's 15-7 win over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday, going 3-for-5 with a walk, home run, two additional runs scored, three RBI, and a stolen base. The 24-year-old All-Star hasn't lived up to his massive potential so far in 2025, slashing .249/.308/.405 with 13 home runs, 48 RBI, 60 runs, and 16 stolen bases. Even so, Rodriguez remains a high-level fantasy option because of his five-category potential while playing every day in a resurgent Seattle lineup. He won't participate in the All-Star game due to a desire to take time to recuperate, so fantasy managers can hope the extra rest will power him to a big second half.
--Will BradySource: MLB.com
July 13, 2025
Chicago Cubs catcher
Carson Kelly powered his team to a 5-2 victory over the New York Yankees on Saturday, going 2-for-3 with a walk, home run and two RBI. Kelly has been one of the best-hitting catchers in baseball so far this season, slashing .272/.374/.518 with 12 home runs, 33 RBI, and 36 runs scored in 230 plate appearances. The 30-year-old is walking at a 13.9% rate while striking out in just 16.1% of his plate appearances. Kelly's 109.7 mph maximum exit velocity, 10.1% barrel rate, and 44.3% hard-hit rate are all career highs. The veteran is a must-start catcher in all fantasy formats as we head into the second half of the season.
--Will BradySource: MLB.com
July 13, 2025
Athletics designated hitter/outfielder
Brent Rooker went 2-for-2 with a walk, home run, and three RBI in his team's 4-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday. The 30-year-old has been excellent this season, slashing .278/.352/.505 with 20 homers, 54 RBI, and 60 runs in 422 plate appearances. Rooker's 22% strikeout rate is over 6% lower than his career norm, and his .293 xBA and .546 xSLG suggest that he's underperformed his underlying metrics to this point. Rooker has established himself over the past two seasons as a legitimate late-blooming breakout bat, and he looks like one of the better power and run producers in baseball.
--Will BradySource: MLB.com
July 13, 2025
Athletics closer
Mason Miller picked up his 18th save of the season on Saturday in his team's 4-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. Miller pitched a scoreless ninth inning, striking out two and allowing a walk. The 26-year-old right-hander has allowed just one earned run in his last 10 1/3 innings pitched, converting five of six save chances in that stretch. For the season, Miller is 18/21 on save opportunities with a 4.15 ERA, 10.8 WHIP, and 56 strikeouts in 34 2/3 innings. His 4.15 ERA is a bit inflated due to an abnormally low 64.8% strand rate, but Miller's 2.77 xERA and 28.1% K-BB rate point to how dominant he's truly been.
--Will BradySource: MLB.com
July 12, 2025
Cleveland Guardians third baseman
Jose Ramirez peppered the box score in a 6-2 win over the Chicago White Sox on Saturday. Ramirez finished 1-for-3 with two walks and a run scored, and he was a force on the bases, swiping three bags. The seven-time All-Star has now stolen three bases in a game twice this year. Already with eight steals in 12 contests this month, he's up to 29 on the season and on pace to surpass the career-high 41 he amassed a year ago. Along with that, the switch-hitting 32-year-old is once again posting outstanding numbers at the dish. He's slashing .297/.367/.510 with 18 homers, 48 RBI, and 53 runs scored in 387 plate appearances.
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
St. Louis Cardinals closer
Ryan Helsley (3-1) suffered his first loss of the season Saturday in a 7-6 game against the Atlanta Braves. Helsley came in to pitch the top of the ninth inning in a 6-6 game and surrendered a leadoff single to
Nacho Alvarez Jr., who advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. Alvarez moved to third on a
Drake Baldwin single before scoring on a
Jurickson Profar groundout. Helsley didn't record any strikeouts or walks during an 11-pitch inning that snapped a modest streak of six straight scoreless appearances. The 30-year-old right-hander is having a decent season, but he hasn't been the lights-out option he was from 2022-24. Across 32 innings, Helsley has pitched to a 3.38 ERA with a mediocre 1.41 WHIP, 35:13 K:BB, and 18 saves in 23 opportunities.
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
Atlanta Braves closer
Raisel Iglesias recorded his second save in as many games in a 7-6 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday. After the Braves called on him for the third straight day, Iglesias retired the Cardinals on 11 pitches (nine strikes) and struck out one in a perfect bottom of the ninth inning. The 35-year-old has now piled up 14 straight scoreless appearances. Thanks to his struggles earlier in the season, Iglesias still has a disappointing 4.42 ERA in 36 2/3 innings. To his credit, though, Iglesias has continued to amass strikeouts (42) while limiting walks (seven).
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
Los Angeles Dodgers closer
Tanner Scott picked up his 19th save in a 2-1 nail-biter against the San Francisco Giants on Saturday. Scott pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning and struck out both
Jung Hoo Lee and
Casey Schmitt to help the Dodgers snap a seven-game losing streak. It was a much-needed rebound for the left-hander, who combined to surrender three earned runs on six hits over two frames in his previous two outings. Scott's 3.77 ERA through 43 innings is about two runs higher than his pristine 1.75 mark from last year, but he has logged a strong 1.09 WHIP with excellent strikeout and walk numbers (49:7 K:BB).
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
Seattle Mariners outfielder
Randy Arozarena had a huge game at the plate in a 15-7 beatdown of the Detroit Tigers on Saturday. Arozarena finished 3-for-5 with a homer, two RBI, four runs scored, and a stolen base to continue a power-packed July. In his first 11 games of the month, Arozarena has gone deep six times while knocking in nine runs and scoring 10 times. Arozarena got off to a slow start through the first couple of months this season, but he has been much better since early June and is on track for another prolific campaign. The 30-year-old is slashing .249/.356/.452 with 16 homers, 46 RBI, 52 runs, and 16 stolen bases in 407 plate appearances. At minimum, Arozarena looks like a shoo-in for his fifth consecutive 20/20 season.
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
Cincinnati Reds third baseman
Noelvi Marte continued his recent power surge on Saturday, homering for the third time in four games in a 4-3 win over the Colorado Rockies. Marte blasted a seventh-inning solo shot off right-hander
Tyler Kinley for his lone hit in a 1-for-4 day. The 23-year-old missed most of May and all of June with an oblique strain, but he has made up for lost time since the Reds activated him July 4. In his first eight games back, Marte has gone 7-for-24 with three homers, five RBI, four runs scored, and 3:2 K:BB. The former top prospect has taken 100 trips to the plate this year and hit a highly productive .293/.340/.565 with six HRs, 22 RBI, 14 runs, and four steals. Marte has significantly cut his strikeout rate since last season, going from 31% to 15%, and the results have been encouraging.
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
New York Mets closer
Edwin Diaz secured his 19th save of the year in a 3-1 win over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday. The 31-year-old right-hander had to work harder than usual for this one, as the Mets called on him to pitch two innings. Diaz issued a one-out walk to
Bobby Witt Jr. in the eighth inning, but he retired the other six hitters he faced and struck out one over 22 pitches. The three-time All-Star has now gone 12 straight appearances without allowing a run and has given up just one since the beginning of May. Diaz, who has only blown one save, owns a sparkling 1.66 ERA with a 0.87 WHIP and 55:13 K:BB.
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
Washington Nationals closer
Kyle Finnegan (1-3) blew his sixth save of the year and ended up with his third loss in a 6-5 game against the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday. The Nationals called on Finnegan to pitch the bottom of the ninth and preserve a 5-3 lead, but he wasn't up to the challenge. Finnegan retired just one batter while allowing three hits, two walks (one intentional), and three earned runs. Brewers infielder
Caleb Durbin walked it off with an RBI single. It was the worst outing for Finnegan since he gave up three earned runs in a loss to the Colorado Rockies on June 16. He had totaled eight straight scoreless appearances since then to lower his ERA to 2.36. That number is now up to a still-solid 3.12 through 34 2/3 innings after Saturday's meltdown. Finnegan also has a 1.18 WHIP with 18 saves and 27:12 K:BB.
--Connor ByrneSource: ESPN
July 12, 2025
According to Jon Morosi, free-agent infielder
DJ LeMahieu is reportedly drawing interest from multiple organizations. LeMahieu was released by the New York Yankees on Thursday. Despite still being owed $22 million, LeMahieu was let go by the organization. Now, LeMahieu can decide where he wants to play for the rest of the season. LeMahieu hasn't been terrible at the plate this season. He's slashing .266/.338/.336 with two home runs and 12 RBI across 45 games. He's able to play multiple positions and his postseason experience could be helpful for a contending team. His fantasy value is dependent on where he lands. However, LeMahieu probably won't be anything more than a deep league option, but is someone to keep an eye on right now.
--Andy WebbSource: Jon Morosi
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