Happy Thursday, everyone! The excitement continues for a Reds fanbase that hasn't had much to get excited about in recent years -- they were winners of their 11th straight on Wednesday. This marks the longest win streak for the Reds since 1957. We also saw a dominant performance on the mound from the best player in baseball fresh off Frank Stampfl questioning his ceiling as Shohei Ohtani looked incredible on Wednesday.
Last week, there were doubts about Ohtani's pitching, but he responded with an outstanding performance against the formidable Dodgers. Ohtani pitched a gem, going seven innings while allowing just one earned run on five hits. He demonstrated his dominance by striking out 12 batters and recording an impressive 34% called strikes plus whiff rate (CSW). Ohtani's season statistics speak volumes, with a 3.13 ERA, a 1.04 WHIP, and a remarkable 117 strikeouts over 89 innings pitched.
Rookie Pitcher Updates
Taj Bradley stood out with his first quality start against the Orioles. This was the best he's looked all season. Bradley showcased his potential, pitching six innings of one-run ball, surrendering only three hits while striking out eight. This solid outing was notable for Bradley as he minimized walks, an issue in his previous starts. With a 3.86 ERA, a 1.20 WHIP, and an impressive 13 strikeouts per 9 innings (K/9), Bradley's performance indicates significant improvement. However, it's worth monitoring his high .342 batting average on balls in play (BABIP) and his tendency to allow hard contact (90.7 average exit velocity against).
Andrew Abbott, another rookie pitcher, maintained his impressive form despite allowing his first run of the season. He delivered another quality start against the Rockies, pitching six innings and striking out 10 batters. Abbott did give up three solo home runs, but his ability to avoid issuing walks was encouraging. With a 1.14 ERA, a 0.97 WHIP, and 22 strikeouts over 23 2/3 innings pitched, Abbott remains an intriguing fantasy asset.
Waiver Wire Targets
Scott White broke down his favorite players to target off the waiver wire here. These are a few of the standouts:
Garrett Whitlock, SP, Red Sox: "Garrett Whitlock's latest start in which he allowed four runs in seven innings at the Twins isn't so impressive on its own, but it marked his third straight with 18 swinging strikes. He never had even 15 in a start previously. He's been incredibly efficient during that time as well, averaging 89 pitches despite exceeding six innings in all three starts. What made Wednesday's start different from the other two is that his new sweeper wasn't primarily responsible for the whiffs. It generated only two on the 13 he threw. Instead, his fastball/changeup combo (he's been working to slow down the latter) did the heavy lifting. All in all, the converted reliever appears to be taking to the starting role, and the upside may be higher than originally thought."
Julio Teheran, SP, Brewers: "The Diamondbacks seemed like a prime choice to end Julio Teheran's unexpected run of success Wednesday, but instead, he shut them out over five innings, lowering his ERA and WHIP through six starts to 1.53 and 0.88, respectively. Normally, I'd be inclined to dismiss such numbers from a pitcher averaging 5.9 strikeouts per nine innings -- and surely some correction is in order -- but during his many years with the Braves, Teheran would regularly outperform his peripherals. He seems to be the sort of pitcher who defies the usual evaluation methods. Notably, he's fading his 90 mph fastball in favor of a sinker and cutter -- i.e., fastballs with movement -- which might explain why he's inducing such weak contact. His 3.13 xERA suggests it's not all good luck. No one should be surprised if Teheran suddenly crumbles, but some degree of continued success is also a possibility."
Scott McGough, RP, Diamondbacks: "When Scott McGough came out for the eighth inning Wednesday, you might have presumed all the talk of him becoming the closer was premature. But then he stayed in for the ninth, too, striking out four in all without allowing a baserunner to pick up his fourth save. He now has three of the Diamondbacks' past four saves and was the last pitcher to take the mound in each of his past five appearances, including three times for a save, once in a tie and once with a four-run lead. The first-place Diamondbacks could use some stability in the ninth, and given that McGough (who was a closer in Japan the past two years) has a 0.38 ERA, 0.63 WHIP and 11.4 K/9 over his past 18 appearances, they may have found it."
Williams' debut
In the realm of rookie debuts, Gavin Williams took the mound, facing off against the Athletics. Although his performance yielded mixed results, there were positive takeaways. Williams pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing four earned runs on four hits while striking out four batters. He showcased a four-pitch repertoire, with his fastball accounting for 54% of his pitches. Notably, his slider displayed impressive vertical drop, reminiscent of Tanner Bibee's style.
However, Williams struggled with his curveball, giving up hard-hit balls with an average exit velocity of 97.2 mph. Despite a few walks and a challenging third inning, Williams settled down and retired eight batters consecutively. Fantasy managers should monitor his progress and evaluate his potential moving forward.
News and notes
- Carlos Rodon will make his next rehab start at Double-A Sunday after pitching well in his first outing Tuesday.
- Braves manager Brian Snitker said Sean Murphy's hamstring felt better after running Wednesday.
- Bo Bichette was scratched from the lineup with left thumb discomfort.
- The x-rays on Dansby Swanson's right wrist came back negative but he was out of the lineup Wednesday.
- Emmet Sheehan's next start will come Friday at home against the Astros.
- Tim Anderson has missed four straight with right shoulder soreness.
- Jordan Walker was out of the lineup with an illness Wednesday.
- Kenta Maeda will return to start Friday against the Tigers. He's 29% rostered.
- Andrew McCutchen was out of the lineup due to a sore right elbow.
- Logan O'Hoppe began lightly throwing Wednesday. He's been out since April after having surgery on his non-throwing shoulder.
- LaMonte Wade was sent for an MRI after being scratched Tuesday due to right side soreness. He said he's hoping to return to the lineup Thursday so it doesn't sound too bad.
- DJ LeMahieu has sat out three straight as he tries to make adjustments amidst a very long slump.
- Vinnie Pasquantino underwent surgery Wednesday to repair the torn labrum in his right shoulder.
- Gio Urshela doesn't need surgery on his fractured pelvis, but he will miss the remainder of the season.
