I'd be remiss not to mention the big injuries from the weekend here. Obviously, stock down for Mookie Betts, who has a fractured wrist, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who has a strained rotator cuff.
Chris Towers has already rattled off some replacement targets for each, which you'll find here and here. Beyond that, the analysis for Betts and Yamamoto is pretty straightforward: You stash them and hope they're back early in the second half, which is about a month from now.
It's not as straightforward for Kyle Bradish, who's back on the IL with the same UCL sprain that sidelined him for pretty close to three months, spring training included. He had pitched beautifully since returning, putting together a 2.75 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and 12.1 K/9, but if this recurrence costs him another three months, the season will practically be over by the time he's ready to return. Worse than that, it raises the chances of him needing a surgical remedy (typically of the Tommy John variety).
All told, Bradish is the biggest loser from this weekend because he went from being a must-start to a possible drop in the blink of an eye. Ideally, you would hold on until the Orioles offered some semblance of a timeline, but pessimism is the rightful response.
How about some positive developments?
Stock Up
One of the most disappointing hitters in a season full of them, Austin Riley homered in all three games against the Rays this weekend to lead the Braves' offensive resurgence, going 6 for 10 overall. He hit the ball 101.2 mph on average and struck out only once. Frankly, that's all it should take to restore your faith in him. His plate discipline and exit velocity readings were always fine. What lagged the most, other than the production itself, was his barrel rate, which seemed like it could simply be a matter of him getting his timing down -- and to be fair, he did miss two weeks in the middle of May with an intercostal strain. Well, the timing is down now, and much, much more damage is likely to follow.
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Speaking of disappointing hitters, Nolan Jones may have topped the list himself in April, striking out in 36 percent of his plate appearances while batting just .170. A knee injury then put him out for long enough to make him an afterthought, but he's back now and already looking more composed at the plate, going 4 for 8 with five walks and two strikeouts in his three games against the Pirates. He credits the work he did with Triple-A hitting coach Jordan Pacheco on his rehab assignment. "As time went on, I started feeling more and more comfortable," Jones told MLB.com. I'm encouraged enough that I'd look to take advantage of what could be a small buy-low window before Jones really catches fire. Remember, he hit .297 with 20 homers, 20 steals and a .931 OPS in 106 games for the Rockies last season.
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In the span of two weeks, Heliot Ramos has gone from being a curiosity on the waiver wire to an integral part of many Fantasy lineups, particularly given the dearth of offense in the outfield this season. This weekend only helped to solidify his savior standing, seeing him go 7 for 14 with two home runs in a three-game series against the Angels. His 28.5 percent strikeout rate is still reason for pause, but his 93.5 mph average exit velocity is up there with Yordan Alvarez and Marcell Ozuna. His .276 xBA and .550 xSLG would also suggest that he's mostly earned what he's delivered so far.
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This latest start for Hunter Brown was his most impressive one yet. It's also the one where he threw his four-seam fastball the least, just 16 percent of the time. That's no coincidence. In four starts since Brown began fading his four-seamer for more sinkers and cutters, he has put together a 1.44 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, and 11.5 K/9, throwing 65 percent of his pitches for strikes compared to just 61 percent previously. The four-seamer remains his most-thrown pitch this season at 38 percent, which tells you how much he was using it before, but it's also by far his worst in terms of average exit velocity (92.8 mph) and batting average against (.327). The 25-year-old was always thought to be a talented pitcher, and he appears to have tweaked his arsenal to maximize that talent.
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Like Austin Riley, J.D. Martinez's plate discipline and exit velocity readings were basically on par with his 2023, when he homered 33 times in just 113 games for the Dodgers. What's different from Riley is that after a four-game stretch in which he went 8 for 13 with three homers and three doubles, Martinez's barrel rate is actually higher than last year and seventh in all of baseball at 18.1 percent. The biggest knock on him last year was that his strikeout rate had ballooned to 31 percent. Well, it's down to 26 percent now. All of this is reason to believe he's back up to speed after signing late in spring training and having to spend the first few weeks playing catch-up against minor-league pitchers. Martinez's DH-only status makes him a difficult fit in some leagues, but his 67 percent roster rate needs to go way up.
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Tyler Soderstrom always earned high marks as a prospect, but the Athletics seemed to promote him faster than his bat could keep up with. That was certainly the case for his first major-league trial last year when he hit .160 (20 for 125) in 60 games. Things started out much the same this year, with inconsistent playing time helping to keep him down, but all of a sudden, the Athletics have had Soderstrom in the lineup for 11 straight games. And during that time, he's batted .342 (13 for 38) with four homers, a 19 percent strikeout rate, and an average exit velocity of 93 mph. It's a little early to conclude that he's ready to meet the full extent of his potential, but seeing as he's catcher-eligible in CBS Sports leagues, it's worth giving him the benefit of the doubt just for the surplus of at-bats.
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Austin Riley may have been the face of the Braves' turnaround this weekend, but Jarred Kelenic saw the biggest tangible benefit. He moved up to the leadoff spot Saturday and Sunday and figures to remain there, at least against right-handers, for as long as Michael Harris is sidelined by a strained hamstring. He seemed to enjoy the higher-profile role, homering in both games and going 4 for 10 between them, and was showing signs of life even before then. He has now hit all six of his home runs in his past 30 games, batting .273 (27 for 99) during that stretch with a reduced strikeout rate (25.7 vs. 29.3 percent) and an improved average exit velocity (90.9 vs. 89.5 mph). Just the move up the lineup is reason to give Kelenic a second look in five-outfielder leagues, and it's not unreasonable to think the 24-year-old hasn't maxed out his potential yet.
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Davidjohn Herz (known in most circles as DJ) began his major-league career with two forgettable starts, but this third one was an absolute humdinger. Perhaps it was just because he was facing a bad Marlins lineup, but there are reasons for optimism, such as his 12.9 K/9 over his minor-league career. There are also the scouting reports touting his deceptive fastball that plays behind its 93 mph and his plus-plus changeup. Together, those pitches combined for 19 of his 21 swinging strikes Saturday. Herz has a history of control issues that may prevent him from ever finding his footing in the majors, but he's the sort of oddball pitcher who defies conventional evaluation methods and could turn into a real find. Coming into this year, we would have said Jake Irvin and Mitchell Parker had control issues, too, and now they're among the top strike-throwers in the majors.
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Stock Down
Jesus Luzardo's actual stat line from Sunday's start may not strike you as particularly troublesome, but a look underneath reveals serious cause for alarm. He had only four swinging strikes on 77 pitches, and his entire arsenal was down 2-3 mph. Apparently, he was pitching through some back stiffness that may have contributed to the diminished stuff, but he's been dealing with some degree of velocity fluctuation all season long and hasn't been particularly sharp overall. Pitching for the Marlins leaves little margin for error, and Luzardo's 5.00 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 7.8 K/9 rate aren't going to cut it. I'm not saying it's time to cut bait, but maybe you should shop him hard the next time he has a strong outing.
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Zack Littell was one of the victims of the Braves' offense resurgence this weekend, but while Ryan Pepiot and Zach Eflin still offer reason for optimism, Littell is looking like a lost cause. He was the least regarded of the three coming into the season but looked like another pitching success story for the Rays early on, putting together a 3.00 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 9.7 K/9 through seven starts. Even then, though, the batting average against was high (which explains the inflated WHIP). Things have gone entirely off the rails here in June with a 7.71 ERA, 2.07 WHIP and 4.5 K/9 through three starts. He throws plenty of strikes, but his stuff isn't good enough to hold up to the offensive explosion that could be set to happen this summer with increasing temperatures and humidity.
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