Thursday delivered the kind of scoreboard chaos that reminds you why this sport can feel like a home-run derby one minute and a chess match the next. Around the league, hitters piled up 39 homers and a .185 isolated power, with a few swings standing out from the noise.
Tigers rookie Eduardo Valencia homered in his first big league at-bat, Mike Yastrzemski capped a ninth-inning rally for the Braves with a grand slam, and Matt Olson went deep for Atlanta on the same day he tied the franchise record by playing his 740th straight game for the club. But the day’s biggest story belonged to the Yankees’ Ben Rice, who went deep twice against the Rays at Tropicana Field just two days after signing up for the Home Run Derby.
It was his first multi-homer game of the season.
The Rangers also got a lift from a bat they badly needed back. Wyatt Langford returned yesterday after missing two weeks with a hamstring strain, and while he struck out three times in a 1-for-5 night, his lone hit was the one that mattered.
Langford drove a long single to deep left field, brought home Alejandro Osuna from second, and walked off the game for Texas. That win pushed the Rangers into first place in the AL West, and their case for staying there gets a lot stronger if Langford keeps looking like himself.
Another impact bat could be back soon, too: Munetaka Murakami is expected to rejoin the White Sox today after missing more than a month, and Minnesota may also have Ryan Jeffers available tonight. No official announcement has come yet, but Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reported that Jeffers was back in the clubhouse yesterday.
The Twins optioned outfielder Kyler Fedko after their series finale against the Guardians, which opened a spot on the active roster. Jeffers, one of MLBTR’s top-ranked trade candidates, was off to a strong start before a hamate fracture sidelined him in mid-May.
In Cincinnati, the Phillies and Reds played a tight one that turned into a pure pitching duel, and Jesús Luzardo came out on top. Philadelphia won 1-0 behind seven scoreless innings from Luzardo, who needed 96 pitches to get through his work.
He allowed only two hits, both singles, along with two walks and a hit-by-pitch, and he struck out 11 for his fourth double-digit strikeout game of the year. Only Jacob Misiorowski and Dylan Cease have more.
Luzardo was also just named an All-Star for the first time in his career, taking Max Meyer’s spot on the roster.
Brady Singer matched him nearly pitch for pitch for the Reds. Singer also threw seven scoreless innings, and he did it on just 89 pitches, but the Phillies finally broke through against him in the eighth.
He was the only starter yesterday to work beyond the seventh inning, and the outing only added to the attention around him as an impending free agent and one of MLBTR’s Top 35 Trade Candidates. Two of his last four starts have come against the Phillies and Brewers, and both were strong enough to help his trade stock.
And then there’s Miami, which keeps forcing its way into the conversation. The Marlins swept the Mariners, moved 10 games over .500, and pushed their run differential to +31, the seventh-best mark in the sport.
They’ve now won 16 of their last 20, matching the franchise record for wins in a 20-game stretch. It’s only the second time they’ve done that in a single season, and the first since 2004.
Sure, a skeptic could note that every other team in baseball has pulled off a 16-4 run more recently than Miami, but that doesn’t make the stretch any less impressive. At minimum, the Marlins will go into the All-Star break tied for a Wild Card spot, and they’re starting to look like a club that could be active at the trade deadline.
In Other News...
Marlins Make A Delicate Max Meyer Call Before The Break
Max Meyer has been one of the more important arms in Miamis first-half push, and the club is treating his workload like it matters. After 19 starts in his first full major league season, the right-hander has given the Marlins exactly what they hoped for, pairing a 9-1 record with a 2.58 ERA while handling a rotation load that has only grown more valuable as the summer has worn on.
So the club is choosing the safer path before the break, giving Meyer a chance to rest after his recent start rather than pushing him through another outing. He will also sit out the Midsummer Classic, a move that keeps him fresh for the second half and underscores how carefully Miami is managing one of its best young pitchers. [Read more 🡒]
Marlins Suddenly Have A New Owen Caissie Problem To Worry About
Owen Caissies first real run with the Marlins has hit a snag, and it comes at a time when Miami was still trying to sort out how the rookie outfielder fits into the mix. Manager Clayton McCullough said Caissie felt tightness in his calf, then worked pregame the next day before the issue flared again early in the game and forced him out for further evaluation.
The timing leaves the Marlins juggling their corner-outfield looks again, with Heriberto Hernndez, Hinds and Griffin Conine all in the conversation depending on the matchup and pitcher handiness. For a club that has been trying to piece together consistency in the outfield, losing another option even briefly adds one more layer of uncertainty to a group that was already going to be watched closely. [Read more 🡒]
Otto Lopez Just Reached A Marlins Milestone Nobody Saw Coming
Otto Lopez has become one of the most surprising stories in Miamis first half, and the numbers keep piling up. In the same game the Marlins completed a sweep of the Mariners for their sixth straight win, Lopez kept adding to a season that has put him at the center of the lineup and helped push the club to 10 games over .500.
Lopez is also sitting atop the major leagues in batting average and hits, a remarkable place for a player who has turned consistency into a franchise centerpiece. The Marlins got another boost from Janson Junks return from injury, as he worked five innings, and now the focus shifts to the Guardians with Sandy Alcantara lined up to start the next game. [Read more 🡒]