Week That Was: Week That Was: Deals, Debuts
The final week of July was an exciting one loaded with promotions for high-profile prospects and blockbuster trades. Let’s recap all of the important action:
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* Barely 12 months after drafting him with the No. 2 overall pick, the Astros promoted infielder Alex Bregman to the majors on Monday. The uber-talented 22-year-old blasted through the minors while playing mostly shortstop but started at third base and DH during his first week in Houston.
Although he is 0-for-13 thus far, Bregman carries a lofty offensive ceiling, bringing both power and outstanding discipline into the batter’s box. In 80 games at Double-A and Triple-A prior to his call-up, he had a .986 OPS with 20 homers, 22 doubles, seven steals, 47 walks and only 38 strikeouts.
He’ll play regularly and his potent right-handed bat should play well in Houston’s yard. He needs to be owned everywhere.
* For the first time in nearly two full years, Tyler Skaggs took the hill for the Angels on Tuesday. It was a long road back from 2014 Tommy John surgery, filled with setbacks that continually delayed his return, but he wasted no time reminding us of his tremendous ability. Facing the Royals in Kansas City, the southpaw hurled seven scoreless innings, allowing only three hits and a walk while fanning five.
The brilliant season debut comes on the heels of an extremely impressive minor-league rehab stint, wherein Skaggs posted a 1.60 ERA and 0.87 WHIP over nine starts. He had struck out 26 batters while allowing two hits and zero runs over his last two starts in Triple-A. All signs are pointing in a very positive direction for the former elite prospect, currently available in 70 percent of Yahoo leagues.
* David Dahl has long been viewed as one of the game’s most promising outfield prospects, and his absurd performance after being Triple-A following an early-July promotion (.484 average and 1.417 OPS in 16 games) left the Rockies with little choice but to bring him up for a look.
In his first week of games, Dahl is off to a hot start with seven hits in 19 at-bats, including a home run. The 22-year-old is a career .310/.357/.513 hitter in the minors, and is made all the more enticing by playing home games at Coors Field.
* Heading into the ninth inning with a slim deficit against the Cubs was already a tough proposition when they were handing the ball to Hector Rondon. This week, that proposition got even tougher.
The Cubs made their huge, all-in splash on Monday when they acquired Aroldis Chapman from the Yankees in exchange for a hefty prospect haul. The flame-throwing righty had been a dominant force at the back end of New York’s bullpen since returning from an early-season suspension and has converted 89 of 96 save chances dating back to 2014, with monster strikeout rates to boot.
His addition powers up Chicago for a World Series run, but the move doesn’t seem likely to affect his fantasy value much one way or the other. The Cubs have produced surprisingly few save opportunities, in part because they tend to win in lopsided fashion. They have come back to Earth in recent weeks, however, and that might be a precursor to more close games down the stretch.
Chapman appeared twice for the Cubs this week and recorded his first save with the new club on Thursday.
* The Padres shipped Melvin Upton to the Blue Jays along with cash for teenage pitching prospect Hansel Rodriguez. Upton has been one of fantasy baseball’s most pleasant surprises this year, particularly considering his disadvantage of playing home games in San Diego. In 93 games with the Padres, he posted a .741 OPS with 16 home runs and 20 steals, a throwback to his early days in Tampa.
On the surface, moving from Petco to hitter-friendly Rogers Centre would seem to provide a nice bump for his value, but that’s not exactly the case. There is more competition for playing time in Toronto’s outfield, and the power-packed Blue Jays lineup has less need to steal bases and manufacture runs. Still, his pop should play up, and he’s nearly a lock to surpass his career high of 24 homers, set back in 2007.
* Miami acquired Andrew Cashner and Colin Rea from the Padres, sending Jarred Cosart, Carter Capps and two prospects to San Diego. The Marlins are hopeful that Cashner, who has a 2.55 ERA and and 23-to-3 K/BB ratio in his last three starts, can stay hot.
Meanwhile, moving to Petco could be a career-reviving development for Cosart, a 26-year-old who has struggled to turn the corner in the majors. Capps is out for the season while recovering from Tommy John surgery but may eventually become San Diego’s closer.
* On Tuesday night in Minnesota, Lucas Harrell picked up his second win of the season with six scoreless innings against the Twins. One day later, the Braves shipped him to Texas along with reliever Dario Alexander. Harrell is a 31-year-old mediocrity, and not the kind of high-impact addition that’s going to reinvigorate the Rangers’ beat-up rotation, but he might prove to be an upgrade at the back end.
* It’s now official: Prince Fielder is done for the season. He underwent fusion surgery on his neck Friday, the second time in his career undergoing such a procedure. He came back strong following the 2014 surgery, but is now 32 and slumped to a career-low .626 OPS in 89 games this season. There’s plenty of reason for concern regarding his long-term outlook.
The Rangers are hoping that Joey Gallo, recalled on Tuesday, can help make up for the big loss. In 70 games at Triple-A, he had launched 19 homers while whiffing in 30 percent of plate appearances. His power is worth adding if you can tolerate the steady strikeouts.
* Raul Mondesi has seen crazy ups and downs over the past 12 months. He went from making his MLB debut in the World Series at age 20, to sitting out the first 50 games of this season on PED ban, to rocketing through the minors in less than a month and returning to the majors. With Whit Merrifield demoted, Mondesi is in line for regular playing time at second base with the Royals.
He’s one of those raw, fast-rising players whose numbers may take a while to catch up to his talent. But we still like him as a pickup in deeper leagues. His athleticism, speed and sneaky power make for a compelling combination.
* Finally finished with his 80-game suspension, Dee Gordon was reinstated by Miami on Thursday. He’ll take over once again as everyday second baseman, pushing Derek Dietrich back into a utility role. He went 0-for-4 in his return to the lineup on Thursday but picked up two hits on Friday.
* We have seen pitchers miss starts for a lot of different reasons. It’s safe to say that last Saturday was a first. Chris Sale was scratched by the White Sox after shredding the team’s throwback uniforms, which he said were uncomfortable. He was suspended for five games but returned to hill on Thursday, allowing two runs over six innings in a loss to the Cubs. According to Bob Nightengale, the Rangers are in aggressive pursuit of Sale as Monday’s deadline looms.
