Justin Verlander - Verlander had a solid outing against the White Sox Wednesday, holding them to 5 hits and 3 runs over 7 innings to pick up his 10th QS in his last 12 outings. More importantly perhaps, he fanned 8, picked up 16 swinging strikes, and threw his last 5 pitches 98-99 mph, a level that he's only reached twice before in the past 2 seasons. The GB rate is certainly worse than it was in his prime and he's been a bit more fortunate with balls in play, but otherwise he looks like he's "back". I'm leaning toward valuing him as a solid SP3 heading into 2016.
Kevin Pillar - Pillar has reached base in 10 straight after a single and an RBI Wednesday against the Yankees, and he also stole his fifth base over that stretch. He has 11 HRs and 23 SBs on the season, and as one of the top defensive CFs in the game he will have a pretty long leash from the team going forward. I like the strides that he's made in contact rate and, to a lesser extent, his chase rate this season....it was a pretty solid first full season with the club. I do think that he will prove to be a draftable commodity in standard-sized leagues come spring, and with his very unfortunate BABIP this year, there may be a touch of AVG upside here, which of course would also provide a slight increase in SB opportunities.
Rusney Castillo - For a guy that elicited such praise before arriving in the majors, I've seen very little offensively to recommend him heading into 2016. Castillo is hitting 265/300/378 with 5 HRs and 4 SBs in about 2/5 of a season's worth of ABs, which basically makes him a 12/10 guy. He swings over 50% of the time, so he isn't going to walk much. He's hitting the ball on the ground well over 60% of the time, so the power numbers are destined to be poor, not to mention that his BBS is below average on the balls that he has hit over the fence. He has plenty of speed, but he's 4 for 9 stealing bases, so he has a lot to learn there as well. The Sox seem to be committed to him as an everyday OF in 2016, but unless I see something entirely different come spring, I'll likely let someone else take the gamble that this year has just been an adjustment period.
Ketel Marte - Marte is starting to catch my attention a bit, after another 3-5 performance (with a triple) Wednesday extends his hitting streak to 11 games. He came into the game hitting 306/383/431 for the month, which is pretty OK for a 21 year old SS. Marte definitely has speed, but he isn't completely punchless either, as he had 32 doubles, 6 triples, and 4 homers as a 20 year old at AA and AAA last season. Those numbers are 27/4/3 respectively this year in 113 games, giving some hope that he could show a bit of over-the-fence pop (think 8-10 HR) within a few years. The contact rate is solid and the speed is very good.....I could see him as a solid deep league starter at CI right now, and he could very easily assume that role in standard-sized formats going forward as well.
Rougned Odor - Odor homered again Wednesday, giving him 15 on the year in just 386 ABs. His 2nd half ISO (.250 heading into the contest) is top-15 in MLB, and he's still just 21 years old. I can't say enough about this kid....I think he is going to be a star.
