Trevor Bauer (SP, Cle): Bauer was effective again Monday, taking advantage of a crummy Braves offense by going six innings and allowing two earned runs on five hits and three walks, striking out five and earning his sixth win of the season. The lynchpin to his success this season is that he's finally seemed to have figured out how to locate his pitches. His 2.99 BB/9 is the lowest of his MLB career by a wide margin, and he's still getting strikeouts at a solid clip (8.37 K/9). He's also helped limit home runs, which has been a problem for him in the past, and has upped his ground ball rate to a career-best 50%. His end of season ERA will likely lay more in the mid-threes range than the 3.19 ERA he's got now, but he's looking like he's finally turned the corner and should be a solid player for the rest of the season.
Danny Duffy (SP/RP, KC): Duffy turned in a strong performance against the Cardinals, giving up only two earned runs on six hits in eight innings. He struck out eight Cards without walking a batter en route to his third win of the season. Duffy has impressed as a starter for the most part, carrying his increased velocity from the bullpen with him into his starting role. He averaged 96.8 on his four-seam fastball in the start, topping out at 98.2 and generated eight whiffs on the night. That's seriously elite stuff coming from a lefty, and the curve and change (but especially the curve) have been plenty good as secondary offerings. The Duff Man needs to be owned in all leagues at this point based on the upside he's shown, but keep in mind his extensive injury history and consider him more as gravy complementing your rotation rather than a main course.
Matt Shoemaker (SP, LAA): Shoemaker tossed six shutout innings Monday night against the Astros. He allowed only five hits and a walk, striking out six. After a miserable April that saw his ERA sitting at 9.15 through 20.2 innings of work, Shoemaker has completely turned things around. He now has a 4.12 ERA on the season with a 3.39 FIP and impressive strikeout and walk rates of 9.27 and 1.85, respectively. He really altered his pitch usage after his horrid April almost booted him from baseball, and it's clearly worked. His main pitch is now his splitter, which he throws even more than his fastball now. He's worth starting as long as he can keep this going, and he should be owned in all but the shallowest of leagues moving forward.
Logan Forsythe (2B, TB): Forsythe had a big night at the dish, going 3-5 with a home run, double, two runs scored and three RBI. The home run was his sixth on the year, pairing it with four stolen bases and a surprising .297/.366/.495 slash line. His .369 BABIP stands out against his career .302 mark and screams regression, but he's also making great contact with the ball this year. He's got a 26.3% line drive rate and a solid 34.6% hard contact rate, which will ease the inevitable regression a little bit. He's a terrific DFS option against lefties, with a .452 wOBA vs LHP this season, but has also been solid against right-handed pitching, which is a new feather in his cap. Keep riding him while he's hot, but don't put yourself in a position where you're depending on this production to continue for the rest of the season.
Hyun-Soo Kim (OF, Bal): Kim faces Padres starter Erik Johnson in San Diego on Tuesday. Since (finally) earning playing time in Baltimore, Kim has been on a tear against right-handed pitching, posting a .384 wOBA with a 0.80 BB/K ratio and hitting at or near the top of the potent Orioles lineup. On the flip side, Erik Johnson has been equally as bad this season, posting an 8.54 ERA in 26.1 innings of work with a .383 wOBA against LHH. It's a good day to stack your Orioles, but Kim is a nice cheap option out of the bunch with a price tag of $3,300 on Draft Kings.
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