Eric Hosmer- 1B- KC- Idea- Hosmer has shown more power this season against southpaws, but with a .319/.384/.474 slash line against RH pitching he is still in good shape for a solid game. This is because he will be facing Hisashi Iwakuma and his .323/.368/.508 slash line against LH hitting. Value play- Draft Kings salary $4200
Chi Chi Gonzalez- P- TEX- Cold- It could have been worse for Gonzalez, who allowed 4 runs in 4.2 IP on 9 hits and 5 walks while striking out 5. All of the runs came in the first 2 IP but Gonzalez had control issues throughout his appearance. He walked 2 of the last 3 batters he faced and ended up throwing a grand total of 124 pitches, 75 of which were strikes. That kind of workload for a 24-year-old who is struggling is not good pitcher management. Gonzalez hasn't performed well in any of his 3 starts this year, getting knocked out in the first inning in his last outing and allowing 5 runs on 10 hits in 5 IP in his season debut. Given the amount of pitches wrung out of his arm last night, even if he stays in the rotation and gets extra rest due to the All Star Break, he can't be recommended as a sleeper for the second half.
Hector Santiago- P- LAA- Caution- For the 4th time in his last 5 outings, Santiago threw a quality start. He threw 7 shutout IP, allowing 3 hits and walking 4 while striking out 9. It was also Santiago's third straight start of more than 110 pitches. In May he had similar high pitch counts in 2 of 3 outings and that preceded a stretch where he went 5 straight without a quality start and only lasted longer than 4 IP in one of them. Keep a close watch the next time Santiago takes the mound. He has 5 high-pitch games this season and only had 3 in all of 2015.
Mark Teixeira-1B- NYA- Stats- Teixeira went 0-for-4 yesterday, making it the first time since returning from the DL that he has been hitless in consecutive games. This may just be a brief pause in some regression to the mean, as his BABIP is at .231. Teixeira is hoping that his injured knee holds up long enough to allow him to benefit from that regression. His power seems to have returned, as he has slugged 4 homers in the 11 games since he has come back. There is definite risk since Teixeira is one bad move from needing season-ending surgery, but he is a solid candidate to put up good numbers in the second half if he holds up.
Cameron Maybin- OF- DET- Cold- After a recent 7-game hitting streak, Maybin is 3-for-15 in his last 6 games. He has raised his Batting EYE this year to 0.64 from his 0.44 in 2015 but the major part of his .345 average is good luck. Maybin's .403 BABIP is an indication that regression to the mean could be starting. With 2 homers in 188 PAs so far this year his power surge of 10 homers in 555 PAs last year has evaporated. Maybin is looking like a prime sell high candidate for the second half.
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