Keon Broxton is 0-for his last 19, including an 0-for-4 yesterday. He has 40+ SB potential, but at what cost? He's currently batting .119 (not a typo). He can be dropped in all formats - he's clearly overmatched with a K rate nearing 50%. You'll have to find SB elsewhere.
Amir Garrett left yesterday in line for the loss after allowing 2 ER in 7 innings against the Orioles, but the spotlight was on his 12 strikeouts. The rookie dazzled last night and showed some potential that I didn't know was there. If you have the spot available, I think he's worth a flier at this point. He didn't overly impress in his first two starts this year, but there are enough positive signs to believe there are solid results in the future. He sports a solid 47% GB rate and a SwStr% over 10%, both great metrics. His stuff doesn't seem that dominant (low 90s fastball), but that didn't slow him down last night.
Dexter Fowler flexed his muscles yesterday, providing all the offense the Cardinals needed with his 1st and 2nd HR of the season as part of a 3-hit day. The big free agent had just a 21 wRC+ coming into yesterday, so single-handedly winning the game for the Cardinals must have been a sweet feeling. Fowler has looked lost so far in 2017, swinging at more pitches outside the zone than at any point in his career. I'd expect a decrease from last year's results given the team change, but certainly improved from current statistics once he settles into St. Louis.
Here's to hoping Gerrit Cole turned a corner yesterday? Despite taking the loss, Cole was impressive over 6 innings allowing just 2 ER with 8 strikeouts. The 2 ER were both solo shots by Dexter Fowley, but a normalized HR/FB rate would yield better results for Cole. His ERA is over a run worst than his SIERA, suggesting that early results shouldn't be as bad as they've been. Still, he would expect better than a 4+ ERA from Cole. Yesterday's start showcased better ability than that, so let's point the arrow up for Cole.
Another start, and another horrible outing for Kyle Hendricks; he allowed 4 ER over 5 innings, allowing 4 hits, 4 walks, and 4 strikeouts. His ERA sits at 6.19 on the year, a far cry from 2016's 2.13 ERA. The story here is that Hendricks was incredibly lucky in 2016 by over one run, and now alternatively he's unlucky by (before yesterday) nearly two runs. His ERA now sits at an unfortunate 6.19 for the year, which begs the question, what do we expect moving forward? It's tough to put a number on it, but I'd say his final season ERA will sit between 3.60-3.80 - good but not spectacular. It could be a decent time to buy low if an owner is ready to abandon ship.
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