Tommy Edman, IF, STL
Edman went 2-5 with a run scored against the Pirates on Monday, and has had a nice week overall going 9-26 with a HR and 2 doubles over his past 6 games. He has been acting as the Cardinals primary leadoff hit for the last month or so with Matt Carpenter spending most of that time on the IL. Edman has been a good contact hitter (7.0% SwStr%) which has allowed him to maintain a solid BA, but he has only walked twice in 92 PA's, which has resulted in a .293 OBP that is not at all ideal for a leadoff hitter. Carpenter is hoping to return to the Cardinals this Friday, and while he doesn't hit for a good average, he has still posted a .321 OBP this season and will likely retake the leadoff spot upon his return. Edman's fantasy value is anyways limited as he doesn't really excel in any area, but being bumped from the leadoff spot, and possibly the lineup altogether, will remove most of his fantasy relevance.
Austin Riley, 3B, OF, ATL
After an excellent start to his MLB career, Riley has cooled off tremendously in recent months, hitting just .226 in June before falling to a dreadful .170/.224/.302 through 15 July games. His K% has gone from bad (33%) through May and June to worse (39.7%) in July, while his Hard% has dropped from 55.3% to 41.2% to 29.0% over his 3 months with the Braves. His struggles have come primarily against RHP's, as he's hitting just .227 with a 66:6 K:BB against them this season, and a mere .130/.163/.196 with a 21:2 K:BB in 49 PA's against righties this month. He'll probably figure things out at some point, but it's hard to predict when that will be. If it doesn't happen soon, the Braves may start using him as more of a platoon player.
Brandon Woodruff, SP, MIL
Woodruff was placed on the IL with an oblique strain on Monday and is expected to be out for about 6 weeks. This is a big blow for the Brewers and fantasy owners who were counting on Woodruff for the final two months of the season, as it now looks like his rest-of-season contributions will be rather minimal. Still, Woodruff's first full season as a big league starter has been a big success, probably even better than his 3.75 ERA indicates. He has an excellent 136:29 K:BB through 117.2 IP, and could probably have even better numbers with some regression to his .326 BABIP. Overall, his 3.45 xFIP ranks 13th among qualified starters, and he should be a valued fantasy asset once again in 2020.
Mike Yastrzemski, OF, SF
Yastrzemski stayed hot on Monday, going 2-4 with an RBI, and is now 15-38 (.395) with 4 HR's and 10 RBI over his last 9 games. Overall, he's hitting .265 with 9 HR's in 48 games for the Giants this season. His 26.7% K% is quite high and will make it difficult for him to hit for a good average, but it's worth noting that his K% is down to 22.0% in 59 PA's this month. He also has a Hard% of 41.4% and a 43.9% FB% which indicates that the HR's are no fluke. He does have the downside of playing in San Francisco - only 3 of his 9 HR's have come at home - but so far that hasn't stopped him from putting up good overall numbers.
Yu Darvish, SP, CHC
Darvish has suddenly turned his season around, pitching a combined 12 shutout innings over his last two starts with a 15:1 K:BB. In fact, he's been very good over his last 6 starts with a 45:6 K:BB across 36.2 IP and a 3.11 xFIP over that span. He'll face the Giants at Oracle Park on Tuesday, and while the Giants have been playing better recently, they still rank 28th in wOBA (.297) and wRC+ (83). Oracle Park ranks last in Park Factor in terms of runs scored. DraftKings Value Play Salary $9,200.
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