Adam Wainwright pitched another gem on Wednesday against the Royals, earning the win with seven innings of shutout ball in Kansas City. Wainwright faced little resistance from a Royals lineup that managed just a single and a walk against him while striking out twice and forcing him to throw just 89 pitches. Now in his 17th MLB season, the 40-year-old Wainwright is still incredibly effective despite not missing many bats. He's allowed one run or less in three of his six outings this year while notching three quality starts, leading to a 3-3 record with a 3.18 ERA. While he's had a couple of subpar starts this year as well, his overall numbers are still quite good, especially for a pitcher with over 2,400 career innings on his arm. The lack of whiffs limits his fantasy value somewhat, but he'll still be a must-start in all formats when he takes on the lowly Orioles at home next week.
Alex Bregman sparked the Astros to a 7-2 win over the Mariners on Wednesday by going 3-for-3 with a double, two runs, and three RBIs. Bregman snapped out of his slump in a major way with his first three-hit game of the season, ending a 3-for-31 skid over his previous nine games. The trio of hits raised his batting averaged from .220 to .247 and boosted his OPS from .745 to .794. Bregman's had a couple of strong games here and there to start the year but still seems to be searching for his groove at the plate (like many hitters across the league), so perhaps this outburst can give him a jolt and get him going offensively. He's still batting third in a loaded Astros lineup, so he's in an ideal spot to do damage on a regular basis. On the other hand, his .794 OPS is remarkably similar to his .785 mark from 2020-21, so perhaps this is just the type of hitter Bregman is now. There's still a lot of time for him to turn things around, obviously, especially as the weather warms, but perhaps he's merely a very good player rather than an All-Star / MVP candidate.
Martin Perez wound up with a no-decision on Wednesday despite tossing seven shutout innings against the Phillies, spreading out four hits and four walks while striking out four. Perez only threw 49 of his 88 pitches for strikes and nearly doubled his season walk total from five to nine, but he still found a way to stifle an incredible dangerous Philadelphia lineup. He also traded zeroes with Zack Wheeler for seven frames before handing the game over to the bullpen. Perez has now logged seven innings in back-to-back outings and has ripped off three straight quality starts, lowering his ERA to a sparkling 2.25 despite posting a 6.75 ERA over his first two outings. Perez has still yet to earn a win this year, however, as the Rangers haven't played well and have failed to support him properly. The veteran lefty appears to have settled back in with the Rangers after three years away from the team, but his sustained track record of mediocrity (career 4.68 ERA) suggests regression will bring him back to earth eventually. He'll look to get that first dub in a tasty home matchup with the Royals next week where he'll have loads of streaming potential.
Rowdy Tellez was the driving force behind Milwaukee's 18-4 rout of Cincinnati on Wednesday, going 4-for-6 with a double, two homers, and eight RBIs. Tellez erupted against the Reds' horrendous pitching, crushing a go-ahead grand slam in the third inning that put the Brewers ahead for good. He later added a two-run shot for good measure and finished with an impressive 11 total bases. Tellez had already gone deep against Cincinnati on Tuesday as well and now has four homers over his last four games. The four hits raised his average to a solid .267, and he now has seven home runs and 21 RBIs in 24 games this year along with a .950 OPS. Tellez has hit in spurts before, such as his .886 OPS during the shortened 2020 campaign, but he's never put it together for a full season. Could this be the year the 27-year-old finally breaks out for real? It's still a bit early to tell, but he's on the right path and has proven himself to be a reliable fantasy option this year.
Jon Berti went 2-for-5 with a pair of solo homers against the Diamondbacks on Wednesday. Berti gave Miami the early lead with his leadoff homer against Madison Bumgarner in the bottom of the first inning before adding another big fly in the seventh. Berti's first career multi-homer game also produced his first big flies of the season, which isn't surprising given that he's not much of a power hitter. Prior to Wednesday, Berti had managed just 12 home runs and 61 RBIs with a .365 slugging percentage in 215 career games across five seasons. While fantasy managers shouldn't expect many more performances like this, Berti does have a bit of fantasy value after moving up to the leadoff spot over the past week. He's also hitting .314 with a 9:11 BB/K ratio and two steals, so he has the potential to chip in with a few different categories while being eligible at multiple positions. If you're in a deep mixed league or NL-only format, Berti could be a useful fantasy option if he's still available.
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