Braxton Garrett, SP, Marlins
Braxton Garrett tossed a complete game shutout against the Diamondbacks on Friday. He allowed 4 hits and struck out 6 in what was the best start of the youngster's career. He was very efficient, throwing 71 strikes on 95 pitches, leading to an excellent 34% CSW%. It was just his third start of the season and came on the heels of a 5-run outing and 6-run outing in his first two starts. It is great to see Garrett finally settle in, as he was a popular breakout pick heading into the season before his injury. Last season, he showed his potential with a 3.42 FIP, 156 K, and 29 BB through 159.2 innings pitched. He should be owned in almost all leagues at this point. He'll look to further improve his 5.30 ERA his next time out, which is currently scheduled to be against the Padres.
Alek Manoah, SP, Blue Jays
Alek Manoah allowed 6 runs (4 earned) on 5 hits and 2 walks through 4.2 innings against the Tigers. He struck out 4. It was a significant step back for Manoah after looking great in his previous two starts, where he allowed just 3 unearned runs and struck out 13 over 14 innings. This was the second start in a row that his slider was his most used pitch, but he only got 3 whiffs on 17 swings (18% whiff rate), compared to a whiff rate that was north of 30% in his previous two starts. He also left his changeups in some very bad spots and was punished for it, allowing three balls hit with higher than a 105 mph exit velocity, two being home runs. Manoah showed that he still has the potential to be useful in fantasy over the past couple of weeks, but this start is a reminder that he isn't anything close to his 2022 self.
Seth Lugo, SP, Royals
Seth Lugo had another solid start on Friday, allowing just 1 run on 4 hits and 2 walks over 7 innings. He struck out 3. He continues to the defy the odds, possessing a shockingly low 1.74 ERA on the year despite an xFIP of 3.78 with no underlying metrics that look all that great. He only has a 7.59 K/9 on the season and only induced 8 whiffs in this most recent start. That was good for just a 7.6% SwStr% and 19% CSW, two very underwhelming numbers for someone with one of the best ERAs in the league. He is middle of the road in quality of contact metrics as well, so it's not like he is just good at avoiding hard contact. Lugo looks to be a prime sell-high candidate with serious regression coming soon.
Christian Scott, SP, Mets
Christian Scott allowed 2 runs on 2 hits and 1 walk through 6 innings against the Giants. He only struck out 4 batters on 5 total whiffs (5.3% SwStr%), which is surprising to see for the strikeout specialist. He has an 8.34 K/9 through his first 4 starts in the major leagues, which is a far cry from the 12.79 K/9 that he had in Triple-A. It shows the disparity between the two levels, and while Scott has still been an effective pitcher, he will need to learn how to strike out major-league hitters to become more than an average SP option for fantasy.
Nick Gonzales, 2B, Pirates
Nick Gonzales went 2 for 3 with a walk, a double, a run, and 3 RBI. He has looked like a transformed hitter so far this season, with a .300/.357/.500 slash line since being called up on May 10th. He won't stay this hot all season, but he did show legitimate improvements at Triple-A that point to him taking a step forward this season. He struck out 17.5% of the time through 30 games in the minors this year, which was a significant improvement over his 26.6% strikeout rate in Triple-A last season. He could be worth an add in 15-team roto leagues if you need middle infield help, at least for as long as he keeps up this hot streak.
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