Jackson Chourio, OF, MIL
Chourio had perhaps the best game of his young career against the Braves on Thursday, going 3-5 with 2 HR's and 4 RBI, giving him his first multi-HR game at the major league level. At one point earlier in the season, it looked like the 20-year-old was going to lose playing time, and perhaps see a demotion to the minors, but that seems like a distant memory now. Chourio hit .210 with a .581 OPS through the end of May, during which time he posted a 27.0% K%, 13.9% LD%, and 41.0% HardHit%. Since the start of June, he is hitting .335 with a .921 OPS, 16.5% K%, 24.8% LD%, and 45.6% HardHit%. WIth Jackson Merrill also enjoying a strong rookie season and Jackson Holliday starting to heat up, all three Jackson rookies are in a good spot for a strong finish to their inaugural campaigns.
Kevin Gausman, SP, TOR
Gausman went 8 IP against the Orioles on Thursday, allowing 2 ER's on 3 hits and 3 BB's, while striking out 2. Those who started Gausman in this difficult matchup are certainly happy with the results, although it was a bit disheartening to see him only strike out 2 batters. He now has a 4.42 ERA for the season, and it's mostly been deserved as his xFIP is at 4.19. After posting a K/9 north of 10.00 each of the past 5 seasons, Gausman is down to 8.23 K/9 this season. Nothing really points to Gausman suddenly returning to ace form, and fantasy owners shouldn't feel pressure to start him every time out if there are better options available.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B, TOR
Guerrero fell a single shy of the cycle on Thursday, going 3-4 with a double, triple, HR and 4 RBI against the Orioles, but he did extend his hitting streak to 20 games. He got the season off to a relatively slow start, but since the middle of June, he has been one of the best hitters in baseball. Over his last 41 games, he is hitting an astronomical .400 with 16 HR's and 46 RBI. As usual, the key for Vladdy is getting the ball into the air; during his torrid stretch, he's managed to hit fly balls at a 38.1% clip, compared to 28.3% beforehand. Assuming this new approach sticks, Guerrero could be one of the top fantasy producers in all of baseball over the remainder of the season.
Nestor Cortes, SP, NYY
Cortes was roughed up for 6 ER's on 9 hits in 4.2 IP against the Angels on Thursday, while striking out 2 and walking 1. He has hit a real rough patch over the last month, stumbling to a 9.26 ERA over his last 5 starts, while recording a middling 18:9 K:BB across 23.1 IP during that time. This is compared to his previous 17 starts in which he put together a 3.12 ERA and 99:16 K:BB across 101 IP. Overall, he's up to a 4.42 ERA for the season which is matched by a 4.20 xFIP. His walk rate has been excellent, but his 8.31 K/9 would be a career low, and he has combined that with a subpar 30.4% GB%. Cortes entered the day with a large discrepancy between his ERA at home (2.48) and on the road (6.08), but that didn't play itself out in Yankee Stadium on Thursday. There's still potential upside for Cortes, but considering how poorly things have been going, he shouldn't be automatically inserted into fantasy lineups.
T.J. Friedl, OF, CIN
Friedl went 2-4 with a HR and 3 RBI against the Marlins on Thursday, and had quite a series in Miami. During the four game set, Friedl went 5-15 with a double, 2 HR's, and 10 RBI, while also adding a pair of BB's. He has been batting cleanup as of late for the Reds which has put him in a prime position to collect RBI despite not having the typical power profile. Freidl's .226 BA is much lower than what we've come to expect, but that's simply the result of a .224 BABIP. He's striking out at an excellent 15.6% clip, so the BA is due to rise. With 7 HR's and 6 SB's in 39 games this season, he's doing enough of everything to be worthy of a spot in fantasy lineups.
This is just a small sample our daily analysis, join our member area for tools that will help you win your fantasy championship. Click here for details: http://www.insiderbaseball.com/baseballsample.htm Click here to register: http://www.fantistics.com/salesbaseball.php3
