Tarik Skubal, SP (DET)
Your 2024 American League Cy Young winner was in his element on Tuesday. Skubal shut the Rays out for seven innings, allowing only two hits and striking out seven en route to his 18th win. He lowered his ERA to 2.39 and now has 228 strikeouts in 192 innings. This could have been Skubal's final regular season start, but the Tigers will turn to him on Sunday if they need a win to reach the postseason. A slight dip in fastball velocity pushed Skubal to go changeup-heavy on Tuesday, and it worked. He generated 16 swinging strikes on his fastball/changeup combination alone. Concern over his 100+ inning jump from 2023 to 2024 will shroud certain 2025 evaluations, but if he remains healthy, drafting Skubal as the first pitcher off the board will become commonplace.
Spencer Schwellenbach, SP (ATL)
Schwellenbach was fantastic on Tuesday, holding the hot-hitting Mets to one run on three hits and a walk in seven innings. He only struck out four but lowered his ERA to 3.47, which is right in line with his xFIP. Schwellenbach's ERA over his first six starts was 5.68, but since the start of July that number is 2.65. He has struck out 90 batters in 85 innings during that stretch and has allowed more than three earned runs only once. Schwellenbach has demonstrated just what we like to see out of young pitchers: strikeout upside, low walk rate and the ability to keep the ball in the ballpark. He generates weak contact and isn't prone to a lot of fly balls. We'll see if he generates a lot of draft hype before the season, but he certainly offers a lot of upside heading into 2025.
Byron Buxton, OF (MIN)
Buxton reached base three times on Tuesday, improving his slash line to .276/.335/.518. It's been another injury-riddled season as Buxton will fail to reach 400 at bats for the ninth time in his 10-year career, but as has been the case throughout his time, when healthy he is capable of putting up solid numbers. Buxton is hitting more line drives this year and fewer fly balls. His sweet spot %, as calculated by Statcast, is a career-high 38.4%. That has led to more doubles and an overall better batting average from the past couple seasons. He still has great power and phenomenal speed, but injuries will always overshadow his extraordinary talent.
Mark Vientos, 3B (NYM)
Vientos provided the only offense for the Mets on Tuesday, taking Spencer Schwellenbach deep in the 7th inning for his 26th home run. He also had a single in the game, raising his batting average to .270. Vientos has a tendency to go through hot and dry spells due to his aggressive approach at the plate, but a season with 400+ at bats has demonstrated just how much power is in his bat. After posting a 51% groundball rate in 2023, Vientos lowered that rate to 44% this year. His launch angle is up more than two degrees, which has led to a 4% jump in barrel rate. There is still plenty of room to improve his plate discipline, but Vientos is developing well for a young power hitter.
Dean Kremer, SP (BAL)
Kremer delivered a solid performance against the Yankees on Tuesday. His only run allowed was forgivably Aaron Judge's 56th home run in the 4th inning. Other than that, he went five innings, allowing three hits and two walks. He lowered his ERA to 4.10 and won his eighth game of the season. Injuries have limited Kremer to 24 starts, but his numbers look pretty similar to last year. His walk rate is higher but so too is his strikeout rate, largely thanks to the addition of a splitter this season. That pitch is about 10 miles per hour slower than his four seamer, but it generates plenty of swings and misses. In fact, the Yankees whiffed on 36% of their swings against Kremer's splitter. If the 28 year old further develops confidence in that pitch, and if he can stay healthy, there is a bit of upside value heading into 2025.
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