It's a light slate of options on Tuesday. There are still some staples we have discussed in previous weeks, but there isn't much new blood. Only the top pitcher seems worthy of holding beyond his Tuesday start and maybe four or five of the hitters, depending on your needs. Let's see if we can dig up some gems!
Pitching
Jordan Yamamoto (R), rostered in 57% of ESPN leagues, Miami Marlins vs. San Diego Padres: Yamamoto barely eclipses the 50% mark we try to adhere to, but I couldn't resist, as he still seems too widely available for how well he has pitched thus far. Four strong starts in his five have netted him a 1.24 ERA and 0.90 WHIP in 29 innings along with 30 strikeouts. His walks are a bit high (15), but this matchup works particularly well because the Padres strike out the most against righties (26%) and have the fifth-lowest walk rate (7.3%). Yamamoto should be trending up around 75% roster rate.
Andrew Cashner (R), 28%, Boston Red Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays: I never expected to recommend Cashner here. This is a lot more believable than his out-of-nowhere 2017, as his skills are better across the board, and now he's on a team with which the support should be strong, at least offensively. Cashner has a 1.41 ERA and 0.72 WHIP in 32 innings over his past five starts, going at least six innings in all five.
Dylan Cease (R), 17%, Chicago White Sox at Kansas City Royals: Cease wasn't great in his debut, but he's one of the most intriguing prospect arms in the game. A lot of the damage against the Tigers came in his first inning, including three of the four walks, as he allowed one run and fanned six over his final four innings. Cease still has major upside, and this is a worthy stream that might turn into something more.
Hitting
Catcher -- Danny Jansen (R), 37%, Toronto Blue Jays at Boston Red Sox (RHP Andrew Cashner): We're wasting no time attacking one of our pitchers, but it's tough in these catcher streets, so we can't be too picky. Jansen hit the break on a .386/.400/.932 run over 12 games and came out of the break to collect three hits in two weekend games. He came into the season with big expectations, but he was an unmitigated bust through the first two-plus months. Are we seeing the makings of a second half surge?
First Base -- Brandon Belt (L), 11%, San Francisco Giants at Colorado Rockies (RHP Peter Lambert): Let's get a piece of Coors here. It's playing off the charts even for Coors! Belt is hitting a solid .250/.369/.455 against righties, and that's before a doubleheader at Coors on Monday. Lambert is getting tattooed by lefties to the tune of a .327/.368/.750 with 5 HRs in just 57 PA.
Second Base -- Danny Santana (S), 16%, Texas Rangers vs. Arizona Diamondbacks (LHP Alex Young): Santana is on fire again and seems worthy of being on more than 16% of ESPN rosters. Since June 1, he has a .330/.354/.623 line with 7 HRs and 5 SB. He has 11 of both on the season and continues to find himself in the lineup with regularity. He does his best work against righties, but I'm willing to start him against this rookie lefty.
Third Base -- Todd Frazier (R), 4%, New York Mets at Minnesota Twins (RHP Michael Pineda): This is a light position this week, and Frazier has already cooled from his major hot streak in June, hitting just .179/.281/.286 in eight July games. That said, there is some juice to this recommendation, as Pineda has allowed righties to put up an .820 OPS with 11 HR in 219 PA this year.
Shortstop -- Kevin Newman (R), 22%, Pittsburgh Pirates at St. Louis Cardinals (RHP Jack Flaherty): Newman has become a staple for me, and given that he's on just 22% of rosters, he could remain here for a while. He's hitting .354/.388/.535 with 5 HRs and 5 SB in his past 30 games, along with 17 runs and 19 RBIs. While the Pirates' offense is no juggernaut, he has been a catalyst atop the lineup, and the rest of the order is taking advantage of having him on base nearly 40% of the time.
Corner Infield -- Garrett Cooper (R), 15%, Miami Marlins vs. San Diego Padres (RHP Chris Paddack): This isn't an easy matchup for Cooper, but he does his best work against righties, and I still really like him as a longer-term option. He's toting a .338/.418/.526 line with 6 HRs in 153 PA against righties.
Middle Infield -- Keston Hiura (R), 19%, Milwaukee Brewers vs. Atlanta Braves (RHP Bryse Wilson): Hiura's back and has picked up where he left off. He's hitting .286/.364/.510 with 3 HRs and 3 SB in 13 games since his recall. I'm not sure 2B is deep enough for him to be on just 19% of our rosters, especially considering how many strong 2B qualify elsewhere. Over the past 15 days, Hiura ranks seventh at the position on our Player Rater, averaging a cool 5.6 points per game.
Outfield -- Ramon Laureano (R), 40%, Oakland Athletics vs. Seattle Mariners (LHP Marco Gonzales): OK, how is he at 40%? Laureano was someone I loved coming into the season, but he sputtered out of the gate, pushing his OPS below .600 as late as May 7, when it hit .592. Since then, he's hitting .295/.343/.576 with 15 HRs and 8 SB (on nine tries) in 233 PA. Over the past month, he's 13th among OF on the Player Rater, and he has even ascended into the Top 40 on the season, essentially erasing his rough start. He should be on at least 65% of our rosters.
Outfield -- Jorge Soler (R), 43%, Kansas City Royals vs. Chicago White Sox (RHP Dylan Cease): Soler loves the new ball, but HRs are so prevalent that his 25 HRs in just 94 games have slipped under the radar. His pace of 44 HR is set to obliterate the Royals record of 38 HRs, set by Mike Moustakas back in 2017. Soler has been consistently strong all season with seven, eight and eight homers along with .908, .868, and .985 OPS totals in April, May and June. He's carrying a .635 in 10 July games but still has a couple homers.
Outfield -- A.J. Pollock (R), 64%, Los Angeles Dodgers at Philadelphia Phillies (RHP Vince Velasquez): This is more of a PSA than an attempted recommendation that greatly breaks our 50% ideal roster rate threshold. Pollock is too low, at 64%, and will assume a full-time role now that he's healthy. He has come off the break on fire, with six hits, including a pair of homers in three games at Fenway Park. This is still essentially a 20 HR/20 SB talent that is playing full-time (or at least very close to it) in one of the best lineups in the league.