Paul Skenes- P- PIT- Rookie- You may not have noticed that this obscure minor leaguer made his MLB debut yesterday. Just kidding. Skenes is the most anticipated pitching prospect since, arguably, Stephen Strasburg. Skenes threw 84 pitches, 54 of them strikes and 17 of them hit triple digit velocity. His line didn't look great, with 3 runs allowed in 4+ IP, but 2 of those runs scored after Skenes left. He did strike out 7 and walked 2. The most important thing about Skenes' debut wasn't going to be the line, though. His talent is undeniable. The main question was how he was going to be used. The Pirates have been very conservative with Skenes in the minors. He only tossed 27.1 IP in his 7 starts at AAA Indianapolis. Skenes' first MLB start shows they may be extending him more. The 84 pitches was a season high and it looked like they wanted him to be eligible for the win. Skenes was pulled after allowing the first two batters in the 5th to reach base on a total of 10 pitches. It may be tough for him to immediately get to the point of earning possible wins but it looks promising that Pittsburgh will try to get him to that point and he will strike out a lot of batters.
Nick Lodolo- P- CIN- FYI- Was Lodolo hot or cold yesterday? Except for a 1st inning grand slam, he looked pretty good. Lodolo was charged with 4 runs on 5 hits and a walk while striking out 6 in 6 IP. He now has a 3.34 ERA, slightly above his 2.92 FIP and 3.13 xFIP, which take the circumstances surrounding that slam into consideration. With a K/9 of 11.06, BB/9 of 2.31, and WHIP of 0.94, an errant fly ball that left the park isn't much to worry about. Lodolo is performing a bit above projections but not unreasonably so.
Jordan Westburg- 2B- BAL- Hot- Westburg went 4-for-5 with the game winning hit, 2 RBI, and a steal last night. He is now slashing .301/.345/.522 with 6 homers and 5 steals. Westburg has an excellent 92.5 EV and 52.4% HardHIt%. He's still a bit of a free swinger with a 34.7% chase rate and 15.2% SwStr% but his K% is only 19.9%. With those plate discipline numbers and a .347 BABIP, negative regression for his average can be expected. In his abbreviated MLB time in 2023 his EV was 90.2 and HardHit% was 44.5% so his numbers this season look like a reasonable progression. In 146 PAs Westburg has already surpassed his steal total in 228 PAs from last season.
Danny Jansen- C- TOR- Hot- Jansen went 3-for-5 with a homer, 2 runs, and 2 RBI. After a delayed start to the 2024 season he is slashing .315/393/667 with 4 homers in just 61 PAs. Jansen has an 11.5% BB% and the same 11.5% K%. His plate discipline has been excellent with a 22.1% chase rate and 5.2% SwStr%. Injuries have derailed Jansen from reaching his potential. If he can stay healthy he will produce behind the plate.
Trevor Megill- RP- MIL- Rise Value- Megill has established himself as the closer for the Brewers. He picked up his 4th save in as many opportunities last night although he allowed 2 hits in his scoreless 9th inning of work. Megill's ERA is down to0.93 but he doesn't have the typical closer K/9. His is just 7.43 despite owning a 99.1 mph fastball. Megill's chase rate is 35.7% and SwStr% is 13.1%. His K/9 in 34.2 IP in 2023 was 13.50, so we might be seeing small sample size effects. Megill has tossed just 9.2 IP with the Brewers this season.
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