Roto Riteup: August 22, 2023

Pretty cool night for the Palacios Brothers:

A night the Palacios family will never forget. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/9Z8gzrdw65

— MLB (@MLB) August 22, 2023

On the Agenda: 

1. Sleeper and the Bust DK Contest
2. Closer Chaos
3. Quick Hits
4. Various News and Notes
5. Streaming Pitchers

 

Sleeper and the Bust DK Contest

On most Tuesday’s and Friday’s and some other days, Paul Sporer and I will be doing a $5 draftkings game for anyone that is interested. 

 

Closer Chaos

Will Smith threw two-thirds of an inning in the eleventh inning, allowing two earned runs on two hits and a walk in the blown save versus the Diamondbacks on Monday. Smith was only in the game because Aroldis Chapman blew the save in the ninth, allowing a game tying home run to Ketel Marte. This one wasn’t all Smith’s fault either. Bruce Bochy decided to intentionally walk Marte to put the tying run on base before Geraldo Perdomo had a really nice opposite way double to tie the game. However, Smith has struggled a ton as of late allowing earned runs in five of his last seven appearances and not having saved a game since August 11th. This was the first earned runs that Chapman has allowed since July, so he could be in line for more opportunities moving forward if Smith continues to struggle. 

 

Quick Hits

Yonny Chirinos was placed on the IL with elbow inflammation. There is no timetable for his return. Allan Winans was recalled to take Chirinos’ spot in the rotation. 

Emerson Hancock was placed on the IL with a shoulder strain. There is no timetable for his return. Bryan Woo is expected to be activated from the IL to take Hancock’s spot in the rotation. 

Luis Medina was placed on the IL with a blister. This doesn’t sound like it will be longer than a minimum stay on the IL. 

Henry Davis was placed on the IL with a hand strain. There is no timetable for his return. 

Johnny Cueto was placed on the IL with an infection. There is no timetable for his return. Ryan Weathers was recalled to take Cueto’s spot on the roster. 

 

Various News and Notes

Everson Pereira is expected to be called up and make his Major League debut. Pereira is the Yankees #2 prospect and has been fantastic this year, hitting .300/.373/.548 with 18 home runs and 11 stolen bases in 343 plate appearances this season. The main issue has been that Pereira has struggled with strikeouts, striking out at a 28.6% clip this season. On the good side, he struck out less in AAA than AA, but his ability to make contact and allow his plus power to show will be key to whether he can stick in the Majors.  

Chas McCormick went 2-for-5 with two home runs in the victory over the Red Sox on Monday. 

Chas McCormick – Houston Astros (19)
pic.twitter.com/2muz4wr9vy

— MLB HR Videos (@MLBHRVideos) August 22, 2023

McCormick has been fantastic this season, hitting .286/.374/.544 with 19 home runs and 13 stolen bases in just 330 plate appearances. He has done this all with sub-par underlying skills. His zone contact rate is below league average and he has average to below average exit velocities. His xBA is .241. And his xSLG is .463 so he is definitely benefiting from a high BABIP and some luck. That being said, his defense has been great and the Astros have allowed him to play through the minor struggles he has had at times because of that defense.

Parker Meadows went 1-for-5 in his Major League debut on Monday versus the Cubs.

Parker Meadows ripped a 108.5 mph line drive to RF off an 0-2 pitch for his first MLB hit. His family, two rows deep in seats behind home plate, went nuts. pic.twitter.com/Wmlcum4GzB

— Jason Beck (@beckjason) August 22, 2023

Meadows has had a great season in AAA, hitting .256/.337/.474 with 19 home runs and 19 stolen bases in 517 plate appearances. There is a nice blend of power and speed in the profile, but he has struggled to make consistent contact throughout the minors. However, he has improved his strikeout rate this season, dropping it to 23.8% this year. He has a big body and is pretty athletic, so if can make consistent contact, then he could put up some monster numbers in the Majors.

 

Streaming Pitchers (Under 50% in CBS)

Pitcher for Today: None

Not a lot of great options for streaming today. 

High Risk Options: Kyle Harrison at PHI, Reese Olson vs CHC, Angel Zerpa at OAK

 

Pitcher for Tomorrow: Zack Littell vs COL

Littell has pitched really well since joining the Rays rotation and now he gets the Rockies on the road which is always a great opportunity. 

High Risk Options: Jose Quintana at ATL, Austin Gomber at TB, Mattew Liberatore at PIT, Michael Kopech vs SEA, Luis Severino vs WAS, Jameson Taillon at DET. 

For those of you that would like to see how these picks play out, I have a doc I put together to track the stats from my recommended pitchers. It does not include the “High Risk Options.”