Roto Riteup: June 17, 2017

OK, this is adorable:

#AllRise for Lil’ Judge. pic.twitter.com/fithMkTfJv

— MLB (@MLB) June 17, 2017

On the Agenda:

• Aaron Judge is Stupid Good
• Martinez Masterful in Baltimore
• Mystery Closer Dominating
• Biagini Rubbed the Wrong Way
• Big Maple Cut Down to Size
• Cain is Ab… “NO, stop it, Paul. Don’t you dare put ‘Cain is Able’, you hack!”
• Snorting LoCain
• In Other News
• What I’m Watching

Aaron Judge is Stupid Good

It’s just ridiculous at this point. I just don’t know what to say at this point. He leads baseball with 23 HR, 60 R, and a 199 OPS+ and leads the AL with a .339 AVG, 164 total bases, and 43 walks. At this point, I just think the .430 BABIP and 42% HR/FB rate are going to hold… or get better. Which of the following players would you trade Judge for at this point? Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, Kris Bryant, Mookie Betts, Paul Goldschmidt, Joey Votto, Jose Altuve, Charlie Blackmon, Manny Machado, Carlos Correa, and Nolan Arenado.

Martinez Masterful in Baltimore

I’m not sure Carlos Martinez is getting enough love for his breakout season just yet. After an up-and-down April (4.71 ERA), Martinez has reeled off a 2.06 ERA in nine starts with 68 strikeouts in 65.7 innings. He went into Baltimore on Friday night and put up six strong innings, allowing one run on four hits and three walks with eight strikeouts. The 25-year old righty wouldn’t be the NL Cy Young if the season ended today, but he’s definitely among the frontrunners. He is a fantasy ace and should be treated as such in trades. If you can get him for less than ace cost, I recommend buying.

Mystery Closer Dominating

There’s a closer who has allowed just one unearned run in his last 15.7 innings on two hits and six walks with 15 strikeouts. Nope, it’s not Kenley Jansen or Craig Kimbrel or Greg Holland or Roberto Osuna. It’s not even a new closer like Corey Knebel or Kelvin Herrera. It’s none of your next 10 guesses. It’s this guy… somehow. It’s a trap!!

Biagini Rubbed the Wrong Way

Just a day after Jeff Zimmerman expressed concern about Joe Biagini’s velocity drop, Biagini went out and got absolutely blitzed by the White Sox, allowing seven runs (six earned) on eight hits and a walk in just one inning of work. Hey, at least his velocity hit a five-game high at 93.4 mph, so take that Jeff! ? I’m sure this will lead to a rash of cuts for Biagini and I’d be open to picking him up in virtually all formats.

Big Maple Cut Down to Size

Is James Paxton still hurt? After missing a month with a forearm strain, the standout lefty has returned with three of his four worst starts of the season by Game Score, including a 3.7 IP/7 ER tattooing in Texas on Friday night. His first start back on May 31st saw his highest fastball velocity of the season at 96.5 mph, but his last two have been the lowest of the year at 95.2 again Toronto on June 11th and 94.2 in last night’s outing. I loved Paxton coming into the season, but knew that injury was going to be his biggest roadblock to a major breakout season. I’m not making any moves off of this start, but I am somewhat concerned that he’s not 100% right now.

Cain is Ab… “NO, stop it, Paul. Don’t you dare put ‘Cain is Able’, you hack!”

Snorting LoCain

Lorenzo Cain had just nine home runs in 103 games last year, but he’s matched that total in his last 22 games. Cain is out of his mind with a .315/.358/.674 line and nine homers in his last 95 PA. Eight of those homers have come in just his last 56 PA, including a pair of multi-homer games. He’s also got three straight multi-hit games during KC’s west coast swing.

In Other News

• Rays acquired Trevor Plouffe from A’s, who had DFA’d him
• A.J. Pollock was cleared for rehab games and will start his assignment Sunday
• Buster Posey is looking to return Sunday from a balky ankle
• Rangers activated Mike Napoli and DL’d Carlos Gomez
• Devon Travis is likely done for the year; he’s out at least 3 more months with a knee injury
• Victor Martinez was DL’d with an irregular heartbeat
• Zach Britton will begin a rehab assignment Monday

What I’m Watching

I’m actually going to the movies so I’ll be watching All Eyez on Me, but afterwards I’m checking out:

• Chris Archer and Michael Fulmer square off in Detroit
• Seth Lugo is making his second start of the season
• Masahiro Tanaka in Oakland

Also note re: the podcast that Jason is out for the weekend, so I’ll put something together later today or on Sunday afternoon.