Roto Riteup: June 30, 2026

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June 30, 2026

Catcher on Catcher Crime:

On the Agenda: 

  1. Closer Chaos
  2. Quick Hits
  3. Various News and Notes
  4. Streaming Pitchers

 

Closer Chaos

Gregory Soto threw two-thirds of an inning on Monday, allowing two runs before being replaced by Yohan Ramirez. 

This was the fifth time this month Soto has allowed runs in an outing and while it wasn’t a blown save, he has blown multiple in June. It looks like the Pirates will operate a committee moving forward and could be a team that trades for a closer at the deadline.

 

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Quick Hits

Tyler Soderstrom was placed on the 10-Day IL with a hip injury. Soderstrom was scratched on Sunday due to the issue and now lands on the IL. He is expected until after the All-Star Break. Darrell Hernaiz was recalled to take his spot on the roster. 

Jacob Wilson윌슨 was placed on the 10-Day IL with a thumb injury. There is no timetable for his return. Josh Kuroda-Grauer was recalled to take his spot on the roster. 

Matt Shaw was placed on the IL with a hand injury. He is expected to be back after a minimum stay. Kevin Alcantara was recalled to take his spot on the roster. 

Jazz Chisholm left Monday’s game after colliding with teammate Jasson Dominguez in the outfield. 

He is in concussion protocol. Consider him day-to-day for now.

Dane Myers left Monday’s game after crashing into the wall

X-rays were negative. Consider him day-to-day for now.

Jeremy Pena is expected to go on the 10-Day IL according to manager Joe Espada with a calf strain. He is not expected to be out past the minimum 10 day stay.

Brandon Nimmo is expected to go on the 10-Day IL after being diagnosed with a sprained AC joint in his shoulder. There is no timetable for his return.

 

Various News and Notes
Esmerlyn Valdez went 2-for-3 with a home run in the victory over the Phillies on Monday.

Valdez has been on fire, hitting home runs in four straight games and hitting .289/.360/.778 with six home runs in 50 plate appearances since being called up. The power has never been in question, but he struggles with contact and in spite of the hot start, he is striking out at a 38% clip so far. If he doesn’t improve the hit tool, he will likely end up back in the minors once he stops hitting home runs.

Endy Rodriguez went 2-for-4 with a home run in the victory over the Phillies on Monday.

Rodriguez has been pretty good since his callup in mid-May, hitting .271/.404/.482 with four home runs and two stolen bases. He is barrelling the ball more than he ever has at the Major League level and is still showing a great hit tool. He is worth picking up in 2-Catcher formats where he is still available.

Caleb Durbin went 1-for-3 with a home run in the victory over the Nationals on Monday.

Durbin has been on fire in the month of June after a slow start to his Red Sox tenure, hitting six home runs and stealing five bases with a .325 average. Durbin has been very aggressive at the plate in the Majors, with a career 6% walk rate and while it does work with his high contact approach, he can go through prolonged cold stretches because of it. Right now he is on a heater and you should ride the hot streak, but until he has better command of the strikezone, he will have struggles in between hot streaks.

 

Streaming Pitchers (Under 50% in Yahoo)

Pitcher for Today: Griffin Jax at KC

Jax has been great since becoming a starter and has a great matchup versus a weak Royals lineup. 

Other Options: Brandon Sproat vs CIN, JP Sears at CHC

Pitcher for Tomorrow: Shane Drohan vs CIN

Drohan has been fantastic since his call up and gets a struggling Reds team at home. 

Other Options: Dean Kremer vs CHW, Noah Schultz at BAL, Joey Cantillo vs TEX, Troy Melton at NYY, Seth Lugo vs TB, Taj Bradley at HOU, Andrew Alvarez at BOS, Walker Buehler at CHC. 

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 “Other Options.”

 





 

Justin is the co-host on The Sleeper and The Bust Podcast and writes for Rotographs covering the Roto Riteup as well as other periodic articles. In addition to his work at Rotographs, Justin is the lead fantasy writer/analyst and co-owner for FriendswithFantasyBenefits.com, and the owner of The Great Fantasy Baseball Invitational. He is also a certified addiction treatment counselor. Follow Justin on Twitter @JustinMasonFWFB.

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