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It was a rough night for power hitters and first round picks last night, as Joey Votto, Jose Bautista and David Ortiz all were injured. I wrote about Votto here, and he will be out at least 3-4 weeks, and it could be longer.
Jose Bautista injured his left wrist on a swing last night and will have an MRI today. X-rays showed no break, but he apparently felt a popping sensation on the swing. Bautista was having a solid year in the power department, but the BA has dropped. After a slow start, he is hitting .244-.360-.534 with 27 HRs, 63 runs, 65 RBI and 5 stolen bases this season, and his eye at the plate is still elite, as he owns a 61-58 strikeout to walk ratio.
Bautista will probably land on the DL, as Anthony Gose was pulled from his AAA game last night, so expect for him to get the call up to replace Bautista. Gose is hitting .293-.376-.434 with 5 HRs, 77 runs, 41 RBI and 29 stolen bases in 39 attempts. He is walking at an 11% rate, and has reduced his strikeout rate from 26% to 21% this season. Gose stole 69 bases last season in AA, so I am a bit surprised he has only 29 SBs thus far.
Red Sox DH David Ortiz injured his achilles running the bases on an Adrian Gonzalez HR last night. He will have an MRI today, so we will learn more about the injury sometime today. Ortiz was having an excellent season at the plate, hitting .315-.413-.612 with 23 HRs, 64 runs, 58 RBI and an elite strikeout to walk ratio of 48-55 this season. He is one of the few Red Sox performing well at the plate this season.
More Roundup after the jump:
Yankee starter Phil Hughes appears to be reaching the potential many predicted a few years ago this season. He held the Blue Jays to 2 runs on 4 hits, 3 walks and 4 strikeouts in 7 innings last night but did not factor in the decision. He is now 9-7 with a 4.22 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and a 96-26 strikeout to walk ratio in 106.2 innings pitched. After a rough April where his ERA approached 8.00, he has pitched much better since. Here are his monthly ERAs since:
May: 4.66
June: 2.67
July: 3.38
Red Sox outfielder Carl Crawford returned to the lineup for the first time all season, and he went 1-3 with a walk and 2 runs scored. Hopefully Crawford can stay healthy and help the Red Sox and fantasy owners this season, but there is talk that he will eventually need Tommy John surgery, so he could throw out his arm at any point. He's been a huge bust in each of the last two seasons for the Red Sox and fantasy owners. He will more than likely drop in my outfielder rankings heading into the 2013 season.
Twins outfielder Denard Span had probably his best single game of the season, going 3-5 with 2 doubles, 2 runs and 5 RBI last night, in the Twins big win over the Orioles. Span is now hitting .283-.345-.389 with 3 HRs, 41 runs, 29 RBI and 9 stolen bases in 14 attempts this season. Span is rumored to be traded this season, and he could help a team like the Reds who are looking for a leadoff hitter who can get on base at better than a .300 clip, and Span meets that requirement.
Span's teammate Ben Revere also had a big game last night, as he went 4-6 with a run, 3 RBI and a stolen base last night, raising his triple slash line to .319-.350-.371 with 27 runs, 14 RBI and 19 stolen bases in 24 attempts. He may be available in some shallower mixed leagues, and has value due to the stolen bases, and the BA this season.
Diamondbacks catcher Miguel Montero had a big night at the plate last night batting in the cleanup spot for Justin Upton, who was moved down to the 5th spot in the lineup. Montero went 3-4 with a HR, 2 doubles, 2 runs and 4 RBI, and is now hitting .275-.377-.431 with 9 HRs, 35 runs and 49 RBI in 75 games this season.
Ok. Who ever heard of Brewers starter Michael Fiers before the season started? Non-Brewers fans? I never did, but I should have, as Fiers is pitching like the ace that Zack Greinke should be this season. Fiers shutout the Cardinals for 7 innings, giving up just 4 hits, 4 walks and striking out 4 in 7 innings. He is 3-3 in his 8 starts this season, with a 2.01 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and a 54-13 strikeout to walk ratio on 53.2 innings pitched this season.