Roto Roundup: Noah Syndergaard, Trevor Bauer, Charlie Blackmon and others

Noah Syndergaard dealing with elbow discomfort once again

Remember earlier this season when, out of the blue, we heard that Mets ace Noah Syndergaard had his elbow checked out after one of his starts? Yeah, we heard about it like a week or two after the checkup. Well, on Wednesday, Syndergaard gave up 3 runs on 8 hits, no walks and 4 strikeouts in 6 innings of work in the Mets 4-3 win over the Royals. He earned the win, but was pulled after feeling discomfort in his elbow.

Here is more from Mets beat writer Adam Rubin from ESPN:

Syndergaard also had been examined for elbow discomfort after a May 1 start, but he proceeded in the rotation uninterrupted. The right-hander's fastball averaged 97.6 mph on Wednesday. That was 1.4 mph off his previous start a week earlier, when he tossed 115 pitches.

This is a huge concern for the Mets as he has been their best and most consistent starter this season, and they currently sit 4 games behind the division leading Nationals. Late last night, it was reported that Syndergaard would not need a stint on the disabled list, so the Mets and their fans can breathe a sigh of relief.

Syndergaard is currently 8-2 with a 2.08 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and a tremendous 110-12 strikeout to walk rate in 91 innings. The three runs were the most he has given up since that May 1st start Rubin mentions above.

Roto Roundup

Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon was mentioned in offseason trade rumors, but it was never meant to be. He missed two weeks on the disabled list back in late April, but has been the Blackmon we all expected back on draft day. On Tuesday night, Blackmon went 2-5 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBI. He followed that up on Wednesday, going 2-5 with 2 RBI in the Rockies 9-8 loss to the Yankees. He has multiple hits in 5 of his last 8 games, and is now hitting .297-.358-.498 with 10 home runs, 40 runs scored, 35 RBI and 6 stolen bases in 250 plate appearances. He is having his best power season of his career, as he is on pace for 23 home runs and 80 RBI, but he isn’t running as much as he did last season, as he is on pace for just 14 stolen bases. That may change now that summer is here.

Blackmon’s teammate, shortstop Trevor Story, has been one of the biggest fantasy surprises in 2016, as he continues to hit for power, but that power comes with plenty of swing and miss. On Wednesday, he went 1-3 with a walk, 2 runs scored, an RBI and 2 strikeouts. So yeah, he fills up the boxscore in many ways. He is now hitting .264-.327-.551 with 18 home runs, 17 doubles, 42 runs scored, 47 RBI and 5 stolen bases. Many Rockies hitters hit very well in the rarefied air at Coors Field, but struggle on the road. That’s not really the case with Story, as he has hit .279 at home and .247 on the road. Not a huge split, but of his 18 home runs, 11 of them have come on the road, so the kid has some real power. He is on pace to hit 40 home runs and drive in over 100 runs. Among fantasy shortstops, he leads in home runs, and ranks second in RBI, isolated power (ISO) and slugging percentage (SLG), behind only Manny Machado in RBI, ISO and SLG. His tendency to strikeout will keep his batting average down, but when he does make contact, it is usually hard contact, which should keep his power stats near the tops among shortstops.

The Indians starters have been performing great recently, and last night was no different, as young starter Trevor Bauer went the distance in beating Chris Archer and the Rays. Bauer limited the Rays to 1 run on 3 hits, one walk and 10 strikeouts in winning his fifth game of the season. He is now 5-2 with a 3.20 ERA, 3.28 FIP, 1.16 WHIP and a 79-27 strikeout to walk rate in 84.1 innings. His strikeout rate is relatively the same as in 2015, but his walk rate has dropped by more than one walk per nine and his ground ball rate has jumped to near 50%. Could the Indians deal one of their starters for a cheap, controllable outfielder this offseason?

The Brewers are in rebuild and will lose a bunch of games this season, but one of the bright spots on their roster is 31 year old starter Junior Guerra. I have to admit I never heard of him before he was called up. On Wednesday, he limited the Athletics to 2 runs on 5 hits, a walk and 8 strikeouts in 7 innings in the Brewers 4-2 win. The win moved his record to 4-1, in 10 starts, with a 3.67 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and a 53-19 strikeout to walk rate in 61.1 innings. He was in the White Sox organization last season, but prior to that, he had last pitched in the Mexican league in 2012. He has never pitched more than 63 innings in any professional season prior to this season, and is already up to 61+ innings this season. I imagine the Brewers will let him pitch as long as he stays healthy. I picked him up off the waiver wire in a 10 team, NL only league a few weeks ago as I was desperate for a starter. I am not sure I would recommend picking him up, but there are worse starters on your league waiver wire right now than Guerra.

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