Closing Time: Max Kepler and the surging Twins
The Cleveland Indians have been one of the best pitching staffs in baseball all year. But it basically threw batting practice over the last three days.
That’s what you get when you face the Minnesota Twins, the hottest offense in baseball as we move through the dog days of August.
Minnesota has decisively kicked around the Tribe this week, collecting 12-5, 10-6 and 13-5 victories. Danny Salazar was knocked around on Monday, Carlos Carrasco got it Tuesday, and Trevor Bauer didn’t have it Wednesday. The Twins have 154 runs over the past 30 days, 20 runs clear of the field.
We talked about Max Kepler a month ago, so we assume you’ve been riding the train there. Kepler is the No. 2 hitter in Yahoo over the last month (.284-22-10-24-1), using a gorgeous left-handed swing to reach the seats regularly. He’s also settled in as the team’s No. 3 hitter. Kepler hit four homers, scored eight runs and knocked in 10 during the Cleveland series, and stole a bag for good measure. He’s still unowned in a lagging 44 percent of Yahoo leagues, oddly. Keep enjoying the ride.
The rebirth of the offense could push Joe Mauer (16 percent) into some deep-league value. He’s batting .329 over the last month, with 20 runs scored. Kurt Suzuki (13 percent) remains oddly underowned given the 2016 mess at catcher. He’s hitting .283 on the year, and could be attractive as an August waiver deal for a contending club.
Remember when Brian Dozier was fantasy persona non grata? That’s out the window now.
Eduardo Escobar is one of those swing-at-everything types, but maybe we can run with him while the offense is clicking. He’s hitting .270, knocks the occasional homer. Eddie Rosario is at .341 over the last month, available just about everywhere.
Miguel Sano, unfortunately, hasn’t been a big part of the fun. He’s stuck at .238/.332/.443, albeit with 15 homers, and there’s a possibility he might go down to Triple-A when Trevor Plouffe comes off the disabled list. With Kepler marking territory in right field, Sano quickly becomes a man without a position.
• Aaron Sanchez has been one of the most improved pitchers in MLB this summer. He’s made gains in his strikeout and walk rate, the ERA has dropped a half-run, the WHIP trimmed notably. He’s still getting a healthy ground-ball rate, too, which is a nifty way to do business.
Alas, Sanchez’s success has led to 139.1 innings, and the Blue Jays aren’t going to let him pile up a ton of mileage on his 24-year-old arm. It’s not completely clear when Sanchez will shift to bullpen work, but it’s coming soon. He might be down to one or two starts remaining.
On one of my head-to-head teams, I made the rueful cut of Sanchez this week. That club is already guaranteed a bye for the first round of the playoffs, so I’m only shaping the roster with September in mind. Sanchez is also on a keeper league roster of mine, where I don’t mind if he’s shut down completely. That team is focused on 2017, anyway.
Non-closing relievers will have roto value in some pools, of course. Season to taste. I expect Sanchez to be successful in any role the Jays throw his way.
• Travis Jankowski is a one-trick pony, but it’s a pretty good trick. He’s up to 23 bags (in modest playing time) after swiping four in the Milwaukee series. The Padres pretty much don’t have a red light this year, they let their guys run as liberally as they want. Jankowski has a puny .242 average and one homer, but sometimes a specialist can fit your fantasy plans. He’s ready to go in 96 percent of Yahoo leagues.
• A.J. Pollock has been out of sight, out of mind for fantasy owners since having elbow surgery in the spring. But there’s a chance we’ll see him play in September.
Pollock faced live pitching this week and could start a rehab assignment soon. The hope is that he’ll be able to play next month. The catch is Arizona’s place in the standings — they’re 22 games under .500, nowhere close to the wild-card chase. There’s zero incentive to rush Pollock back, take any chances with him. But maybe a September trial would be viewed as a step towards Pollock being back to full throttle in 2017.
I wouldn’t bother using a bench spot for Pollock, but if you have DL flexibility, I’ll sign off.
