Sean “no-no” Newcomb? Okay, that was a bit of a reach, but Newcomb finished just one out shy of tossing his first career no-hitter. The Braves let him go for it too, despite sitting at 117 pitches through eight innings. He finished with 134 pitches and was yanked with two outs in the ninth after Chris Taylor broke up the no-hit bid with a single in between short and third. Dan Winkler then allowed Taylor to score, making Newcomb’s final line on the day: 8.2 innings, one hit, one run, one walk, eight strikeouts. He picked up the win and improved his record to 10-5. His ERA for the season is now sitting at 3.23 and he has been a late-round gem for those who took a shot on him. Over his last two starts he has pitched a total of 14.2 innings and surrendered just two runs while picking up a win both times out. He finished with 57.0 points on FanDuel. Carrying the Braves on offense was Nick Markakis , who finished 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, three RBI, and two runs scored.  

 

That Just Happened

Zack Wheeler was fantastic in what could be his final start as a Met. He hurled six shutout innings and struck out seven en route to his fifth win of the season. Not only did he pitch well, but he drove in the only run of the afternoon with a RBI double. The Mets won the game 1-0. Anthony Swarzak converted his second save since the Mets traded away Familia.

J.A. Happ made his Yankees debut today and it went well; he pitched six innings of one-run ball and struck out two. He picked up his eleventh win and is now 11-5 on the season. Carrying the offensive load for New York was Aaron Hicks , who went a perfect 3-for-3 with a home run, a double, a walk, two RBI, and two runs scored. Aroldis Chapman converted his 28th save with a perfect ninth inning in which he struck out the side.

Speaking of strong debuts, Nathan Eovaldi was even better for the Sox than Happ was for the Yankees. He pitched seven shutout innings and struck out four en route to his fourth win of the year. He got a little help from his centerfielder, more on that later. The Red Sox defeated the Twins 3-0.

The Orioles pounded out 15 hits in their 11-5 win over the Rays today. Chris Davis bashed two home runs, drove in four, and scored three times. He led all hitters in scoring on FanDuel today with a 50.6 point performance. Tim Beckham finished 3-for-5 with two runs scored out of the leadoff spot and he appears to be heating up. Over his last 11 games, Beckham is 13-for-32 (.406) with 10 runs scored.

Luis Castillo was dominant in his start against the Phillies today; he pitched seven shutout innings and struck out nine. The strong outing lowered his season ERA under 5.00 (4.98), giving him a sub-5.00 ERA for the first time this season. He finishes July with a 2.25 ERA for the month across 28.0 innings pitched.

The Blue Jays defeated the White Sox 7-4 and got a strong showing from recently acquired Brandon Drury . He finished 1-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. Teoscar Hernandez made his lone hit of the game count, smacking his 16th home run of the season.

Buster Posey finished 4-for-5 with a double, three RBI, and two runs scored. Posey has been a huge disappointment this season in fantasy despite hitting a strong .290. His power numbers have really fallen off (five home runs) and even with the three RBI today, he still only has 36 for the season. More games like the one today would be nice.

Marco Gonzales turned in another solid outing, pitching six innings and allowing just two runs. He struck out seven and picked up his twelfth win of the year. It was his fifth straight quality start. Mike Zunino supplied a lot of the offense; he finished 2-for-5 with a double and three RBI. He is 6-for-21 (.286) with a home run since returning from the DL on July 22.

 

Web Gem

Jackie Bradley Jr. is known for his defense and today he again showed why. This catch he made today jut shows how fearlessly he plays centerfield as he tumbles into the wall making the grab. He doesn’t have a Gold Glove to his name yet, but it’s time for that to change.

 

Burning Questions

John Gant tossed six shutout innings against the Cubs in their last matchup; will tonight be more of the same or a different story?

Who is next to be traded? The trade deadline is less than two days away.

José Altuve landed on the DL for the first time in his career; will it be an extended absence?

 

Stay tuned.