Putting On A Show, Hey It’s Ohtani

The Angels played six games over the last week and Ohtani homered six times. The only game he didn’t homer in was on Thursday when he pitched six innings against Detroit and allowed just one earned on the mound. The six homers this week tie him for the league lead with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at 23 apiece but let’s not forget that Ohtani has also been marvelous on the pitching rubber too with a sub-3.00 ERA that was lowered on Thursday. We also found out over the weekend that Ohtani will be participating in the Home Run Derby at Coors Field during the All-Star break which should be an absolute sight to see.

Wander Time

The long-awaited debut of the number one overall prospect is finally set to happen. Wander Franco found out on Sunday that he was getting his chance in the majors starting on Tuesday. The 20-year-old shortstop, who can also play second and third, has been smoking baseballs at Triple-A Durham this year hitting .315 with a .954 OPS, seven homers,  17 extra-base hits (six triples and 11 doubles), and 35 RBI in 39 games. The uber-prospect has been the number one ranked farmhand in baseball for two years now and the Rays are needing a spark having lost six games in a row and losing their ace in Tyler Glasnow.

Schwarbombs

Kyle Schwarber has been on an absolute tear and this weekend that came to a head with five homers in eight at-bats over two games against the Mets. Power has always been a part of Schwarber’s game but this year they have certainly come in bunches and that’s been apparent in the 11 games since he was moved to the leadoff spot in the Nationals’ lineup. In those games, the beefy lefty-hitting left fielder has hit nine homers and became the second Nationals’ player to have both three homers in a game (Sunday) and five homers in two games tying Alfonso Soriano and Bryce Harper respectively.

The Bronx Defenders

Normally the New York Yankees, or the Evil Empire or Bronx Bombers, are known for launching copious amounts of home runs into those short porches in Yankee Stadium but this year their defense is getting a bit more publicity. On Sunday, the Yankees turned their third triple play of the season to close out the win over the A’s and tying an MLB record for most triple plays in a single season. It was the first game-ending triple play since the Phillies turned one to finish off the Mets on August 23, 2009. More importantly, though it helped keep the Yankees hot streak alive with five come-from-behind wins in their last six games.

The Return Of The Sanchize

Remember when it was cliche to crap on Gary Sanchez’s lack of hitting and even more cliche to crap on his non-existent defense? Well at least for the last 20 games, it’s hard to crap on his bat. The catcher is slashing .344/.408/.719 with six homers, six doubles, 14 RBI, and 10 runs in his last 20 games while reaching base safely two or more times in seven of his last nine starts. Sometimes all you need is a swift kick in the pants for motivation and that appears to have worked with Sanchez after being benched for Kyle Higashioka and he’s now raised his slash line to .237/.340/.820 on the year which is basically where his career slash sits.

Today’s Slate

We’ve got a six-game slate on Monday that’s headlined by the Dodgers and Padres starting up another series in what’s sure to be a playoff preview yet again. Yu Darvish and Julio Urias are on the bump for their respective teams and even if Fernando Tatis Jr. isn’t in the lineup, it’s going to be an electric atmosphere. Adbert Alzolay makes his return to the mound for the Cubs as well after coming off the IL for a blister issue. If we’re looking for offense, look no further than Baltimore where Houston comes to town and the pitching match-up leaves a lot to be desired, well if you’re a fan of shut down pitching as Jake Odorizzi and his 6.75 road ERA and Keegan Akin and his 5.76 overall ERA aren’t exactly stopping runners from crossing home.

Betting Favorites

The Cincinnati Reds are -118 favorites on the road in Minnesota and that could have something to do with the fact that they’ve been lighting up opposing pitching and J.A. Happ is the starter the Twins are rolling out. If Happ isn’t giving up homers, he’s walking batters and not striking them out which is a recipe for disaster against one of the hottest offenses in the game right now.

The Milwaukee Brewers are -117 favorites today against the woefully bad Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona has lost 17 straight games and still only has 20 wins on the season in 73 games. There’s nothing going right for the Diamondbacks right now and Merrill Kelly, their starter, has allowed four or more earned runs in three of his last four starts. Milwaukee has a chance to take over the outright lead in the NL Central with a win and a Cubs loss as well.