Summer Sale on now

The Boston Red Sox were hammered by an 8-1 score in Friday's series opener at Yankee Stadium. The organization brought in Chris Sale a couple of seasons ago exactly for situations like this. The Yankees thought they were bringing in Sonny Gray for the exact same thing. Advantage Boston. Sale was amazing on Saturday, twirling seven scoreless innings with one hit allowed, one walk and 11 strikeouts to improve his record to 8-4 while lowering his ERA to 2.41. Three Yankee batters struck out three times, including Aaron Judge, and the Yankees amassed just two hits in the 11-0 laugher. The rubber match is on Sunday night.

In that same game, Sale obviously had plenty of run support. He didn't need it, but Rafael Devers wasn't letting up on the Bronx Bombers. He was a perfect 5-for-5 with his 19th double, his 14th homer and three runs scored. The homer was a grand slam, and he wrapped up June with five homers and 18 RBI over his final 19 games in the month while improving his average from .230 to .251 just since June 9. He still strikes out a little too much for fantasy owners' liking, but as long as he piles up a respectable average with plenty of extra-base hits, no one can complain too vehemently.

Colorado's German Marquez yielded just one earned run, two hits and no walks with nine strikeouts over eight innings in a road win against the Dodgers. His only mistake was a no-doubt solo shot from Enrique Hernandez in the sixth inning, which actually broke up a no-hitter at the time. On the surface, Marquez doesn't have very good numbers. He is 6-8 with a 5.14 ERA and 1.44 WHIP. However, his splits are stark, which is not surprising given that half of his games occur at a mile above sea level. He is 2-5 with a 7.93 ERA in nine home starts, but he is an impressive 4-3 with a 2.76 ERA in eight road outings across 49 innings. Hitters have rolled up a .345 average against him at Coors Field, and an impressive .194 average on the road. Fortunately for his fantasy owners his next start will come on the road in inter league play against Felix Hernandez and the Mariners.

Jason Heyward had an impressive day for the Cubs on a day the wind was blowing out at Wrigley Field. Heyward didn't go yard in this one, but he was an impressive 4-for-6 with a pair of runs scored and two RBI in the 14-9 game which resembled a beer league softball game. He picked up a two-out RBI and was a perfect 3-for-3 with runners in scoring position. He has really stepped up his game lately, going 18-for-45 (.400) with five doubles, a home run and seven RBI across the past 11 outings to raise his batting average from .265 to .291 just since June 19. He was one of just many fantasy stars from the inter league battle from sweltering Chicago.

Max Fried was dealing in St. Louis, and the Cards have absolutely no answers. He spun 6 2/3 scoreless innings with four hits and three walks allowed. Fried also racked up a career-high 11 strikeouts to pick up just his second-career major league victory while lowering his ERA to 2.55. The southpaw has proven to be a high-strikeout guy in his brief experience at the big-league level, posting 46 innings over just 43 2/3 innings since making his debut last season. As long as he can keep the ball inside the park, he has a very bright outlook going forward.

Fantasy Game of the Night

A hot wind was blowing out to the left-center field power alley at Wrigley Field on Saturday. With heat indices near 100 degrees, many expected a high-scoring game, and the ball was definitely jumping off the bats. Surprisingly, the Cubs didn't belt any homers, but they did get the ball up in the air for three doubles while rolling up 20 total hits. Seven batters for the home side posted multi-hit games, and we discussed Heyward above. Albert Almora set the table by going 3-for-3 with a run scored and two RBI to push his average to a gaudy .332. Javier Baez continues to post huge numbers, finishing 2-for-6 with a double, two runs scored and two RBI. He is 25-for-60 (.417) with nine doubles, a triple, two homers and 13 RBI over the past 19 games to raise his average from .250 to .285 just since June 10. Ben Zobrist has also been on fire, going 2-for-2 with two walks and three RBI. He is 11-for-26 with two bombs and seven steaks across the past eight outings to bump his average from .280 to .297 dating back to June 21. Addison Russell also joined the multi-hit club with a pair of singles, a run scored and an RBI across five at-bats. Ian Happ didn't start the game, but he was also in the club with a 2-for-3 day, his 10th double, two runs scored and an RBI. The only fantasy owners not happy about all of the offense were those with exposure to Tyler Chatwood, as he was tagged for seven runs, seven hits, three walks and six strikeouts over just five innings to see his ERA balloon to 4.54.

The Twins were doing work at the plate, too. They had four players record multi-hit games, including the old trusty Joe Mauer. He set the table nicely with a single and a double with three RBI across five at-bats. Ehire Adrianza has re-discovered his hitting streak lately, going 2-for-5 with a pair of RBI, pushing his average from .240 to .262 just since June 24. He is 9-for-20 (.450) with five RBI during the impressive five-game span, all on the road. Eddie Rosario was the only player to use the hot wind to his advantage and send one into the cheap seats, finishing 2-for-3 with a two-run jack off of Chatwood, his 18th of the season. Unfortunately for Rosario, the heat was a little too much, and he checked out due to what was termed as heat illness. Consider him day to day. Willians Astudillo got his chance in Rosario's spot and he was 1-for-2 with a two-out RBI, one of eight on the day for Minnesota. Like Chatwood, Adalberto Mejia and his small legion of fantasy owners weren't very happy, as he coughed up four earned runs, six hits and three walks with just one strikeout across four frames.

American League Quick Hits: Matthew Boyd allowed three earned runs, four hits and two walks with seven strikeouts across six innings in a no-decision. It was just his second quality start since May 17. … Kendrys Morales was the only player across baseball on Saturday to earn the unwanted golden sombrero, whiffing in each of his four at-bats. … Nicholas Castellanos finished 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBI. He has posted six bombs with 15 RBI across his past 13 outings. … Randal Grichuk belted his 10th homer with two RBI, and he wrapped up the month of June hitting .294 with eight homers and 20 RBI. … Sam Gaviglio turned in a solid effort, allowing three runs over seven innings in a quality start and no-decision. … David Fletcher is turning the heads of fantasy owners, going 2-for-4 with two RBI to push his average to .324 since his recall on June 13. It was his fourth multi-hit game. … The O's spoiled a quality start from Andrew Cashner, was he allowed just one earned run, four hits and two walks with four strikeouts over six innings. He has four quality starts over his past five outings, but he is 0-2 with a 3.21 ERA during the span. He wasn't won since May 21. That's like with the lowly O's. … Edwin Jackson picked up his first victory for the A's, his 13th major league employer. He allowed two earned runs, two hits and no walks with six strikeouts over 6 2/3 innings against the Indians. … Matt Olson cracked his 18th homer in the win against Cleveland. He is hitting .245 with 10 homers with 23 RBI across 28 games dating back to May 31. … Justin Verlander was tripped up by the Rays, yielding five earned runs, nine hits and a walk over five innings. He at least salvaged the stat line with eight strikeouts. … Wilson Ramos went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk and four RBI. He has at least 13 RBI in each of his first full three months. … Matt Davidson was 3-for-4 with a double, a solo homer and two runs scored. … Robinson Chirinos is making slow progress, going 2-for-4 with a double, three RBI and a run scored. … Joey Gallo is still hitting below the Mendoza line, but he is up to 20 homers after his titanic blast on Saturday. … Bartolo Colon tied the major league record for wins (245) by a Latin-born pitcher, joining Nicaraguan hurler Dennis Martinez at the top of the heap. … Edwin Diaz secured his major-league leading 31st save. … Ryon Healy was a perfect 4-for-4 with a homer and three RBI, which Mitch Haniger stayed hot with a three-hit game.

National League Quick Hits: Scooter Gennett continues to surprise in his hometown of Cincinnati. He went 3-for-4 with his 20th double, a walk and an RBI. … Michael Lorenzen delivered a pinch-hit grand slam in the seventh inning. … Tyler Mahle allowed three runs - one earned - and six hits with 12 strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings in a no-decision. … Jacob deGrom yielded three runs, six hits and a walk with eight strikeouts over six innings, but it was the same old song and dance for the pitcher and his fantasy owners. He took another much undeserved L. … Kyle Barraclough nailed down his eighth save as the Marlins surpassed the Mets on the scoreboard and in the standings. … J.T. Realmuto went 1-for-4 with a double and two RBI, pushing his hitting streak to eight games. He is 11-for-33 with a homer, nine RBI and six runs scored during the stretch. … Seranthony Rodriguez posted his seventh save. He has 36 strikeouts and just four walks over 27 1/3 innings. … Vince Velasquez was clipped by a comebacker on the wrist, leaving after two innings. X-rays were negative. … Nick Markakis continues to bolster his surprising All-Star caliber numbers, going 2-for-3 with a double, a homer and five RBI. … Ozzie Albies pushed his hitting streak to 10 games, going 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and two RBI. … Ian Desmond continues to his for a poor average, but he did belt his 17th homer of the season in L.A. … Dereck Rodriguez, Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez's son, spun 6 1/3 scoreless innings with six hits and two walks with five strikeouts in a road win in Arizona. … Shelby Miller was on the other side, and he wasn't as fortunate. He was trucked for six earned runs and nine hits, dropping to 0-2 with an 11.42 ERA in two starts since returning from reconstructive elbow surgery. … Wil Myers was 2-for-4 with a homer, his second of the season. It's been an injury-marred season, but he is making up for lost time lately.