Heriberto Apparent

Heriberto Hernández (MIA): 2-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI.

The Miami Marlins signed Heriberto Hernández to a minor league deal in the offseason, and the early returns have paid off. After trading Jesús Sánchez at the deadline last week, Hernández appears to be emerging as the heir apparent to Sánchez’s power-hitting, corner outfield role with the Marlins.

Hernández hit the seventh home run of his young major league career last night, while bringing his slashline up to .311/.370/.533/.903 on the season. The 25-year-old’s platoon splits have looked sharp too, with a 118 wRC+ against LHP and 177 wRC+ against RHP. A .397 BABIP and 35.5% K rate against lefties could become problematic down the line, but there’s room for optimism that he can still succeed despite the inevitable regression.

The power is legitimate as Hernández has hit 20+ HRs in two of his last three seasons of minor league ball and posted a 90.3 mph average exit velocity, 73.4 mph bat speed, 11.8% Barrel rate, and 45.9% HardHit rate. While his 28.1% K rate is in line with the 27.7% career K rate he put up in the minors, his approach in the majors has been solid with a 126 DV+ (106 zDV/123 oDV) and 21.% chase rate. A 78 Pitch Runs value is also one of the lowest in the league and indicates that he’s done all this against high-quality pitching as well.

Now that All-Star Kyle Stowers has moved up into the top-third of the order, the cleanup spot has become a battle worth watching between Hernández and Liam Hicks.

 

Let’s see how the other hitters did Friday:

Brandon Marsh (PHI): 4-5, 2 2B, HR, R, RBI.

Brandon Marsh continued his red-hot second half last night with a 109.3 mph home run for his seventh homer of the year and his fourth since the All-Star break. Since the start of the second half, Marsh has been hitting .345/.390/.673/1.063, largely due to the Philadelphia Phillies utilizing his platoon splits better and sitting him against LHP. The addition of Harrison Bader could be beneficial for Marsh here as the Phillies will want to keep their centrefield duo healthy going into the playoffs, and splitting time between the two could help keep Marsh hot down the stretch. He wasn’t offering much value when hitting against a lefty anyway, so the drop in playing time should only serve to improve your ratios.

 

Blaze Alexander (ARI): 2-3, 2B, HR, R, 4 RBI.

Since trading Eugenio Suárez to the Seattle Mariners, Blaze Alexander has been playing every day at third base for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Last night’s home run was somewhat unexpected since Alexander hasn’t put up double-digit home runs since hitting 17 HRs at Double-A in 2022. While the 26-year-old utility infielder has had a power surge this season, with a 92.8 mph average exit velocity in Triple-A and 91.7 mph average exit velocity in the majors, it appears as though he’s been selling out for power with a 0.23 BB/K that marks a career low across all levels. Alexander will need to work on improving his 98 DV+ (81 zDV/106 oDV) in order for his hit tool to make an impact at the major league level.

 

Matt Wallner (MIN): 2-5, 2B, HR, R, RBI.

Speaking of selling out for power, Matt Wallner went deep last night with an 111.0 mph, 434-foot moonshot. The 27-year-old corner outfielder has been on fire this summer with 14 HRs since the start of June (tied for 14th). He’s even flirted with the idea of being a Top 10 hitter, tying for 10th in HRs (6) and wRC+ (179) in the second half with a 17.8% BB rate and a 21.9% K rate (a career low mark, if he could sustain it over a full season). Wallner’s 26.5% chase rate in the second half perfectly matches his career chase rate, so it’s highly unlikely that he’s changed his profile and moved away from his Joey Gallo-esque ways.

Now, having said all that, there’s no reason not to capitalize here and ride out this hot streak. After the Twins’ fire sale at the trade deadline, Wallner has moved up to the top third of the order and should see his plate appearances increase over the rest of the season as well.

 

Masataka Yoshida (BOS): 2-4, 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI.

2025 has been a difficult year for Masataka Yoshida fans as he’s spent most of the season on the IL while recovering from shoulder surgery. Yoshida may have knocked off some of the rust now after such a long layoff. His 91.9 mph average exit velocity, 8.2% Barrel rate, and 44.9% HardHit rate are all career highs, and his .255 BABIP certainly suggests there’s room for some positive regression.

While the Red Sox outfield is still crowded, and Kristian Campbell will likely add another bat to that mix once rosters expand in September, Yoshida no longer has to compete with Rafael Devers at DH, and the Red Sox have committed to using Yoshida in the heart of the lineup since his return.

 

Jordan Walker (STL): 3-4, HR, R, 2 RBI.

Once considered one of the top prospects in baseball, Jordan Walker has struggled to regain the success of his rookie season. However, Walker has been on a hot streak since July and added to it last night with a dinger that left the yard at an 111.7 mph exit velocity with an absolutely ridiculous bat speed of 85.8 mph. As much as we like to gawk over numbers like this, it’s possible his 99th percentile bat speed (78.0 mph average) has held him back by throwing off his timing. Walker’s 30.5% K rate and 33.2% chase rate are two of the lowest clips in all of baseball (4th & 18th percentiles, respectively).

While last night was his first home run since May, after coming off the IL on July 18th, Walker has been hitting .318/.366/.455 with a 23.9% K rate. Buyer beware, given his struggles since 2023 and a .417 BABIP in the second half, but if he’s been dropped to waivers and you have a roster spot, it could be worth stashing Walker to see if he’s turning a corner here.

 

Casey Schmitt (SFG): 1-4, HR, R, 2 RBI.

Utility infielder Casey Schmitt has been heating up since his return from a hand injury and added another homer to his tally yesterday. After coming off the IL on July 9th, Schmitt only hit one home run the rest of the month with a .182/.237/.273 triple slash and 45 wRC+. The 26-year-old has bounced back so far in August, however, already driving out a pair of homers with a .292/.346/.625 triple slash and 170 wRC+ in his first six games of the month.

The San Francisco Giants were playing Schmitt every day in the heart of the order, even after they acquired Rafael Devers, and were rewarded with a strong first half before the injury. Keep a close eye on Schmitt down the stretch, as his ability to play multiple positions could allow him to become a popular pickup in fantasy as injuries start to pile up past your team’s trade deadline.

 

Starling Marte (NYM): 2-4, 2B, HR, R, RBI.

Starling Marte hit his fifth home run of the season last night as the New York Mets tried to rally in the 9th inning during a potential playoff preview against the Milwaukee Brewers. Marte may not rack up the counting stats the way he used to, but is still a hitting machine with a .274/.350/.411 triple slash and 119 wRC+ in his age-36 season. (Those are numbers I’d love to be hitting at 36!)

If you’re looking to boost your ratios with an AVG/OBP-specialist down the stretch, you won’t find a player more reliable than Marte available on waivers.

 

Jurickson Profar (ATL): 1-3, HR, R, RBI, BB, SB.

There was some thought that Jurickson Profar was finally living up to the long-awaited hype after he hit .280/.380/.459 with 24 HRs and 10 SBs last season. Those rumblings have quickly died down as Profar’s had only moderate success in 2025 with a .234/.325/.426 slashline, six homers, three stolen bases, and a 111 wRC+. (That’s less productive than the aforementioned Starling Marte, despite a steep difference in rostership rates…)

Last night’s “Combo Meal” makes this the most productive stretch of Profar’s season so far, as he’s started August off going 6-for-25 with three home runs and a stolen base over seven games. Just be wary that the 32-year-old outfielder is almost certainly not going to return to his 2024 level of production.

 

CJ Kayfus (CLE): 2-4, 2 2B, R, 3 RBI.

After hitting .283/.367/.526/.893 with 13 HRs in Triple-A this season, the Cleveland Guardians decided to give CJ Kayfus a taste of Major League Baseball. The 23-year-old has shown promise, going 6-for-20 with 4 RBI in his first six games. Strikeouts have been an issue for Kayfus so far, though with a 35.0% K rate and 34.3% chase rate. This is very common when a young talent first gets to the big leagues, so given time, he should improve, but I wouldn’t count on Kayfus being a difference-maker in 2025.