So Varsho Good
Daulton Varsho (TOR): 2-5, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI.
Varsho’s started the season on the shelf thanks to a shoulder operation last fall, which also ended his 2024 campaign a month early. After a long offseason of rehab, Varsho started ramping up in the Minors in April but struggled early, starting 3-for-25 in his first week with seven K’s and zero walks.
In need of his excellent glove, the Blue Jays nonetheless reinstated Varsho on April 29th. He went 0-for-3 in his first game back (though he did draw a Walk), but then homered one night later off Lucas Giolito. Varsho has historically been a low-average hitter but has plus power, and he came through again with two longballs in what became a slugfest in Toronto.
Both home runs were absolute torpedoes – the first one a 113.6 mph laser beam to right field at just a 19-degree launch angle. The second also topped 113 mph off the bat, but this time was a moonshot down the line going all the way into the third deck.
Safe to say, the shoulder looks fine.
Varsho’s also been known to chip in more than his share of seals, but so far that’s yet to appear—his Sprint Speed has diminished to 27.0 f/s, a good deal off his 28.5 mark last year. This might be a case of needing more time to get his legs back after a long rehab, but keep an eye on it if you’re depending on him for double-digit bags (he’s averaged 14 the last three seasons).
In his final at-bat last night, Varsho had a chance to turn a stellar game into a legendary one when he came up with two outs in the bottom of the 9th, down 11-9 with two runners on. Unfortunately, he could only manage a weak opposite-field flyout to end the game. Still, he’ll get plenty of chances going forward as Toronto starts playing him every day. There will be plenty of RBI chances hitting after Guerrero, Santander, and Bichette.
Let’s see how the other hitters did Tuesday
Bo Bichette (TOR): 2-4, 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB.
Speaking of Bichette: after going almost a full calendar year without a homer, he suddenly has three in the last ten days with a third-inning shot off of Shane Baz. Originally ruled a double, it wasn’t exactly a tape measure shot, but we’ll take it. Bichette is now looking all the way back, hitting for both average and power, and his K-rate is also the lowest of his career at 15.7% which puts his xBA up to .314. And he’s even swiping a few bags with four on the season (he had five in each of the last two years), though he’ll probably max out at a dozen steals with just a 27th-percentile Sprint Speed.
Jackson Chourio (MIL): 2-3, 2B, 2 SB.
The green light has come for Chourio, who is on a base-swiping tear in the last week. Some of Chourio’s other metrics are a bit concerning, though – he’s swinging more freely than almost anyone else in the league with a second-percentile Chase Rate and an identical Walk Rate (which is just 2.2%). Though he’s got an identical Slugging percentage to last year (.464), his loose-swinging ways are why his OBP is down 46 points from 2024 and partly why the steals had yet to come.
Javier Báez (DET): 2-4, 2 HR, 3 R, 6 RBI, BB.
Welcome to the Báezassaince. Once a five-category stud with the Cubs, Javy had turned into an afterthought after his swing-at-everything approach got the best of him. He bottomed out last year with a .184 Batting Average and .221 OBP, making some wonder if the Tigers would cut him loose. But the team stuck with their man (they’re paying him quite a lot after all, and his defense is still elite) and Báez rewarded them with a three-run walkoff homer in extras. The advanced metrics still show a lot of blue (he’s only above the 50th-percentile in Bat Speed) but somehow he’s making it work, hitting .319 so far this year.
Kristian Campbell (BOS): 1-5, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB.
In a night of late-inning theatrics, Campbell took center stage. With the game tied and two outs in the eleventh inning, he redirected a first-pitch sinker to the opposite field for a two-run homer. Campbell has been as advertised in his rookie season, showing good on-base skills, decent speed, and a good overall approach. He might be in top-50 hitter conversation before long, and his ceiling keeps going up. Unfortunately for him and the BoSox, Javy Báez would upstage his heroics in the bottom of the inning.
Josh Jung (TEX): 3-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI.
This is the Jung we’ve been waiting for. The 27-year-old slugger been up and down the last few years (injuries playing a big role) but has managed to lower his K-rate every single season, down to 20.8%. He’s barreling at a stellar 14.4% and hitting for a nice average at .282. Jung ended up responsible for all of Texas’s runs in this one, and he wasted no time by smashing a first-pitch fastball with two runners on for a three-run shot in the opening frame. He’d follow it up in the eighth with a solo blast to left. If he can stay healthy, he’s a top-100 player.
Moisés Ballesteros (CHC): 0-4.
Welcome to the Show, kid. Ballesteros has been tearing the cover off the ball in AAA this year with a .368 Batting Average, giving the Cubs little choice but to give him a shot after Ian Happ went on the IL. At a squat 5’8″, Moises sported a 12:16 BB:K ratio and a .420 OBP, but is more of a singles machine than a power bat. That’s just fine for Chicago, who has plenty of big bats in their lineup and just needs someone to keep the conveyor belt moving. The problem? It might be a short stint as the Cubs already have a pair of catchers who are acquitting themselves just fine (Carson Kelly may finally be slowing down, however).
Jordan Lawlar (ARI): 0-3, BB.
This wasn’t an MLB debut for Lawlar as he received a September call-up in 2023, but hopefully he’s here to stay. Torching the PCL over the last six weeks, Lawlar was the one prospect to stash not named Roman Anthony. Still, with the D-Backs so solid up and down the order (and Gerardo Perdomo breaking out at shortstop), Lawlar may struggle to find regular at-bats. He’s initially slated for a super-utility role that may just net three or four starts each week, and that can be tough for a rookie who needs a daily routine to get comfortable.
Matt McLain (CIN): 1-4, 2B.
After a great first week in the season where he hit three home runs, McLain hit the IL with a hamstring strain and hasn’t looked right since, batting .121 in April. He was dropped to eighth in the order last night as the more consistent Santiago Espinal took his usual spot in the two-hole. Time will tell if this is just Terry Francona trying to send him a message or a more permanent move, but McLain’s 32.2% K-rate is in the bottom 4% of the league (and a .222 BABIP isn’t helping either). At least his walk rate is keeping him afloat, but he needs to start making more contact.
Nick Kurtz (ATH): 2-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI.
Another player who found himself in a new lineup spot, Kurtz was dropped to ninth last night but responded with two extra-base hits as part of the Athletics‘ eleven-run barrage on the Dodgers. His Big Fly came in the eighth inning, a 413-foot shot to left-center that would’ve gone out in any park. After going 65 plate appearances without a homer, Kurtz is sporting an elite average EV of 93.6 mph and has a crazy 77.9 mph bat speed, so it likely won’t be another 65 plate appearances before he hits another one.
Jacob Wilson (ATH): 4-5, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI.
Hardly known for his power, Wilson uncorked a pair of bombs in Dodger Stadium last night and collected four total hits. 2023’s sixth overall pick out of Grand Canyon University, Wilson has captured the leadoff role for the Athletics and is mashing to a .363 Batting Average and .902 OPS. It’s not a fluke, either—he’s in the 100th percentile in Squared Up Rate and almost never strikes out (5.4%). He might be the Luis Arraez of the American League, just with more pop, and could be a cheat code in Points Leagues for years to come.
