Kyle Manzardo (CLE): 2-3, 2 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB.

I Would Walk 500 Kyles

It hasn’t quite been the 2024 season that Kyle Manzardo hoped it would be. Sure, his team has had a stellar year–the Guardians have been the class of the AL Central all year long–but Manzardo’s spent most of the year with the team’s Triple-A affiliate, the Columbus Clippers, and his brief MLB stint went rather poorly.

Manzardo got his first call up to the big-league squad in early May, but slashed a painful .207/.241/.329 in 87 plate appearances before being sent back down. The top prospect’s biggest struggle was in the plate discipline department, an area he’d excelled in at every stage of the minor leagues. In over 650 Triple-A plate appearances, Manzardo posted a strikeout rate below 20% with a stellar double-digit walk rate. In his brief MLB stint, those numbers cratered. He struck out 26.4% of the time and walked at a 3.4% clip.

After months of beating up on Triple-A pitching in Columbus to the tune of a .903 OPS, Manzardo got the call back to Cleveland on Sunday, and he sure looks ready to contribute this time around. Manzardo made Pirates pitchers look like his Triple-A opponents, finishing the day 2-3, 2 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB.

After a first-inning line out, Manzardo got rolling in his next at-bat, pulling a four-seamer from Mitch Keller 409 feet and over the right-field wall. It was Manzardo’s first career home run, but it wouldn’t be his last of the day. In his next at-bat, Keller threw a first-pitch sinker and Manzardo deposited it 413 feet into the right-center field stands.

Moving forward, the big question will be how often Manzardo will crack Cleveland’s starting nine. It doesn’t seem likely that the Guardians would call him up to not give him consistent playing time, so I think he’ll take over the strong side of the DH platoon, pushing David Fry to the bench more often. The Guardians line up to face five righties this week, so if you need corner infield help,  Manzardo’s worth a pickup.

Let’s see how the other hitters did Sunday:

Jordan Walker (STL): 5-5, HR, 4 R, 3 RBI, SB.

Manzardo wasn’t the only struggling former top prospect to put together a big showing on Sunday. Walker also hit his first home run of the year as part of his massive five-hit combo meal performance in the Bronx. Oli Marmol said that Walker would have an everyday role moving forward which makes him one of the most exciting FAAB targets this late in the season. I know you’ve probably been burned by Walker before–I was heavily bought into him breaking out this spring–but he’s just 22, so there’s still plenty of time for Walker to find his footing and become a fantasy asset in September. Add him if you need outfield help.

Lars Nootbaar (STL): 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, 5 RBI.

The Cardinals hung 14 on the Yankees, so there are many Redbirds that could be mentioned here, but let’s talk about Nootbaar for a minute. Both of his big hits came late in the contest: a bases-clearing double in the seventh and a 106.6 mph, 429-foot solo shot in the ninth. Nootbaar’s big day got him back over the league-average mark for the season–he’s now sitting at a 102 wRC+. With some of the game’s best plate discipline numbers over the last three seasons, it’s felt like Nootbaar has been on the verge of a breakout campaign, but injuries have held him back. He’s only eclipsed 500 plate appearances once in his career, and he won’t reach that mark in 2024. He’s still a player I’m heavily interested in the rest of the way and I’d buy him in dynasty leagues, especially in OBP formats.

Randal Grichuk (ARI): 3-5, 2B, HR, 3 R, 4 RBI.

Grichuk’s exclusively starting against left-handed pitchers, so while he’s hard to use in fantasy, he’s been a hugely valuable part of one of baseball’s top lineups. The veteran outfielder got the better of Justin Wrobleski, collecting two 100+ mph batted balls against the Dodgers’ young lefty. Grichuk’s 427-foot three-run bomb was just his sixth homer of the season, but he’s slashing an excellent .274/.330/.453.

Yordan Alvarez (HOU): 2-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 2 RBI.

Alvarez had his second multi-homer game of the week yesterday, raising his season total to 30 and putting him within reach of a new career high–he hit 37 bombs back in 2022. Alvarez’s 171 wRC+ is the fourth-best in the majors, trailing fellow baseball-mashing superstars Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, and Bobby Witt Jr.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. (NYY): 2-3, 2B, 3 R, BB, 2 SB.

It sure doesn’t seem like Chisholm’s elbow is bothering him anymore. After a scary injury that thankfully only required a minimum stay on the IL, Jazz hasn’t missed a step. He has two homers, seven runs, three RBI, and three steals in eight games since returning to the lineup. He entered yesterday slashing .314/.352/.663 as a Yankee.

Josh Jung (TEX): 2-5, HR, R, 3 RBI.

Jung has struggled since returning from a lengthy IL stint, but yesterday’s big hit may serve as a turning point for the young third baseman. After the A’s took a 4-2 lead in the top of the 10th, the Rangers mounted a two-out rally in the bottom half of the frame capped off by Jung’s walk-off three-run blast. Mason Miller tried to get a 98 mph fastball past Jung, locating the pitch up and away, but Jung was ready for it and got just enough of it, sending the pitch 348 feet down the right-field line to send Texas fans home happy.

Ernie Clement (TOR): 2-5, HR, 2 R, RBI, SB.

The Blue Jays are rife with interesting infielders that could turn into everyday contributors. It seems like one is always turning up in these Batter’s Box articles, whether it’s Clement, Spencer Horwitz, Addison Barger, Leo Jiménez, or Will Wagner (yesterday’s featured player). Yesterday Clement had the best showing, starting the game with a first-inning solo shot off of Bailey Ober. It was his 11th homer of the year and he added his 11th stolen base later in the game. This is the most we’ve ever seen Clement play in the bigs. His .261/.284/.423 line is just about league average (97 wRC+), but he does a phenomenal job making contact. Both his whiff and contact rates are 93rd percentile.

James McCann (BAL): 2-4, 2B, HR, R, 2 RBI.

McCann took full advantage of a trip to Coors Field. McCann broke the game open by launching a Ty Blach sinker 429 feet into the thin Colorado Air for his fifth homer of the season. The O’s came out on top 6-1, and pulled within half a game of the Yankees in the battle for first place in the AL East.

Kyle Stowers (MIA): 1-4, HR, R, 3 RBI, BB.

Stowers launched the furthest homer of Sunday: a 439-foot bomb off of Logan Webb. Five of the seven pitches Webb showed Stowers on the day were his patented slowball, and in their third matchup, he threw three straight changeups. I guess that was one too many because Stowers launched the 2-0 offering well over Miami’s center field fence. It capped off a brilliant week for the Marlins’ new outfielder. He hit .400 with two homers, four runs, and eight RBI.

Dansby Swanson (CHC): 4-6, 2B, 2 R, RBI.

The Cubs are one of the hottest teams in baseball and Swanson is a big reason why. Through the end of July, Swanson had just nine homers and seven steals with an 80 wRC+. Swanson turned things on in August, though, going deep three times and swiping eight bags while posting a 119 wRC+, and September is off to a similarly strong start. His good play has earned Swanson a bump in the lineup against lefties, moving from seventh to second, which should slightly increase his counting stats the rest of the way.

Anthony Rizzo (NYY): 2-4, 2B, 2 R, RBI.

Rizzo returned from a long stay on the IL yesterday, playing his first game since June 16th. It hadn’t been a banner year for the veteran first baseman, but in the middle of a dangerous Yankee lineup, there’s plenty of opportunity for Rizzo to boost your fantasy team’s counting stats down the stretch. He’s available in 82% of Yahoo! and 90% of ESPN leagues if you want to take a chance on him providing some power and RBI help.

Jonathan India (CIN): 3-4, 2B, R, RBI.

India’s strong season continued with three baseballs he smoked over 100 mph off of Tobias Myers in the Reds’ 4-3 win over the Brewers. India’s hitting .250/.349/.396, and both his 20.3% strikeout and 11.8% walk rates are career bests. He may not provide much in the power department (just 13 homers in 542 plate appearances) but he makes plenty of great contact. His Launch Angle Sweet-Spot% is 93rd percentile and his line drive rate is 95th percentile.

Nick Castellanos (PHI): 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI.

Castellanos knocked in all of the Phillies runs on Sunday Night Baseball, including the decisive walk-off single in the 11th. It’s been another season of mediocre batted-ball metrics for Castellanos, but he’s producing nonetheless. His ratio stats aren’t anything to write home about, but health and a great lineup have him at 19 home runs, 65 runs, and 76 RBI. Castellanos has cut his strikeout rate from 27.6% to 20.9%. He’s both making more contact and swinging and missing less often which is nice to see, especially in his early 30s.