The Cisco Kid
Francisco Lindor (NYM): 3-5, 3B, 2 HR, 2 R, 6 RBI, BB.
One of baseball’s best rivalries was renewed last night in Queens, with both teams entering on almost opposite ends of the spectrum. The Mets have basically taken it on the chin all year. Adding insult to injury, Soto landed on the IL just a couple of days ago with a Grade 2 left calf strain. Meanwhile, the Braves lead the NL East with 62 wins. And they just welcomed their superstar, Ronald Acuña Jr., from the IL hours before the game started. A Braves blowout felt like a distinct possibility.
But that’s why they play the games. With a runner on second and the score tied 1-1 in the bottom of the third, Francisco Lindor, who has recently found himself brushing aside rumors in anticipation of next Monday’s trade deadline, catapulted a changeup from veteran left-hander Martín Pérez just over the leap of Atlanta’s left fielder, Mauricio Dubón. Five innings later, Lindor iced the 14-3 blowout with another homer: a three-run jolt off lefty reliever Connor Thomas. And, oh yeah, he also finished the night with a third hit: an RBI triple in his first at-bat. And sure, why not, he also walked.
Lindor has endured a miserable 2026 campaign, complete with a two-month-long stint on the IL with a strained calf and what would be a career-low .233 average and 94 wRC+. However, for one night we were reminded that Lindor remains, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the best shortstops we’ve ever seen. Better yet, here’s a pretty cool stat courtesy of Sarah Langs.
Most multi-HR games playing shortstop:
Alex Rodriguez: 33
Ernie Banks: 24
Francisco Lindor: 23
Trevor Story: 19
Corey Seager: 19 https://t.co/oVg9wQGZAN— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) July 28, 2026
Let’s see how the other hitters did Monday:
Jackson Holliday (BAL): 4-5, 2B, 2 R.
Matt Holliday’s son has had a rough 2026, which included a lengthy stint on the IL following surgery on his right hamate. However, he has peppered the box score recently, hitting .379 across 10 games since the break. Holliday’s career .674 OPS has undoubtedly prompted a good number of disgruntled O’s fans to utter the word that rhymes with must. But let’s remember he doesn’t turn 23 until this offseason. At the very least, Holliday has made good swing decisions this season (116 DV). Let’s keep an eye on him.
Heriberto Hernández (MIA): 2-5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI.
Hernández made his mark early, parking a sinker from Zach Wheeler over the left field fence in his first at-bat. The 26-year-old righty has been quite productive, hitting .246/ .314/ .486 with 15 home runs; the latter is five more than he totaled last season in 23 more PAs. Whiffs (89 Contact) are an issue, but the home runs are well-deserved (127 Power).
Alex Bregman (CHC): 4-5, 2 2B, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI.
Bregman limped into last night’s game against the Red Birds with a career-low 93 wRC+. His 11th home run came against Matthew Liberatore while leading off the third, a 369-foot poke over the right field fence. Yes, an oppo shot from Bregman. That’s not quite what he’s known for. Regardless, his underwhelming power and .234 average have made him a boring guy to roster in category formats, but his 16.2% K rate has buoyed his value a bit more in points leagues. The big performance pushed his .OPS over .700. Hallelujah.
Joc Pederson (TEX): 2-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI.
Pederson started yesterday’s drubbing of the Mariners by taking George Kirby for a 417-foot ride into the visitors’ bullpen in left-center. His second home run an inning later was a wallscraper that had just enough hang time to clear the right field fence near the foul pole. Pederson’s UTIL eligibility has kept him off the fantasy radar for the most part this year, but he has enjoyed a big bounce-back season, slashing .254/ .343/ .513 with 19 home runs.
Vaughn Grissom (LAA): 3-5, HR, R, 2 RBI.
With two down in the third, Grissom unloaded on a belt-high fastball from AJ Blubaugh for his seventh longball of the season. The 25-year-old former Red Sox is slashing .260/ .327/ .413 across 252 PAs. He doesn’t offer much categorical upside, but his presence in the middle of the Halos’ batting order and 14.9% K rate has made him a playable stop-gap in points leagues.
Marcus Semien (NYM): 3-4, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, BB.
After lifting a pinch-hit home run in Sunday’s win over the Dodgers, Semien went yard again last night against Braves lefty reliever Connor Thomas; the 423-foot jolt to left broke a 3-3 tie in the sixth. The 35-year-old veteran has not exactly endeared himself to Mets fans, totaling a career-low .629 OPS since his move from Texas last offseason. His 22.2% K rate is also about five ticks higher than last year.
Nasim Nuñez (WSN): 2-4, R, SB.
Two more singles pushed Nuñez’s OPS to .626, and even that seems almost lucky, judging by the dark-blue hues on the 25-year-old’s batted ball profile. He has continued to occupy the ninth spot in the Nats lineup, and while that caps his R/RBI upside, it hasn’t kept him from leading the majors with 38 steals (on 42 attempts).
Ozzie Albies (ATL): 2-4, HR, R, 3 RBI.
Albies provided the lone blemish on otherwise picture-perfect Met win by taking rookie left-hander Zac Thornton for a ride to left in the fourth; the two-run shot temporarily tied the game at 3-3. The switch-hitting Curaςoan has enjoyed a pretty decent bounce-back season, hitting .262 with 18 home runs and a 103 wRC+. However, he has just one stolen base on five attempts. Well, I guess we’ll take the good with the bad.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. (NYY): 2-4, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 SB.
Last night’s Yankee lineup wasn’t exactly Murderer’s Row, but Chisholm sparked them to a big win, starting with a game-tying, two-run double in the fourth against lefty reliever Chris Murphy. Chisholm seems to have really sold out for pull-side power this year, which has sent his batting average down to a career-low .226. Nonetheless, he remains a dynamo thanks to his 29 SBs, which is good for third-best in baseball and 11 away from matching his career-high. Given the rag-tag look of the current Yankee lineup, I’d expect him to have the green light on the basepaths.
Ceddanne Rafaela (BOS): 1-4, HR, R, 4 RBI.
Down 1-0 in the sixth with two down and the bases juiced, Rafaela played hero by socking a 2-0 slider from lefty José Suarez for his first career grand slam. Rafaela doesn’t walk a whole lot and makes pretty poor swing decisions (79 DV). However, he has gotten fairly decent results thus far, totaling a .763 OPS, about 50 points better than last year’s mark.
Featured image by Aaron Polcare (@abeardoesart on Bluesky and X) and adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter/X; @justinparadis.bsky.social on Bluesky)
