Pikachu Use Wetherholt
Starter Stephen Kolek and the Kansas City Royals were hoping to catch ’em all when St. Louis came to bat on Sunday, but JJ Wetherholt and the Cardinals offense was electric, putting up 12 runs in a high-scoring win. The rookie phenom went 3-5 with 2 HRs, 3 R and 3 RBI, with both of his HRs coming off Kolek before the end of the second inning. Wetherholt became the first St. Louis leadoff hitter to homer in his first two at-bats since Matt Carpenter in 2018.
The performance was Wetherholt’s second three-hit game of the series and the 23-year old has bounced back from a subpar May (91 wRC+) with an outstanding June (157 wRC+), in which he has walked more than he has struck out. One of the game’s top prospects coming into the season, Wetherholt earned the starting nod on Opening Day and has not disappointed in his first Major League season, as his 127 wRC+ leads all NL rookies with at least 150 plate appearances. His 12 HRs are tied for second in all of baseball among second basemen and he has added eight stolen bases as well. The future looks very bright in St. Louis and with a 41-34 record, good for second in the NL Central, the present isn’t looking too bad either.
Let’s see how the other hitters did on Sunday:
William Contreras (MIL): 4-5, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI.
The NL Central-leading Brewers scored eight runs in the second inning on Sunday, buoyed by two hits in the inning from catcher William Contreras, including a three-run HR. Contreras finished the day with four hits in the 9-4 win over Atlanta as the two-time All-Star has been very good over the last month, hitting .325/.359/.462.
Kyle Stowers (MIA): 1-2, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB.
Despite a dominant complete game performance from Logan Webb, the Marlins were able to sneak out a 2-1 win over the Giants thanks to the efforts of Kyle Stowers. The 28-year old mashed a 426-foot HR in the second inning and scored the game-winning run on an Otto Lopez double in the fourth. It hasn’t been easy for Stowers since coming back from a hamstring injury to start the season, but he now has three HRs in his last four games and is showing signs of heating up.
Yordan Alvarez (HOU): 1-2, HR, 2 R, RBI, 2 BB.
Yordan Alvarez also homered and scored both runs in his team’s 2-1 victory, as the Astros took the series against the AL Central-leading Guardians. The first inning HR was Alvarez’s 25th of the season and the three-time All-Star is leading the Majors in both OPS (1.067) and wRC+ (188).
Ivan Herrera (STL): 3-5, HR, 3 R, 3 RBI.
St. Louis got out to a big lead early, but the Royals fought back to make it a 9-7 ballgame by the end of the fourth inning. Ivan Herrera then stepped to the plate in the fifth and blasted a three-run HR to give the Cardinals all the runs they needed in a 12-10 win. Herrera is now up to a .265/.405/.429 line on the season with ten HRs and five stolen bases and his 140 wRC+ is tied for second among all qualified catchers.
Carter Jensen (KC): 2-3, HR, 3 R, RBI, 2 BB.
Royals catcher Carter Jensen also hit his tenth HR of the season in Sunday’s game in Kansas City and the 22-year-old rookie has been on fire of late. The Royals have shown their faith in Jensen by batting him leadoff and he has rewarded the team by hitting a scorching .448/.500/.828 over his last seven games.
Jac Caglianone (KC): 2-3, 2 HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 BB.
Not to be outdone, 2024 sixth overall pick Jac Caglianone put on a show on Sunday hitting two HRs totaling 870 feet in the Royals loss. The 23-year-old added two walks and has also been on fire in the month of June, hitting .379/.468/.742 with seven HRs and a season-best 11.7 BB%.
Bryan Reynolds (PIT): 2-5, HR, 2B, 2 R, 3 RBI.
The theme of Sunday’s top hitting performances is hitters who have been crushing it all month and nobody is better in June than Bryan Reynolds. The 31-year-old hit his 11th HR of the season, a three-run shot in the seventh inning that proved to be the game-winner as the Pirates held on for an 8-6 victory. Reynolds is hitting .319/.390/.623 with a 176 wRC+ this month and for his career is a .325/.393/.561 hitter with a 158 wRC+ in June.
Nick Kurtz (ATH): 2-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI.
This might not be the craziest of predictions, but I am predicting right now that Nick Kurtz wins an MVP award at some point in his career. The 23-year old hit his 19th HR of the season on Sunday and he now has eight over his last 15 games, while hitting .322/.444/.780.
Denzer Guzman (LAA): 2-3, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB.
Denzer Guzman came into the season as one of the Angels top prospects and he has more than held his own at the Major League level since his promotion on June 8th. The 22-year-old Dominican native tied the game with a three-run HR in the eighth inning and the Angels prevailed in the ninth to win 9-7. Guzman is hitting .271/.327/.500 in his twelve-game MLB career and his 17.3 K% is a stark improvement over his 51.2 K% in 13 games with the Angels in 2025.
Colton Cowser (BAL): 3-5, HR, R, 4 RBI.
Baltimore blitzed the Dodgers in Los Angeles on Sunday for a 12-1 victory and Colton Cowser had a big day, with his eighth HR of the season and four RBI. Seven of his eight HRs have come in Cowser’s last 30 games and he is hitting .305/.389/.573 over that span.
Blaze Alexander (BAL): 3-5, HR, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI.
The Orioles added several big-name bats to their lineup this offseason, but their savviest move was adding Blaze Alexander in a trade with Arizona in February. The utility man has been outstanding for Baltimore in 2026, hitting .312/.362/.447 on the season and the 27-year old hit his third HR in the team’s rout of the Dodgers on Sunday.
