Stowers’ Light-Tower Power Devours Royals In Miami

Happy Saturday, Razzball faithful!

It’s your old buddy MarmosDad back again to fill in for Dan Pants’ Daily News and Notes from the Friday night round-up. I hope you’re not getting too sick of me yet!

Speaking of getting sick of people (sick segue!), I don’t know how many fish sticks Seth Lugo can fit in his mouth in one sitting, but I do know that a certain Royals starting pitcher was likely getting pretty sick of a certain Marlins outfielder yesterday. I can also report that we saw some light-tower power in the Miami Marlins game against the Kansas City Royals last night.

Kyle Stowers – 3-for-5, 2 R, 5 RBI, 2 HR (20th and 21st). Batting .298. And I guess SOMEONE didn’t let the All-Star break slow him down. Where do you find a flying fish soaring higher than this? In the flying pan! Or maybe in Miami? Last week, in the Marlins’ final game before the layoff, Stowers went 5-for-5 with 3 HR and 6 RBI. For those of you who blew off half of your fingers playing with fireworks on July 4th, I’ll do the counting for you. Stowers is 8-for-10, with 6 R, 11 RBI, and 5 HR (!) in his last two games. I wonder if the Orioles wish they had put Ryan Mountcastle or Heston Kjerstad in that Trevor Rogers deal instead of Stowers. Maybe Miami will flip him back for Jorge Mateo and Dylan Carlson.

ENYWHEY!

Here’s what else I saw in fantasy baseball last night:

Sandy Alcantara – 6 IP, 4 ER, 8 H, 2 BB, 2 Ks, and the no-decision. ERA at 7.14. I guess it could have been worse. Just as a quick side note, when someone starts with, “I guess it could have been worse,” is that really a backhanded compliment? Like, “Well, I guess you didn’t suck as much as I thought you would”? Warm up the bus, and get that passport renewed, because Sandy is due to get shipped out of Bikini Bottom at the end of July. (Hopefully he’s not cheeks for his new team.)

Seth Lugo – 6 IP, 5 ER, 8 H, 0 BB, 5 Ks and the no-decision. Almost a half dozen earned runs must have just killed that ERA, no? Well, yes, that’s a no. It’s at 2.94 now. And his WHIP is 1.08.

John Rave – 2-for-4, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 HR (1st and 2nd), and one big question mark. As in, “Who Tee Eff is John Rave!?” Well, he’s played in 35 games this year, and he’s not rostered in my deep AL-Only league, so I feel a lot better about not knowing much about the Rave. Ecstatic even.

Lucas Giolito – 5.1 IP, 4 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 6Ks, and his 2nd loss. I was working in the backyard yesterday, so I watched the first two innings of this one after it started. Back-to-back full-count walks to Michael Busch and Kyle Tucker to start the bottom of the 1st was a bit worrisome, but Giolito’s command wasn’t off by all that much. Then the third Cubs hitter didn’t wait too long to mash the first pitch he saw (a 93 MPH FB up on the outside corner) for a big fly. Giolito didn’t give up much after that, but by that time, the damage was already done.

Seiya Suzuki – 2-for-4, R, 3 RBI, HR (26th). Batting .265. Yep, that’s the NON-ALL-STAR Cubs outfielder for those of you who weren’t paying attention last week. And to those voters, I’m sure Suzuki has the same thing to say that he said to the Giolito fastball in the bottom of the first inning: Seiya later!

Colin Rea – 5 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 4 BB, 5 Ks, and his 8th win. That’s a dub in each of his last four starts dating back to June 28th. Rea is one of those starters who has been on and off the Top 100 Starting Pitchers list all year. If his strikeout rate was just a bit better than his 6.36 K/9, he’d have a permanent spot. For what it’s worth, he’s staring at Tomoyuki Sugano right now and shaking his head.

Luis Robert Jr. – 2-for-2, 3 R, 2 RBI, HR (10th). Batting .196. I don’t know what’s more shocking, that this guy has a hit in 6 of his last 7 games since being activated from the IL on July 8th (hamstring), or that the Shite Sox scored 10 runs on 11 hits. Looks like LouBob’s your uncle! And your uncle wants to get the heck out of town at the trade deadline!

Edgar Quero – 2-for-4, 2 R, 1 RBI, HR (2nd). Batting .274. Yo Quero Taco Bell? Yes, but I also Quero more home runs from my second catcher. That .274 average is *chefs kiss*, though, so I guess we’ll take the power drain.

Bailey Falter – 4 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 2 Ks, and the loss to drop his record to 6-5. Considering this guy has to rely on the most anemic offense since the World Wet Paper Towel Whiffle Ball Championships, I can’t really fault her…er, him, for not having a chance in this one.

Oneil Cruz – 2-for-3, 1 RBI, SB (30th). Batting .216. The Pirates lost 10-1 to the White Sox? At PNC Park? Can they just package Oneil Cruz and Mitch Keller to the Blue Jays for BDon’s favorite shortstop and a mid-level pitching prospect already? Asking for a friend. (Yes, that friend is me).

Jo Adell – 1-for-4, 2 RBIs, HR (20th). Batting .243. Taylor Ward and Jorge Soler also homered (22nd and 11th, respectively).

But back to our BFF, Jo Adell. Ok, maybe he hasn’t quite pushed his average above that .260 line just yet, but his 20th home run last night tied a career high.

So, the last time I covered for Dan, Adell homered, too. After some fancy calculations (there were none), I think I’ve got it figured out. We’ve got roughly 11 more Friday nights to go until the end of the season. If I can cover for Dan for those 11 round-ups, and of course, WHEN Jo Adell homers in each of those Friday games, it’ll bring his dinger total to 31. Add in another dozen homers during those weekly games, and we’re looking at a 42 jack season from one half of the Marmo Mancruah tandem. (Don’t fret, Bryan Woo won’t pitch until next week). Hashtag Maths.

Jesus Luzardo – 4.2 IP, 4 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 7 Ks, and the no-decision. ERA at 4.29. He threw 92 pitches and couldn’t get out of the 5th inning. Um…at least his ERA and WHIP are better than Jordan Romano’s? *dodges flying tomatoes* Forgive me, Jesus, but that’s all I’ve got.

Kyle Schwarber – 1-for-3, 2 R, 1 RBI, HR (31st). Batting .248. Another Schwar-bomb!

Bryce Harper – 3-for-4, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 HR (11th and 12th). Batting .268. That’s 10 total bases from the Fantastic Phillie last night. He’s been on fire in his last five games, too: 10-for-20 with 9 XBH.

Dylan Cease – 5.1 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 10 Ks, and the no-decision. ERA at 4.64, WHIP at 1.29. In last week’s Top 100 Starting Pitchers write-up, I ripped on Cease a bit with a note of “Searching…Cease and Destroy…your ratios!” Apparently, Dylan isn’t a big Metallica fan. If we’re being honest, from the Black album on, I kind of get it.

Manny Machado – 1-for-5, R, 4 RBI, HR (18th). Batting .290. The Dads wasted a solid outing by Cease, but got bailed out on Machado’s 9th inning grand slam. (That also helped secure a free Wily Peralta vulture win.)

Michael Soroka – 5 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 3 Ks, and the no decision. ERA at 5.10. WHIP at 1.15. That’s more ones and fives than a Doors song. The good news is Soroka kept in lock-step with Cease all night, even if he wasn’t as flashy.

CJ Abrams – 1-for-4, R, 2 RBI, HR (13th). Batting .287. No word on whether he and Luis Ortiz had bets on the homer coming after the 7th inning. (It was the 8th).

Kyle Finnegan – 0.1 IP, 5 ER, 4 H, BB, K, and his 4th loss. It’s ok, Kyle. There’s still going to be a lot of teams calling about you before the trade deadline. Just wipe the slate clean and begin again.

Justin Verlander – 2.2 IP, 4 ER, 9 H, 2 BB, 0 Ks, and the loss. Can you guess what his record is this year? If you did, then you’re a better guesser than I am. He’s 0-8. I don’t know what was more surprising in this one, the record or the zero strikeouts.

Chris Bassitt – 6.1 IP, 0 ER, 10 (!) H, 0 BB, 5 Ks, and the win. Let’s play the game again. Can you guess this guy’s record? If you said 10-4, then you’re spinning more magic than the guy who allowed ten hits and still threw a shutout into the 7th inning. That’s a yes from me, dawg.

George Springer – 3-for-4, SB (12th). Batting .276. There was a small handful of ruffled blue feathers north of the border when Springer was left off the All-Star squad last week. I don’t disagree with the omission, but it sure was nice of Charlie Morton to send George a jug full of that water he found in the fountain of youth.

Brent Rooker – 2-for-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR (21st). Batting .281. Shea Langeliers had nearly the exact same line (with one more hit and his 13th HR) in a losing effort. The blame goes to their starting pitcher for not being able to hold the Guardians down long enough to get a good Sears on the grill.

Slade Cecconi – 8.1 IP, 6 ER, 8 H, 0 BB, 2 Ks, and his 5th win. Sure, the earned runs aren’t pretty, and the strikeouts would look a lot nicer with at least another half dozen tagged on, but Cecconi didn’t give up half of those runs until the 9th inning. 107 pitches tells us Cleveland has an awful lot of faith in the young righty, too.

Emmanuel Clase – 0.2 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 2 Ks, and his 21st save. That’s good for a tie for 4th in the AL (with Andres Munoz).

Jose Ramirez – 2-for-3, 2 R, CS. Batting .298. David Fry and Jonathan Rodriguez hit the Cleveland homers in this one, but Jo-Ram just keeps adding counting stats and pushing that average closer to .300.

Nick Lodolo – 7 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 7 Ks, and his 7th win. ERA at 3.33. WHIP at 1.08. He was one of the “Jumpers” for me last week in my list. It’s always nice to see a follow-up like this after spotlighting a guy.

Austin Hays – 2-for-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR (9th and 10th). Batting .293. Tyler Stephenson and Matt McLain homered in this one as well. As for Hays, he’s riding a nice little 7-for-10 hit streak over his last 3 GP.

Sean Manaea – 4 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 2 BB, 6 Ks, and the no-decision. ERA at 2.46. When the opposition hits 4 home runs, it’s natural to take that big gulp before looking at the box score on the other side. The good news is Manaea only allowed one solo homer (one of Hays’ two). It was his second outing since coming back from the IL (elbow/oblique), and the Mets pulled him again before he got to 70 pitches. Hopefully, he stretches out more next week.

Juan Soto – 1-for-4, R, 1 RBI, HR (24th). Batting .262. It was a light night for the Mets offense (4 runs), so Sexy Dr. Pepper gets a mention because of the homer (and because my youngest will likely ask if we can stop for the same beverage on the way home from baseball practice this afternoon).

Spencer Strider – 6 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 8 Ks, and his 4th win. ERA at 3.59. The only thing that’s bugging me now is how high up the Top 100 list he goes on Monday.

Ozzie Albies – 1-for-3, R, 1 RBI, HR (8th). Batting .221. “Welcome to the local landfill. Yes. The metal goes in Bin #2. The wood in Bin #3. The trash there can go in Bin #…WAIT! Albies moved! He’s alive!”

Ronald Acuna Jr. – 2-for-3, 2 R, 1 RBI. Batting .329. The double and triple were impressive, and that’s what plays in fantasy leagues, but for all that is good and holy, I hope you saw this last night, too. If, for some odd reason, you’re standing up. You might want to catch a seat before you click on this one.

UNBELIEVABLE ?

RONALD ACUÑA JR. WITH THE CANNON ? pic.twitter.com/ulbyTMzjib

— MLB (@MLB) July 19, 2025

What in the Jose Guillens of Vladimir Guerreros is going on here? Insanity.

Taj Bradley – 6 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 6 Ks, ERA at 4.35 vs Charlie Morton 5.1 IP, 7 ER, 8 H, 3 BB, 4 Ks, ERA at 5.58. It was a real life rendition of Yusuf Cat Stevens’ “Father and Son” last night. The only problem was the youngster still told the old guy where to go, and the old guy had used up all the juice from the fountain of youth before he bottled it and sent it to George Springer.

Junior Caminero – 3-for-5, 2 R, 4 RBI, 2 HR (24th and 25th). Batting .257. Remember all those people who used to say the Home Run Derby messes with players’ swings and sets them up for failure in the second half? Well, apparently, all of those people forgot to tell Junior Caminero.

Yandy Diaz – 3-for-4, 3 R, 4 RBI, HR (15th). Batting .290. True story alert! I had Yandy, Kyle Manzardo, and Ty France in my AL-Only league when my favorite stash, Nick Kurtz, got called up. I tried to trade Yandy and Ty, but no one wanted Yandy. And that worked out just dandy, if I do say so myself.

Reese Olson – 5 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 6 Ks, ERA at 2.71 at Patrick Corbin 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 6 Ks, ERA at 3.91. Don’t anyone tell Taj Bradley and Charlie Morton that THIS is how the new school vs old school matchup was supposed to go. Ooh, baby, it’s a wild world.

Chris Martin – 1 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, his first win of the year (1-5), and still the second most newsworthy thing done at a Chris Martin’s workplace this week. At least this one didn’t involve any new singles. Or ‘Astronomy CEOs’. Badum tss.

Chris Paddack – 5 IP, 5 ER, 8 H, 2 BB, 5 Ks, and his 8th loss. ERA at 5.14. That’s Paddack’s third loss in his last 4 GS, and a peek at his game log looks like a Bingo board. Lots of different numbers all over the place, (but higher ones in the earned run spot).

Byron Buxton – 3-for-5, 2 R, RBI, HR (22nd). Batting .294. Quick! Now, someone get him back into that bubble wrap suit!

Ryan Jeffers – 4-for-5, R. Batting .258. Not a huge deal, but a four-hit night from a catcher is always nice to see.

Kyle Freeland – 6 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 3 Ks, and his 2nd win. ERA at 5.19. If he’s giving out free land, at least now we know where we can bury that hope we had for Chris Paddack’s potential.

Tyler Freeman – 2-for-4, R, RBI. Batting .327. First a free land, then a free man. How about a free win? That’s what the Rockies really needed. As for Tyler, is this guy immune to the Rockies jinx? Did I just jinx him for mentioning the jinx?

Jordan Beck – 3-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR (11th). Batting .269. “Soy, un perdedor. I’m not a loser, baby. So why don’t you trade me?” That’s Beck requesting his freedom from Colorado.

Ryan McMahon – 1-for-3, R, 2 RBI, HR (14th). Batting .213. “Ya, Jesus Sanchez and Clint Frazier is a fair deal for McMahon. Maybe they can give up Marcus Stroman too.” That’s Ryan McMahon on the Yankees trade deadline Reddit page.

Brandon Pfaadt – 7 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 6 Ks, and his 10th win. ERA at 4.82. Have we had a more frustrating 10-game winner at this point in the season? I’ve written him up enough times this year to give you a definitive answer to that question: No.

Victor Scott II – 1-for-4, R, 2 RBI, HR (no, seriously, it’s true). Batting .235. Scott hit his 5th home run, and I would’ve lost that bet. I thought he was only at two or three. In other news, Andre Pallante gave up 6 runs in 4.2 innings, so it didn’t matter much either way.

Brandon Walter – 6 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 7 Ks, and the loss. ERA at 3.66. This was the kind of youngster vs veteran matchup that we wanted to see. Walter made one mistake to Randy Arozarena (more on that below), and it cost him a win. Other than that, he threw a great game.

Luis Castillo – 6.2 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 7 Ks, and the win (ERA at 3.21). As good as Walter was, Castillo was even better. I watched this one while I punched up the notes, and both guys were straight up dealing. Castillo won his third in a row, and if you haven’t bought back in yet, I’m starting to think the window will be closing pretty fast. He’s allowed four earned runs (total) over his last four starts.

Randy Arozarena – 1-for-3, R, RBI, HR (18th). Batting .252. Has there been a hotter bat in the AL than the Rice Bowl? I was writing up the rest of the notes late last night and had this game on in the background when Randy blew up a 93 MPH Brandon Walter fastball for his 3rd homer in three games. He now has 10 HR in his last 14 games.

Quinn Priester – 6 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 10 Ks, and his 8th win. ERA at 3.33. If I had told you that Glasnow was pitching last night and that this line would be in the box score this morning, I don’t think you’d be surprised…until you saw it was from Priester. In Los Angeles. And the Brewers were not playing the Angels. Is it too early to send a “Thank You” gift basket to the Milwaukee pitching coach?

Caleb Durbin – 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI, HR (5th). Batting .265. And Durbin poisons another one!

Trevor Megill – 1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 Ks, and his 22nd save (2nd in the NL). ERA at 2.34. That sure is a lot better than 5.67!

Tyler Glasnow – 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 6 Ks, and his first loss. ERA at 3.10. It’s not that Glasnow wasn’t good, it’s just that Priester was better. The real news is that Glasnow has thrown 85 and 88 pitches in his first two starts since returning from a lengthy IL stint. At least Shohei stole a base. That should make the poor Dodgers feel better (said no one outside of Southern California).

 

That’s all, folks! I hope you enjoyed it! And be sure to come out to see me on Monday when the newest Top 100 Starting Pitchers article drops. It’s a bit of a different format for the next two weeks, and I think you AL/NL Only managers might enjoy it. 

Have a great weekend!

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