The risk factors seem to be of his own making: the way he plays, the way he lives, and what he's put in his own body.  I wonder if there are contract "outs" for the more egregious stuff?  He's been quite fortunate thus far given the risks he's taken.  Multiple motorcycle wrecks, goodness knows how many masked PEDs, playing like Lenny Dykstra on, well, steroids.  And a PED suspension that will reportedly cost him only $3.5 million.  Consequences could quickly get out of hand though.

Like Rivera or Yepez for the last 6 weeks?

Rotoworld:

08.12: Bryson Stott went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and a stolen base on Friday night, propelling the Phillies to a 2-1 victory over the Mets in New York. (Stott -- hitting out of the leadoff spot in the Phillies lineup -- certainly
served as a catalyst in this one. He led off the game with a double off
of Max Scherzer, then dashed around to score on an RBI single off the
bat of Alec Bohm. He also singled twice and stole a base in regulation
before functioning as the extra runner in the 10th inning and scoring
the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly by Bohm. With the three-hit attack,
the 24-year-old is now hitting .219/.282/.341 with seven homers, 37 RBI
and five swipes in 82 games.)

08.13: Jonah Heim went 1-for-4 with an RBI single in Friday's loss to the Mariners.  (With two men on base in the bottom of the sixth, Heim hit a single up the
middle that brought the Rangers within a run of tying the game. This was
just his second hit of the month (27 at-bats). )

Maybe he's the one.....the $350 million bust contract.  It's certainly in play with all the risk factors present at this point.

If at first you don't succeed...

Yesterday's Debut

CF Wynton Bernard (COL)

Born: September 24, 1990 (Age: 31-322d)

Drafted: Drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 35th round of the 2012 MLB June Amateur Draft from Niagara University (Lewiston, NY).

Debut: 1-3, 1 r

Brandon Drury	Jose Ramirez	Trayce Thompson	Cal Quantrill	Michael Kopech

Aug 12, 2022 Top Performers

Pitchers:

Cal Quantrill (CLE): 7.0 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 7 K, 82 GmSc

Michael Kopech (CHW): 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 3 BB, 11 K, 80 GmSc

Tyler Mahle (MIN): 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 6 K, 70 GmSc

Jordan Montgomery (STL): 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 8 K, 70 GmSc

Ranger Suarez (PHI): 7.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 4 K, 69 GmSc

View All of Yesterday's Pitchers at Baseball-Reference.com

Brandon Drury	Jose Ramirez	Trayce Thompson	Cal Quantrill	Michael Kopech

Aug 12, 2022 Top Performers

Batters:

Brandon Drury (SDP): 3-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 3 R

Jose Ramirez (CLE): 3-3, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 R

Trayce Thompson (LAD): 3-4, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R

Jorge Mateo (BAL): 5-5, 2 RBI, 2 R

Gio Urshela (MIN): 3-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2 R

Michael Harris (ATL): 2-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R

Aaron Judge (NYY): 1-2, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2 R, 1 SB

Rodolfo Castro (PIT): 2-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R

Kyle Tucker (HOU): 2-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 R

Mike Yastrzemski (SFG): 2-4, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 R

View All of Yesterday's Batters at Baseball-Reference.com

Closer Monkey:

Colorado Rockies – Daniel Bard threw 30 pitches on Thursday which earned him a night off on Friday. This left the save chance to Carlos Estevez, who converted for his second of the year. Daniel Bard is in no danger of losing his job, but lately it has been Estevez getting the high leverage chances over Alex Colome. This is enough to put him first in line for the Rockies. 

Updated hierarchy: Bard | Estevez | Colome.

His WHIP -- not to menton rating -- suggests Hector's ERA shoud be much lower.

Closer Monkey:

Houston Astros – Ryan Pressly had a stiff neck and was unavailable last night, and with Rafael Montero having pitched in 2 of the last 3 the save chance fell to Hector Neris. Neris converted for his second save on the year. Pressly’s neck is not expected to result in an IL stint, but this is a situation worth monitoring as Houston holds an 11 game lead in the AL West and may look to manage his workload down the stretch.

Closer Monkey:

August 13, 2022
New York Yankees – The entire Yankees team has struggled as of late, but maybe nobody more than Clay Holmes. Holmes was brought in to protect a one-run lead in the 9th yesterday. He got 1 quick out before walking the next two batters and giving up the tying single before getting pulled for Wandy Peralta. The Yankees would go on to lose in extra innings. Holmes has now given up runs in 4 of his last 5 appearances, including 3 blown saves. Command seems to be the source of his trouble, as he has issued the same number of walks in his last 10 appearances as he has for the rest of the season (39 apps). Meanwhile, Aroldis Chapman pitched a clean 8th ahead of Holmes, and now has 8 straight scoreless appearances. It’s a bit too early to make a change here, but Holmes is certainly on a hot seat now, and with Chapman and Peralta continuing to pitch well, Holmes may not have many chances left.  

Hierarchy remains: Holmes | Peralta | Chapman.

Gilberto Celestino (OF) MIN - Aug. 12
https://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.php?id=13961

Celestino went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk in Friday's 4-0 win over the Angels.

ROTOWIRE RECOMMENDS: Celestino opened the scoring in the second inning with a homer off Angels starter Patrick Sandoval. This was Celestino's first long ball of the season and just the third of his major-league career in 98 games. The 23-year-old outfielder has seen his playing time slip with the Twins' outfield regaining some healthy bodies. He's slashing .273/.330/.341 with 12 RBI, 18 runs scored, seven doubles and a triple through 193 plate appearances. Celestino is likely to be limited to a short-side platoon role, though he could draw in on occasion when Byron Buxton receives a maintenance day.

I guess The Kid was a late-bloomer. (Not to mention an ace pilot.)

Xander Bogaerts (SS) BOS - Aug. 12
https://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.php?id=12204

Bogaerts went 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 4-3 win over Baltimore.

ROTOWIRE RECOMMENDS: Bogaerts and Alex Verdugo ripped back-to-back doubles in the first inning to give Boston an early lead. It was the 300th career two-bagger for Bogaerts, who became the eighth player in Red Sox history with 150 or more home runs and 300 or more doubles. The 29-year-old shortstop joined Carl Yastrzemski as the second Red Sox player to achieve that feat before turning 30. Bogaerts is slashing .309/.379/.451 with nine homers, 48 RBI and 62 runs scored over 108 games this season.

Javier Baez (SS) DET - Aug. 12

https://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.php?id=12135

Baez went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in Friday's 2-0 loss to the White Sox.

ROTOWIRE RECOMMENDS: Baez broke up Chicago's combined no-hit bid with his leadoff single in the seventh inning. He then stole his fifth base of the season before adding another single in the ninth. The veteran infielder continues to show small flashes this season but he's yet to really put it together; Baez improved his slash line to .224/.266/.379 through 99 games.

Ryan Helsley (P) STL - Aug. 12
https://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.php?id=14404

Helsley allowed two hits and struck out three over two scoreless innings to earn the save in Friday's 3-1 win over the Brewers.

ROTOWIRE RECOMMENDS: Helsley has converted all four of his save chances while allowing just one run across 8.2 innings in seven appearances since the All-Star break. He entered Friday's game in the eighth inning to face the heart of the Brewers' order, then stayed on for the ninth, completing the assignment with 29 pitches (22 strikes). The 28-year-old is up to 12 saves in 15 chances while adding six holds, a 0.76 ERA, 0.65 WHIP and 70:13 K:BB through 47.2 innings.

Greg Allen (OF) PIT - Aug. 12
https://www.rotowire.com/baseball/player.php?id=14405

Allen went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 5-3 loss to the Giants.

ROTOWIRE RECOMMENDS: Allen's seventh-inning blast got the Pirates within a run, but that was as close as they got. The outfielder hasn't done much in the majors this year, but he secured his first multi-hit effort and his first homer Friday. For the season, he's slashing .189/.246/.302 with five RBI, eight runs scored, three stolen bases and three doubles through 57 plate appearances.

Rotoworld:

08.12: Mike Trout (back) played catch on the field prior to Friday's game against the Twins. (Trout began hitting off of a tee on Monday and is now progressing to other baseball activities as well as he works his way back from lingering
discomfort in his back. There's still no clear timetable for a potential
return to action, but it's at least encouraging to see him getting back
on the field.)

Rotoworld:

08.13: Domingo Germán tossed six innings of one-run ball with four strikeouts in a no-decision against the Red Sox on Friday. (Germán
made his fifth start of the season Friday, holding the Red Sox to one
run over six frames for his first quality start. The one run came in the
fourth inning on a base hit by J.D. Martinez following a double by Alex
Verdugo. Germán generated eight whiffs to strike out four batters.)