Kansas City Royals second baseman/outfielder Whit Merrifield was one of the lone bright spots in the team's 5-2 loss to the New York Yankees on Wednesday. Merrifield went 3-for-4 with a stolen base and a run scored in the game. It was his second consecutive multi-hit game. He has stolen exactly one base in each of his last four games and has an MLB-leading 33 stolen bases on the year. He isn't producing much power this year as he hasn't homered since June 29 and his current .272 batting average is a career-low mark. However, he's showing no signs of slowing down on the base paths and that alone makes him a fantasy stud.

Kansas City Royals second baseman/outfielder Whit Merrifield has been running wild so far in August. In Tuesday's game against the New York Yankees, he went 2-for-5 with a double, a stolen base and two runs scored. He has now stolen a base in three straight games and he has a total of five stolen bases over just nine games this month. Merrifield leads the majors with 32 stolen bases on the year and he's only been caught stealing once. He currently has a career-low batting average (.268) and he's only managed to hit eight home runs over 112 games, but the stolen bases alone have made him an elite fantasy asset this year.

Kansas City Royals second baseman/outfielder Whit Merrifield had a big game in the team's 9-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. Merrifield went 3-for-5 with a stolen base, an RBI and two runs scored. The stolen base was his MLB-leading 28th of the year. Through 106 games on the season, Merrifield is slashing .274/.317/.397 with eight home runs, 54 RBI and 58 runs. He's been one of the tougher everyday players in the majors to strike out this year. He ranks in the 93rd percentile in strikeout rate (14%) and in the 94th percentile in whiff rate (16.1%).

Kansas City Royals second baseman/outfielder Whit Merrifield went 1-for-4 with a pair of stolen bases in the team's 6-4 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday. It was Merrifield's first multi-steal game since June 19. He now has an MLB-leading 27 stolen bases on the year. Merrifield's name came up in some trade rumors prior to this Friday's trade deadline, but no move was made, so he will remain in Kansas City. The Royals' lineup has been disappointing this year, but there's still enough there to help enable Merrifield to remain an elite fantasy producer, particularly due to his stolen base prowess.

Kansas City Royals second baseman White Merrifield is unlikely to be traded by the July 30 deadline. Jon Morosi of MLB Network has been told by rival executives that the Royals are expected to keep Merrifield. He is under team control through 2023, so it's not shocking that the Royals are staying put right now. Merrifield should remain on the Royals roster through the deadline unless they receive an offer that they can't refuse. The Seattle Mariners have been aggressively pursuing Merrifield, but the timing doesn't seem to be right.

NEW YORK (AP) — Eduardo Rodriguez shut down the short-handed Yankees into the sixth inning, Christian Arroyo and J.D. Martinez homered and the Boston Red Sox beat their rivals 4-0 on Friday night with New York missing slugger Aaron Judge and five others due to a coronavirus outbreak. A day after the series opener was postponed for testing and contact tracing, Judge, third baseman Gio Urshela and catcher Kyle Higashioka were added to the COVID-19 injured list. They joined Yankees pitchers Jonathan Loaisiga, Nestor Cortes Jr. and Wandy Peralta, who have also tested positive over the past week. New York was also without first baseman Luke Voit, who went on the injured list Friday with a bone bruise in his left knee. Rodriguez (7-5) allowed two hits over 5 2/3 innings, retiring 10 straight during one stretch and finishing with eight strikeouts. Hirokazu Sawamura got the final out of the sixth, and Tanner Houck pitched the final three innings, closing out Boston’s three-hitter for his first... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Eduardo Rodriguez shut down the short-handed Yankees into the sixth inning, Christian Arroyo and J.D. Martinez homered and the Boston Red Sox beat their rivals 4-0 on Friday night with New York missing slugger Aaron Judge and five others due to a coronavirus outbreak. A day after the series opener was postponed for testing and contact tracing, Judge, third baseman Gio Urshela and catcher Kyle Higashioka were added to the COVID-19 injured list. They joined Yankees pitchers Jonathan Loaisiga, Nestor Cortes Jr. and Wandy Peralta, who have also tested positive over the past week. New York was also without first baseman Luke Voit, who went on the injured list Friday with a bone bruise in his left knee. Rodriguez (7-5) allowed two hits over 5 2/3 innings, retiring 10 straight during one stretch and finishing with eight strikeouts. Hirokazu Sawamura got the final out of the sixth, and Tanner Houck pitched the final three innings, closing out Boston’s three-hitter for his first... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Eduardo Rodriguez shut down the short-handed Yankees into the sixth inning, Christian Arroyo and J.D. Martinez homered and the Boston Red Sox beat their rivals 4-0 on Friday night with New York missing slugger Aaron Judge and five others due to a coronavirus outbreak. A day after the series opener was postponed for testing and contact tracing, Judge, third baseman Gio Urshela and catcher Kyle Higashioka were added to the COVID-19 injured list. They joined Yankees pitchers Jonathan Loaisiga, Nestor Cortes Jr. and Wandy Peralta, who have also tested positive over the past week. New York was also without first baseman Luke Voit, who went on the injured list Friday with a bone bruise in his left knee. Rodriguez (7-5) allowed two hits over 5 2/3 innings, retiring 10 straight during one stretch and finishing with eight strikeouts. Hirokazu Sawamura got the final out of the sixth, and Tanner Houck pitched the final three innings, closing out Boston’s three-hitter for his first... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Eduardo Rodriguez shut down the short-handed Yankees into the sixth inning, Christian Arroyo and J.D. Martinez homered and the Boston Red Sox beat their rivals 4-0 on Friday night with New York missing slugger Aaron Judge and five others due to a coronavirus outbreak. A day after the series opener was postponed for testing and contact tracing, Judge, third baseman Gio Urshela and catcher Kyle Higashioka were added to the COVID-19 injured list. They joined Yankees pitchers Jonathan Loaisiga, Nestor Cortes Jr. and Wandy Peralta, who have also tested positive over the past week. New York was also without first baseman Luke Voit, who went on the injured list Friday with a bone bruise in his left knee. Rodriguez (7-5) allowed two hits over 5 2/3 innings, retiring 10 straight during one stretch and finishing with eight strikeouts. Hirokazu Sawamura got the final out of the sixth, and Tanner Houck pitched the final three innings, closing out Boston’s three-hitter for his first... [More]

Tuesday, July 13At Coors Field, Denverr-replacement; i-inactiveAmerican LeagueManager — Kevin Cash, Tampa Bay StartersCatcher — Salvador Perez, Kansas City First Baseman — Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Second Baseman — Marcus Semien, Toronto Shortstop — Xander Bogaerts, Boston Third Baseman — Rafael Devers, Boston Outfield — Teoscar Hernandez, Toronto Outfield — Aaron Judge, N.Y. Yankees Outfield — Cedric Mullins, Baltimore Designated Hitter — Shohei Ohtani, L.A. Angels ReservesCatchersMike Zunino, Tampa Bay InfieldersMatt Olson, Oakland i-Jose Altuve, Houston Bo Bichette, Toronto Jose Ramirez, Cleveland i-Carlos Correa, Houston Jared Walsh r-Tim Anderson, Chicago White Sox r-Whit Merrifield, Kansas City r-Joey Wendle, Tampa Bay Outfieldersi-Mike Trout, L.A. Angels i-Michael Brantley, Houston Joey Gallo, Texas Adolis Garcia, Texas Designated HittersNelson Cruz, Minnesota J.D. Martinez, Boston PitchersStartersShohei Ohtani, L.A. Angels i-Shane Bieber, Cleveland Gerrit Cole, N.Y. Yankees... [More]

Tuesday, July 13At Coors Field, Denverr-replacement; i-inactiveAmerican LeagueManager — Kevin Cash, Tampa Bay StartersCatcher — Salvador Perez, Kansas City First Baseman — Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Second Baseman — Marcus Semien, Toronto Shortstop — Xander Bogaerts, Boston Third Baseman — Rafael Devers, Boston Outfield — Teoscar Hernandez, Toronto Outfield — Aaron Judge, N.Y. Yankees Outfield — Mike Trout, L.A. Angels Designated Hitter — Shohei Ohtani, L.A. Angels ReservesCatchersMike Zunino, Tampa Bay InfieldersMatt Olson, Oakland i-Jose Altuve, Houston Bo Bichette, Toronto Jose Ramirez, Cleveland i-Carlos Correa, Houston Jared Walsh r-Tim Anderson, Chicago White Sox r-Whit Merrifield, Kansas City r-Joey Wendle, Tampa Bay Outfieldersi-Michael Brantley, Houston Joey Gallo, Texas Adolis Garcia, Texas Cedric Mullins, Baltimore Designated HittersNelson Cruz, Minnesota J.D. Martinez, Boston PitchersStartersi-Shane Bieber, Cleveland Gerrit Cole, N.Y. Yankees Nathan Eovaldi, Boston Kyle... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Atlanta's Ronald Acuña Jr., elected to start Tuesday's All-Star Game as the NL's top vote-getter among outfielders, tore the ACL in his right knee Saturday during Atlanta’s 5-4 win over the Miami Marlins and will miss the rest of the season. Acuña landed awkwardly on his right leg after jumping on the warning track in right field to try to catch a drive from Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the fifth inning at Miami. The 23-year-old slammed into the outfield wall and crumbled on the warning track, immediately grabbing his right knee while Chisholm sprinted out an inside-the-park homer. Acuña needs surgery and was replaced on the All-Star roster by third baseman Manny Machado. Philadelphia’s J.T. Realmuto will take over for injured San Francisco catcher Buster Posey as the NL starter in Tuesday’s All-Star Game at Coors Field. St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina earned his 10th All-Star selection, among 10 replacements announced Saturday by Major League Baseball, then said hours later he would... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto will take over for injured San Francisco catcher Buster Posey as the National League's starter in Tuesday's All-Star Game at Coors Field. St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina earned his 10th All-Star selection, among 10 replacements announced Saturday by Major League Baseball, then said hours later he would also skip the All-Star Game. He was replaced by Milwaukee catcher Omar Narváez. Molina was elected on the players' ballot and filled the spot vacated when Posey was put on the injured list Friday, five days after his left thumb was bruised by a foul tip. Narváez will make his first All-Star appearance. Major League Baseball also said Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts was injured and won't participate, though Betts played an entire nine innings Friday night. “An All-Star Game is definitely an honor, especially being voted in by your peers, so I definitely don’t want to discount that honor. But I do understand that I do have some nagging things going... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto will take over for injured San Francisco catcher Buster Posey as the National League's starter in Tuesday's All-Star Game at Coors Field. St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina earned his 10th All-Star selection, among 10 replacements announced Saturday by Major League Baseball, then said hours later he would also skip the All-Star Game. He was replaced by Milwaukee catcher Omar Narváez. Molina was elected on the players' ballot and filled the spot vacated when Posey was put on the injured list Friday, five days after his left thumb was bruised by a foul tip. Narváez will make his first All-Star appearance. Major League Baseball also said Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts was injured and won't participate, though Betts played an entire nine innings Friday night. Kansas City second baseman Whit Merrifield and Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson also earned selections from the players' ballot, replacing Houston second baseman José Altuve and shortstop... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto will take over for injured San Francisco catcher Buster Posey as the National League's starter in Tuesday's All-Star Game at Coors Field. St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina earned his 10th All-Star selection, among 10 replacements announced Saturday by Major League Baseball. Molina was elected on the players' ballot and filled the spot vacated when Posey was put on the injured list Friday, five days after his left thumb was bruised by a foul tip. Molina said later Saturday that he will also skip the All-Star Game to rest. Major League Baseball also said Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts was injured and won't participate, though Betts played an entire nine innings Friday night. Kansas City second baseman Whit Merrifield and Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson also earned selections from the players' ballot, replacing Houston second baseman José Altuve and shortstop Carlos Correa. Altuve said he needed time off to deal with unspecified issues with... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto will take over for injured San Francisco catcher Buster Posey as the National League's starter in Tuesday's All-Star Game at Coors Field. St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina earned his 10th All-Star selection, among 10 replacements announced Saturday by Major League Baseball. Molina was elected on the players' ballot and filled the spot vacated when Posey was put on the injured list Friday, five days after his left thumb was bruised by a foul tip. Molina said later Saturday that he will also skip the All-Star Game to rest. Kansas City second baseman Whit Merrifield and Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson also earned selections from the players' ballot, replacing Houston second baseman José Altuve and shortstop Carlos Correa. Altuve said he needed time off to deal with unspecified issues with his left leg, and Correa said he wanted to spend time with wife Daniella, who is pregnant with the couple’s first child. Merrifield became a two-time All-Star.... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto will take over from injured San Francisco catcher Buster Posey as the National League's starter in Tuesday's All-Star Game at Coors Field. St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina earned his 10th All-Star selection, among 10 replacements announced Saturday by Major League Baseball. Molina was elected on the players' ballot and filled the spot vacated when Posey was put on the injured list Friday, five days after his left thumb was bruised by a foul tip. Kansas City second baseman Whit Merrifield and Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson also earned selections from the players' ballot, replacing Houston second baseman José Altuve and shortstop Carlos Correa. Altuve said he needed time off to deal with unspecified issues with his left leg, and Correa said he wanted to spend time with wife Daniella, who is pregnant with the couple’s first child. Merrifield became a two-time All-Star. Anderson, the 2019 AL batting champion, earned his first All-Star trip.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge and Gary Sánchez powered a long-awaited onslaught from New York’s star-studded lineup, helping the Yankees overcome two more home runs by big league leader Shohei Ohtani to beat the Los Angeles Angels 11-5 Tuesday night. Judge and Sánchez each homered as New York set a season high for runs. Ohtani cleared the right field fence with a pair of scorching, low drives that pushed his major league-most total to 28. José Iglesias also homered for the Angels, a two-run drive in the second inning. Sánchez hit a solo shot in the first inning for his 14th of the season, and Judge’s two-run shot in the second was his team-leading 18th. Both homers came off Andrew Heaney (4-6), who was charged with seven runs in three-plus innings. Jameson Taillon (3-4) was credited with a win despite allowing five runs in 5 1/3 innings, pushing his ERA to 5.43. DODGERS 3, GIANTS 1 LOS ANGELES (AP) — Max Muncy homered, Walker Buehler pitched three-hit ball into the seventh inning and Los... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge and Gary Sánchez powered a long-awaited onslaught from New York’s star-studded lineup, helping the Yankees overcome two more home runs by big league leader Shohei Ohtani to beat the Los Angeles Angels 11-5 Tuesday night. Judge and Sánchez each homered as New York set a season high for runs. Ohtani cleared the right field fence with a pair of scorching, low drives that pushed his major league-most total to 28. José Iglesias also homered for the Angels, a two-run drive in the second inning. Sánchez hit a solo shot in the first inning for his 14th of the season, and Judge’s two-run shot in the second was his team-leading 18th. Both homers came off Andrew Heaney (4-6), who was charged with seven runs in three-plus innings. Jameson Taillon (3-4) was credited with a win despite allowing five runs in 5 1/3 innings, pushing his ERA to 5.43. PHILLIES 4, MARLINS 3 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Vince Velasquez tossed a two-hitter over seven innings, Rhys Hoskins hit a solo homer... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge and Gary Sánchez powered a long-awaited onslaught from New York’s star-studded lineup, helping the Yankees overcome two more home runs by big league leader Shohei Ohtani to beat the Los Angeles Angels 11-5 Tuesday night. Judge and Sánchez each homered as New York set a season high for runs. Ohtani cleared the right field fence with a pair of scorching, low drives that pushed his major league-most total to 28. José Iglesias also homered for the Angels, a two-run drive in the second inning. Sánchez hit a solo shot in the first inning for his 14th of the season, and Judge’s two-run shot in the second was his team-leading 18th. Both homers came off Andrew Heaney (4-6), who was charged with seven runs in three-plus innings. Jameson Taillon (3-4) was credited with a win despite allowing five runs in 5 1/3 innings, pushing his ERA to 5.43. PHILLIES 4, MARLINS 3 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Vince Velasquez tossed a two-hitter over seven innings, Rhys Hoskins hit a solo homer... [More]