Outlook Jordan Walker
Jordan Walker's breakout campaign makes him an essential active option for St. Louis' seven-game week.
The second-place Cardinals (41-34) continue to lean heavily on Jordan Walker, who slots in as their everyday starting right fielder. While he has cooled off slightly over the last seven days with a .261 batting average and no home runs, his last 30 days of play feature five homers and 23 RBIs. He remains locked into his everyday middle-of-the-order role, unaffected by the team's minor bench injuries.
Walker is enjoying a massive breakout year, already posting a career-best 18 home runs and 10 stolen bases with a sterling .288 batting average over 74 games. This represents a monumental leap forward from his combined 11 home runs across the 2024 and 2025 seasons. While our rest-of-season models anticipate some regression toward his conservative baseline, his elite power metrics and growth make this breakout look highly sustainable.
The Cardinals play seven games at home this week, opening with four against Arizona before hosting Miami for three. Walker will face some highly vulnerable pitching, including projected matchups against Merrill Kelly (5.81 ERA) and Zac Gallen (6.44 ERA), though tougher arms like Eduardo Rodriguez and Max Meyer loom. With plenty of volume on tap, lock him into all lineups. Verdict: Start.
Updated 12 hrs ago
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Outlook Drake Baldwin
Drake Baldwin is back behind the plate and ready to resume his breakout campaign for the division-leading Braves.
After an oblique strain sidelined him, Baldwin returned on June 16, immediately crushing a 473-foot home run. He is hitting just .111 (2-for-18) over his first five games back, but he is fully healthy and locked in as the everyday starting catcher for the first-place Braves (48-28) with Sean Murphy sidelined on the 60-day injured list.
This cold stretch is a minor post-injury bump; Baldwin is batting .286 with 14 homers across 53 games this year. Our models project a strong rest-of-season outlook with a .262 average, 25 home runs, and 85 RBIs. He remains a high-end fantasy catcher whose elite power upside in a productive lineup is completely legitimate.
Atlanta has six road games this week, featuring three at San Diego and three at San Francisco. Baldwin gets excellent matchups against high-ERA starters like Griffin Canning (6.64 ERA) and Trevor McDonald (4.93 ERA), though he must also contend with Logan Webb. Given his everyday role and premium lineup spot, he is a must-play. Start him.
Updated 12 hrs ago
