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Christian Encarnacion-Strand 3B | BAL
Orioles' Christian Encarnacion-Strand: Four hits, two RBI in win
Encarnacion-Strand went 4-for-5 with two doubles, two RBI and one run scored in Wednesday's 8-7 win over the Cardinals.
Encarnacion-Strand supplied an RBI single to open the scoring as part of the Orioles' five-run first inning, and he plated the winning run on a double in the ninth. That's back-to-back multi-hit efforts for the infielder to open Baltimore's series in St. Louis, though he went 0-for-15 across his five games before that. Overall, he's batting .264 with an .820 OPS, seven home runs, six doubles, 27 RBI, 11 runs scored and a stolen base across 114 plate appearances this year.
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Leody Taveras CF | BAL
Orioles' Leody Taveras: Homers early in win
Taveras went 1-for-5 with a three-run home run in Wednesday's 8-7 win over the Cardinals.
Taveras' homer was part of a five-run first inning for the Orioles. Coming into Wednesday, the outfielder had just one extra-base hit over his prior 11 games, going 10-for-39 (.256) at the plate in that span. For the season, he's batting .228 with a .662 OPS, eight homers, 49 RBI, 52 runs scored, 13 doubles, six triples and 10 stolen bases through 116 contests. Taveras' playing time has trended up lately, and it should remain consistent as he takes over the starting job in right field in the absence of Tyler O'Neill (shoulder), who landed on the injured list Wednesday.
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Pete Alonso 1B | BAL
Orioles' Pete Alonso: Smacks two-run homer
Alonso went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run and a walk in Wednesday's 8-7 win over the Cardinals.
Alonso has supplied nine homers and 20 RBI over his last 16 games, including multiple RBI on six occasions in that span. He helped the Orioles build an early lead with a second-inning blast Wednesday. Alonso is hitting .276 with an .881 OPS, 32 long balls, 91 RBI, 82 runs scored, 24 doubles and five stolen bases across 133 contests in his first year with Baltimore.
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Andrew Kittredge RP | BAL
Orioles' Andrew Kittredge: Earns seventh save
Kittredge allowed a hit and a walk with no strikeouts in a scoreless inning to earn the save in Wednesday's 8-7 win over the Cardinals.
The Orioles took the lead in the top of the ninth inning, and Kittredge was able to make it stick. He continues to work in a general high-leverage role, collecting three saves and three holds, as well as one blown save, over 9.1 innings in August. The veteran reliever has a 3.35 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 33:11 K:BB across 40.1 innings this season, notching seven saves, nine holds and four blown saves along the way.
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Kyle Bradish SP | BAL
Orioles' Kyle Bradish: Rocked for seven runs
Bradish allowed seven runs on nine hits and two walks while striking out four over 4.1 innings in a no-decision versus the Cardinals on Wednesday.
Bradish was cruising until the fifth inning, when the Cardinals were able to tack on six runs to erase an early deficit. With 12 runs allowed (10 earned) over his last 10 innings, Bradish's performance has taken a poor turn after a positive beginning to August. On the year, he has a 4.03 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 133:62 K:BB through 143 innings over 26 starts. He's lined up to make his next start in Colorado, which makes him a volatile fantasy option.
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Nathan Lukes RF | TOR
Blue Jays' Nathan Lukes: Clubs game-deciding homer
Lukes went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run in Wednesday's win against Kansas City.
Lukes was almost on his front knee as he golfed a fourth-inning pitch over the right-field wall to bring home the only runs of the game. The 32-year-old has hit three long balls in his last five games as he tries to ramp up his production in August. So far this month he is slashing .218/.244/.372 with four homers, 13 RBI and seven runs in 23 games.
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Sal Frelick RF | MIL
Brewers' Sal Frelick: Collects three hits in return
Frelick went 3-for-4 with a double, a walk, two RBI and a run scored in Wednesday's 8-1 win over the Mets.
Frelick made an immediate impact in his first game since July 17, driving in two runs with a single in the second inning and reaching base a season-high four times overall. The outfielder had been sidelined for over a month due to a shoulder strain. Prior to the injury, Frelick had struggled to a .630 OPS with four homers, 14 doubles, 34 RBI, 33 runs scored and six stolen bases across 90 games, making Wednesday's three-hit return an encouraging start.
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Louie Varland RP | TOR
Blue Jays' Louis Varland: Converts 30th save
Varland earned the save in Wednesday's 3-0 win over the Royals, allowing two hits and no walks with one strikeout in 1.1 scoreless innings.
Varland worked through traffic in both of the innings he pitched, as he entered and escaped a two-on, two-out jam in the eighth and then allowed two hits in the ninth before securing the save. The 28-year-old righty has now converted 30 of his 31 save opportunities and hasn't surrendered an earned run in his past eight appearances.
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TJ Friedl CF | CIN
Reds' TJ Friedl: Placed on waivers
The Reds placed Friedl on outright waivers Wednesday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
With the Reds most likely out of contention for a postseason appearance, the team will now attempt to shed payroll for the final month of the season by exposing Friedl to waivers. The 31-year-old has endured the worst season of his career up to this point, batting just .158 with a .476 OPS through 253 plate appearances. It's unlikely that another team will be willing to take on the $700,000 remaining on his contract for minimal production, so Friedl will presumably clear waivers and remain with the Reds for the rest of the year.
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Randy Dobnak SP | KC
Royals' Randy Dobnak: Suffers defeat in quality start
Dobnak (2-2) took the loss against the Blue Jays Wednesday, allowing three runs on six hits and one walk over six innings. He struck out five.
Dobnak made one mistake to Nathan Lukes, giving up a three-run homer for the only runs of the game, and is without a win in his past four starts. The 31-year-old Dobnak has pitched well since entering the Kansas City rotation in July, as he has a 1.92 ERA in 10 appearances, though his 1.37 WHIP and 34:21 K:BB through 51.2 innings are less encouraging figures. The right-hander tentatively lines up to make his next start at homer versus Miami.