Latest news with #OneilCruz
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Mariners' Cal Raleigh emerges as betting favorite to win 2025 Home Run Derby
The post Mariners' Cal Raleigh emerges as betting favorite to win 2025 Home Run Derby appeared first on ClutchPoints. The 2025 Home Run Derby is just two days away. The derby is always one of the top events to watch in sports, as there is nothing like seeing a ton of baseballs being hit out of the park. The field is set with eight sluggers ready to win their first-ever derby. Atlanta Braves' Matt Olson is replacing Ronald Acuna Jr. for the derby, keeping at least one hometown player in the event. Acuna did not want to risk an injury. When the field was initially set, Pittsburgh Pirates' Oneil Cruz was the betting favorite to win the event. Now, Cruz is no longer the favorite. After Cal Raleigh smashed two home runs on Friday night, the slugging catcher found his odds at the top to win the derby. This should be expected, as the catcher has an astonishing 38 homers before the All-Star break. He is on pace for 65+ homers on the season, which would put him in a category of his own when it comes to power-hitting catchers. The switch-hitter doesn't seem to be slowing down either. Raleigh joins more historic company with his latest two-homer game. Here are the odds to win the 2025 Home Run Derby, courtesy of FanDuel. Cal Raleigh: +280 Oneil Cruz: +350 James Wood: +400 Matt Olson: +750 Byron Buxton: +850 Brent Rooker: +1000 Junior Caminero: +1100 Jazz Chisholm: +1500 It is unclear if Raleigh will hit from the right side or the left. It's expected that he will bat left-handed, as right field is shorter than left at Truist Park. Raleigh, Wood, Cruz, and Olson all have the top odds as they are batting from the left side. Chisholm is not expected to win, but he has a smooth swing that could smash a ton over the fence. This could be anyone's derby to win, but with the way Raleigh is smashing home runs left and right, it's hard not to imagine him not winning the event. Related: Mariners' Cal Raleigh has perfect reaction to latest HR feat Related: Mariners' Cal Raleigh joins historic company with grand slam vs. Tigers
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cal Raleigh shows off with wild move during HR Derby
The post Cal Raleigh shows off with wild move during HR Derby appeared first on ClutchPoints. Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh had a remarkable first half of the 2025 season and he's hoping to cap his historic start with a Home Run Derby crown. Raleigh emerged as the betting favorite to win the exhibition on the strength of his incredible production for the Mariners. However, the switch-hitting catcher threw the audience a curveball when he decided to switch sides of the plate during the Derby. Raleigh began the first round batting left-handed. But after a timeout and a conference with teammates, he switched to the right side, per Daniel Kramer. After showing off his power as a right-handed hitter, Raleigh again changed sides and took his bonus round swings as a lefty. He had 17 total home runs in the first round, 10 from the left side and eight from the right. Mariners' star Cal Raleigh shows off versatility at the Derby As impressive as his switch-hitting power display was, Raleigh just barely scraped by in the first round. He tied the Athletics' Brent Rooker with 17 bombs. In the Derby, a tie goes to the batter with the longest dong. Raleigh edged out Rooker by mere inches. The Mariners' star had a 470.62-foot homer, which just topped Rooker's best effort of 470.54 feet, per Ultimately Raleigh advanced to Round 2 where he'll square off against Pittsburgh Pirates' slugger Oneil Cruz. His longest homer in the first round was just under 471 feet and Raleigh had five homers that traveled over 450 feet. His exit velocity topped out at 112 mph. Regardless of the Derby's outcome, 2025 has been a dream season for Raleigh so far. The fifth-year veteran has had an MVP-caliber campaign through the first half. He leads the majors with 38 home runs, putting him on pace for 65 bombs this season. Raleigh also has an MLB-leading 82 RBI, the second-highest OPS (1.011) and third-most bWAR (4.8). He finished one bomb shy of joining Barry Bonds as the all-time leader with 39 homers before the All-Star break. Bonds reached that total in his historic 2001 campaign when he broke the single-season home run record with 73. Despite Raleigh's efforts, the Mariners weren't able to stay atop the AL West. The team is currently five games behind the Houston Astros in the division. But a three-game winning streak to close out the first half has the Mariners in position for a Wild Card berth. Related: Mariners' Cal Raleigh hits multiple milestones in historic Home Run Derby triumph Related: Baseball erupts after Cal Raleigh wins 2025 MLB Home Run Derby thriller
Reuters
5 days ago
- Sport
- Reuters
White Sox pummel Pirates 10-1 to open second half
July 19 - Luis Robert Jr. and Edgar Quero each had two hits, including a home run, and two RBIs to lead the Chicago White Sox to a 10-1 victory over the host Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night. Quero's solo home run with two outs off Pirates starter Bailey Falter (6-5) kickstarted a three-run first inning and Robert hit his 10th home run in the fourth to begin the rout. The offensive onslaught backed up a quality start from Jonathan Cannon (4-7), who gave up one run on five hits, did not walk a batter and struck out two over seven innings. Chicago opened the second half with a win after losing back-to-back games before the All-Star break. Pittsburgh was held to five hits and suffered its ninth loss in its past 10 games. The Pirates had their seven-game winning streak at home snapped. Robert, who has been the subject of trade speculation, reached base four times, scored three runs and made a tremendous diving catch in left field to steal a double from Isiah Kiner-Falefa in the third inning. Andrew Benintendi and Colson Montgomery each also had two hits and two RBIs. Pittsburgh tallied its lone run in the bottom of the fourth when Oneil Cruz drove in Bryan Reynolds, who doubled to lead off the inning. Cruz carried over his momentum from the All-Star break when he hit a 513-foot home run and finished as a semifinalist in the Home Run Derby. On Friday, Cruz led the Pirates with two hits and stole his 30th base. Chicago broke the game open with two more runs in the sixth and four in the seventh. The latter frame was highlighted by a bases-clearing double by Michael A. Taylor, which helped the White Sox tie their second-highest run total this season. Falter allowed four runs on six hits and one walk and struck out two over four innings. Braxton Ashcraft struggled in relief as well, as he walked four batters, including Benintendi and Robert to open the sixth. He gave up a single to Lenyn Sosa to load the bases. Montgomery then drove in two runs off Ashcraft when he bounced a high-chopper off first baseman Spencer Horwitz and down the right field line to put the White Sox ahead 6-1. --Field Level Media
NBC Sports
6 days ago
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Fantasy Baseball second-half breakouts and bouncebacks: Oneil Cruz, Zebby Matthews, more
The second half is underway, and I promise you there is still time to make up ground in your fantasy leagues. If you've dealt with injuries or poor performance or just can't quite seem to string together consistent success, there is still time to make tweaks to get your team to a title. Similarly, there is still time for players to make tweaks to find another level of success. For some, we've been seeing the groundwork laid for that success already. In this article, I'm going to highlight players who have failed to meet our expectations in the first half. Some of them are guys who have battled injuries, others haven't quite found their groove, and others have given us some elements of fantasy goodness but are due for more. All of them are players who I think will have far more fantasy value after the All-Star break than they did before. In order to narrow the scope, this article does not feature injured players or rookies who will be making their debut after the All-Star break (like Shane McClanahan or Bubba Chandler) it also doesn't include players who have played well but might gain value in a new role (like Jack Perkins). I'm simply focusing on players who either struggled in the first half or had major MLB opportunities in the first half, but are players I think are due for much better months in August and September. Second-Half Hitters to Target We'll start with two veteran shortstops, who are still providing some value but not as much as I think they'll give you in the second half: Oneil Cruz and Corey Seager. Oneil Cruz - SS: Pittsburgh Pirates Cruz came out of the gates hot this season and has 16 home runs and 29 steals on the season, so there has been plenty of fantasy goodness. However, since May 1st, he's slashing .192/.296/.356 in 57 games with a nearly 35% strikeout rate. That's actively hurting you in batting average leagues. However, even in that stretch, Cruz has a 21.4% barrel rate and 96 mph average exit velocity. The approach is also not that much different than what we've seen from him as his 40% pull rate is right in line with his season-long averages, and his 33.3% flyball rate is just about 5% below what we were seeing from him earlier. What's more, from May 12th on, his Process+ score is 104, where 100 is the league average. Process+ is a Pitcher List stat that shows 'The combined value of a hitter's Decision Value, Contact Ability, and Power,' so it's a stat I like for showing hitters who are making good decisions and making enough contact and quality contact. If Cruz can keep his power and speed but hit something closer to .240 in the second half, that could make him a major fantasy asset. Corey Seager - SS, Texas Rangers Seager is another player who is not quite living up to our elevated expectations for him. From June 1st on, Seager is slashing .248/.404/.465 with seven home runs and 18 RBI in 36 games. However, that comes with a 16.5% barrel rate and a 125 Process+ score. He's already started to turn it around in July, but I think there still might be a bit of a window to buy low on Seager in a trade before he puts up big numbers in the second half. I think he could double his home run total in the remaining games while also putting up a .280 average and good counting stats. Otto Lopez - 2B/SS, Miami Marlins Lopez is another middle infielder who I think is in for a good second half. He's been pretty good already this season, slashing .250/.320/.392 with 10 steals and a surprising 10 home runs. The power is not something I expected from a guy with just an 88 mph average exit velocity; however, his xSLG of .481 is much higher than his .392 slugging percentage, and his Pull Air% is not great, but better than anything he's posted before. His 7.9% barrel rate is the best of his career, and his 113 Process+ from May 12th on suggests that Lopez's .291 xBA might be closer to what we see from him in the second half. Dominic Canzone - OF, Seattle Mariners Since Canzone has been called up, all he's done is mash with a .319/.340/.564 slash line to go along with six home runs, 10 RBI, and a 15.8% barrel rate in 30 games. His appearance on this list isn't me saying that there is more in the tank here, but it's simply me saying that what we're seeing isn't that much of a fluke. He's pulling the ball almost 10% more than last year, and so even though he isn't lifting the ball as much, he's making much more damaging contact. Canzone's bat speed is faster this season, and he's closed his stance a bit and started attacking the ball out in front of the plate a bit more. If Canzone is still available on your waiver wires, he could be in for a strong second half. Colt Keith - 1B/2B, Detroit Tigers I've written about Colt Keith a few times in my waiver wire articles, mentioning that Keith is hitting .358/.417/.585 with two home runs, 11 runs scored, and six RBI over his last 15 games. His Process+ score is 120 from May 12th on, and I recorded a video talking about Keith's recent surge, so check that out here. Jac Caglianone - 1B/OF, Kansas City Royals I also recorded a video on Caglianone, suggesting that he could be in for a strong summer. He hasn't had great results so far as a pro, but he has just a 21.7% strikeout rate with an 11.1% barrel rate and 89.1 mph average exit velocity. His 102 Process+ score from May 12th on confirms that he's not really being overmatched at the big league level, and his xBA of .259 and xSLG of .462 is far better than his .140 average and .264 slugging percentage. If Cags was dropped in your league, it might be time to add him. Max Muncy - SS/3B, Athletics Muncy may be one of the riskiest picks on here because he has the least evidence to support his potential breakout. His expected stats and Process+ score don't jump off the charts, and his contact metrics are only trending up in a small sample size. However, those results have been good for him lately, and I think it could be tied to a slight approach change. Over his last 14 games, Muncy is slashing .288/.339/.577 with four home runs, eight runs scored, seven RBI, and a 16.2% barrel rate. If you use Statcast's Swing Path data, you can see that Muncy's Ideal Attack Angle has skyrocketed to nearly 60% in July. Some of that could be tied to adjusting how far out in front of the plate he's making contact and also how wide his stance is, opening it up slightly after closing it off a lot in June. This could all be nothing, but we've seen young players adjust as the season goes on, so maybe that's what Muncy is doing. Will Benson - OF, Cincinnati Reds Another player I'm just going to trust the numbers on here is Will Benson. We've seen Benson flash great raw tools before, but he has never been able to maintain consistent stretches of MLB production outside of his 2023 season. However, he jumped out to me for a few reasons here. For starters, his .282 xBA is much better than his .223 average, and his .538 xSLG is far superior to his .427 slugging percentage. We know that expected stats aren't always a good barometer of future success; however, Benson also has a 117 Process+ score from May 12th on, which suggests that his overall decisions and contact have been good as well. He still has a 16% swinging strike rate, which worries me, but he's swinging more often this year, which has allowed him to slightly reduce his strikeout rate by giving himself more opportunities to make contact. I'm not sure if this will work, but in deeper leagues it might be worth a shot. Jesus Sanchez - OF, Miami Marlins Much like Benson, Sanchez is a platoon bat who will often sit against left-handed pitching. Unlike Benson, Sanchez has never really had major strikeout issues and has produced more consistent results. He's hitting just .259 on the season with seven home runs, but his 112 Process+ from May 12th on is well above the 100 league average mark. He has a 92 mph average exit velocity and 11.7% barrel rate, so he's making tons of strong contact. He is also chasing far less outside of the zone and making a career-high 76% contact rate. It would not surprise me if we see a power surge from Sanchez in the second half. Nick Gonzales - 2B/SS, Pittsburgh Pirates Gonzales doesn't have much speed and hits in a mediocre offense, so his fantasy upside will be limited; however, I wanted to highlight him here because his .289 xBA and 110 Process+ from May 12th on tell us that Gonzales could be a batting average asset in the second half of the season. In July, Gonzales has taken a pretty drastic opposite field approach, making contact -4.4 inches behind the front of the plate after being out over 10 inches in front of the plate earlier in the season. That has led to a massive spike in his Ideal Attack Angle%, and while it will limit his power ceiling, it could mean more line drives and hits fall in. Daylen Lile - OF, Washington Nationals Lile is not the young Nationals hitter that many people are talking about, but some interesting things are happening under the hood here. His .306 xBA is far better than his .234 average, and I've been impressed by his 14% strikeout rate and 5.7% swinging strike rate in his brief MLB debut. He makes really good swing decisions, which is partly why he's posted a 103 Process+ score from May 12th on. He stole 25 bases in the minor leagues last season and had 12 steals in 47 games in the minors this year, so if Lile can start to get on base more often, he should be able to run and help you in stolen bases as well. It's worth a gamble in deeper leagues. Josh Bell - 1B, Washington Nationals We'll end with a veteran, Josh Bell, who has been stepping it up lately. Bell has posted a 117 Process+ from May 12th on, but it wasn't until the middle of June that that process started to lead to tremendous results. From June 10th on, Bell is hitting .296/.369/.429 with two home runs, 10 runs scored, 13 RBI, and a 9.3% barrel rate over that span. Bell is no longer a 25-30 home run guy, but we could easily see 8-10 home runs from him the rest of the way with a good batting average. He could also be traded to a contender as a switch hitting first base option, and that could boost his fantasy value as well. Second-Half Starting Pitchers to Target Dylan Cease - San Diego Padres Cease is the most obvious 'buy low' target you can get. We know he's a streaky pitcher, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see him go on a hot stretch, but his underlying stats tell us it could happen as well. He's posted a 16.6% SwStr% and 20.7% K-BB% in 56.1 innings since May 15th, which has helped him post a 3.36 SIERA that's far better than his 5.11 ERA. Most people in your league are expecting Cease to bounce back, so you likely can't get him cheap, but I would try to get shares of Cease if I can. Tanner Bibee - Cleveland Guardians Bibee is a less likely bounceback, and he may not be the SP2 in fantasy baseball that we expected. However, his pitch mix is starting to click with his three fastball variations, and his last start before the break gave us a bit of a sign that he could be turning things around. Even if he doesn't become an ace, he deserves to pitch better than he has. He has an 11.4% SwStr% and 17.3% K-BB% in 64 innings since May 15th, which has led to a 3.65 SIERA that's better than his 4.64 ERA. I'm going to bank on the sinker, cutter, four-seamer combination helping him to lower his ERA closer to that SIERA mark, but I'm not sure we're going to get tons of strikeouts. Zebby Matthews - Minnesota Twins I wrote about Zebby Matthews as a pitcher I think could end the season in the top 25 starting pitchers, so clearly I've been in the bag for him all season. However, he has also deserved better in his big league innings with a 12.1% SwStr% and 20.5% K-BB% in 19 innings since May 15th. That has helped him post a 3.39 SIERA despite his 5.21 ERA. He looked electric in his Triple-A rehab start last week, and I'd be stashing him now. Richard Fitts - Boston Red Sox I'm also fully in the bag for Fitts and have been since he showed increased velocity and an expanded pitch mix this spring. Since coming off the IL, he has been sitting 97 mph on his four-seam fastball with his secondaries starting to get more consistent. He's posted a 13.2% SwStr% in 16.2 innings since May 15th, with a 3.84 SIERA that is much better than his 5.40 ERA. I think he was done a disservice by the Red Sox rushing him back from the IL, and it wouldn't shock me if he keeps his rotation spot for the remainder of the season. Frankie Montas - New York Mets We also know that Montas will keep his rotation spot for the remainder of the season, but I think he's probably more of a deep league option. He's posted a 5.03 ERA in his first 19.2 innings, but that has come with a 12.3% SwStr%, 16% K-BB%, and 3.92 SIERA. He pitches on a good team in a good pitcher's park, and so it wouldn't surprise me if Montas were a good enough deep league asset. Michael Soroka - Washington Nationals I also think Michael Soroka is in for a better second half. His 10.1% SwStr% since May 15th isn't overly impressive, but that comes with a 19.5% K-BB% and 3.45 SIERA. I wrote about Soroka's changes with a new arm slot and curveball usage earlier his month, and I think he's somebody who could really turn it around in the second half. Brandon Walter - Houston Astros Brandon Walter is another pitcher I wrote about earlier this season, and I've been impressed with what he's done so far. He's registered just an 11.9% SwStr% but a 23% K-BB% and 2.98 SIERA in 40.2 innings this season. He relies more on command and deception than overpowering stuff, which makes him a bit riskier than some of the other names on this list, but I think his spot in the rotation is rather secure, and I could see him being a streamer in 12-team leagues and a locked-in option in deeper formats. Joey Cantillo - Cleveland Guardians If you're looking for the inverse of Walter, you could turn to Cantillo, who seems to have a rotation spot locked up with Luis L. Ortiz undergoing an MLB investigation for a gambling infraction. Since coming back as a starter, Cantillo has a 14.9% SwStr% and 20.7% K-BB% in 12.2 innings with a 3.33 SIERA. His changeup can be a truly dominant pitch, and he gets elite extension on his fastball, so there is enough here to tie up right-handed hitters and make Cantillo a good high-upside play for the second half.
Daily Mail
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Livvy Dunne wowed by baseball star's impressive performance... but it's NOT boyfriend Paul Skenes
Livvy Dunne was left gobsmacked after one of her boyfriend's baseball teammates hit some absolute bombs during the MLB Home Run Derby. The TikTok sensation and former LSU gymnast was at Truist Park in Atlanta with her Pirates-star beau Paul Skenes for the annual All-Star Game event on Monday night. And while taking in the action, Dunne could not believe her eyes when Pittsburgh outfielder Oneil Cruz let rip with one of his 21 home runs that saw him advance to the semifinals. Cruz, who crushed a 513-foot homer on the night, averaged 447 feet during the first round with a top exit velocity of 118mph. Dunne shared a video on Instagram of the Dominican star sending one flying into the stands, before spinning the camera round to show her stunned reaction. She also included the caption 'holy cr@p' while saying in the background 'oh my god'. Dunne and Skenes, who is set to make his second consecutive All-Star game start on Tuesday after being drafted by the Pirates last year, were captured on ESPN's broadcast cheering on Cruz from the sidelines. The social-media beauty also shared a pic of her and Paul taking in the festitivies while sat side by side. Earlier on Monday, Dunne had shared a pair of snaps to her Instagram Story of herself and her man on a private jet bound for the ATL. The couple rode in style and in comfort - with the cabin of the aircraft adorned with slick wood accents and cushioned leather chairs. The couple are both in Georgia this week after Skenes was named one of the best baseball players at this point in the season.
