Zack is Back – May 11th, 2026
Zack Gelof (2/3/O – ATH) – A 7th-inning single extended Gelof’s hitting streak to 9 games, and he’s now hitting 274/328/484 through 69 PAs. Gelof faded quickly in 2024-25 after a hot start to his MLB career back in the second half of 2023, with the major contact issues overwhelming the strong remainder of his game. His first 11 games at AAA this year were so strong that it prompted a return to the big-league club, and he’s responded with better contact numbers than he’s shown in quite some time. There’s been more patience too, and the exact velo and speed have remained solid. One of the most valuable things here, if he keeps hitting, is that he’s well on his way to a very unique 2B/3B/OF eligibility (6 G at 2B, 4 at 3B, and 17 in the OF already). Yes, the average is most definitely suspect as the pull rate is massive and it would be surprising for this much improvement in contact ability to stick. Any improvement, though, will allow the solid power/speed combo to play, particularly at the positions that he plays. He should be picked up everywhere he’s still available.
JJ Bleday (OF – CIN) – Bleday had a triple, two walks, and a steal on Sunday and is now hitting 262/392/643 for the Reds since coming up from AAA in late April. He’s been playing basically every day, showing his typically patient approach at the plate to go along with below-average contact ability but good power. In fact, the EV and bat speed are up significantly this year over everything he’s shown previously, and that’s been the case at both levels. 3.5 mph of bat speed and 4.5 mph of average exit velocity are major gains, and when you factor that park in….it’s hard to think about leaving Bleday on a waiver wire right now. He already has 21 XBH in just 37 G at two levels this year, and while the AVG may never be great, the OBP should be pretty solid with his batting eye. I think he should be owned in all formats right now.
Vaughn Grissom (2B/3B? – LAA) – Grissom made his first start of the year at 3B on Sunday, going 2-4 with a 2B and 2 RBI in the 6-1 win over Toronto. He’s not quite playing consistently enough for standard formats yet, but there are some things here that have piqued my interest, especially given his minor league performance up through 2023. At both AAA and the big league level, Grissom is showing much better contact ability this year to go along with his typically solid plate discipline. The exit velocity is up into the average range, and the bat speed has gone up even a little further than that. The only thing I’m not seeing at all is the speed, which was never great but was solidly average. There are a lot of “if’s” here, but if he can continue to play at both 2B and 3B and maintain these gains in both contact and power, he’s still just 25. I do still feel that there’s a decent ceiling here.
Davis Martin (SP – CWS) – Martin was brilliant again on Sunday, holding the Mariners to 3 hits and 1 run over 6 innings, walking 2 and fanning 9 in a no-decision. He’s 1 out away from 7 straight QS right now, and he’s 5-1 with a 1.62 ERA overall through 8 starts. He generated 19 whiffs for the second straight outing, although it took him 105 pitches to get there this time, which will push his swinging strike rate up toward 12%, and the control has been significantly improved this year from anything we’ve seen from him at the MLB level. He even kept the ball on the ground a ton on Sunday, which is generally not one of his strengths. The advanced ERA metrics all have him somewhere between the low-3.00’s and the low-4.00’s, so very much improved from his first three years in the league regardless. Sure, this is a hot streak and he isn’t THAT good, but the underlying stats show that Martin is clearly pitching at a mid-rotation starter caliber at the very least.
Austin Martin (OF – MIN) – Martin had a pair of singles and a walk in the 5-4 victory over Cleveland on Sunday. Martin is playing roughly every other day right now with no real rationale behind the playing time split, which would normally make him unappealing in most formats, but the 2 hits Sunday have brought his line up to 337/466/424, and he’s on a 20-steal pace as well. Martin is one of the most patient hitters in existence, and he’s a very good contact hitter on top of that. He clearly has solid speed as well….just no power to speak of, as he’s bottom decile in both exit velocity and bat speed. Still, AVG, OBP, R, and SB…..the playing time isn’t quite where I’d want it to be for more than deep leagues yet, but it may very well get there. Watch list right now for standard leagues, pickup for deep formats.
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