Marcus Stroman leads the National League with a 2.28 ERA following his seven shutout inning victory over the Pirates Tuesday night. He is the clear frontrunner to start for the N.L. in the All-Star Game as he takes the top spot on Week 12 of our #HighFive List.
1. Marcus “Stro Show” Stroman
After going seven shutout innings, allowing just five hits, one walk and five strikeouts, Marcus Stroman now has 14 quality starts this season; the next closest pitcher has 11.
Strikeouts and analytics are overrated. Dawgs are gonna dawg. 😤 @_shugo https://t.co/KBveCL4DSk
— Marcus Stroman (@STR0) June 21, 2023
In his last seven starts, Stroman is 7-0 with a 1.29 ERA, 0.86 WHIP (his 1.02 overall WHIP is the lowest in the National League) and has only given up a total of seven earned runs.
“Are you not entertained?”
Marcus Stroman is either leading or tied for the NL lead in 7 different pitching categories. Might the @STR0 Show open up the All-Star Game for the Senior Circuit?#cubs #mlbbro pic.twitter.com/lysBgxcrK4
— MLBbro.com (@MLBbrodotcom) June 22, 2023
With him being in the final year of his contract, we will see plenty of trade talks involving Stroman from now until the deadline in late July, but with his Cubs posting an 8-2 record over their last 10 games the team is just four games out of first place in the National League Central, which may prompt them to be buyers and pursue a World Series.
Stroman’s next start will come this Sunday vs “Black Jack” Flaherty and the Cardinals in Major League Baseball’s second ever series in London, England.
2. Jordan “Sky” Walker
Jordan “Sky” Walker’s 13-game hitting streak is currently the longest in the Majors and best the 12-game streak he had to begin his career.
During the streak, Walker is hitting .400 with a 1.204 OPS, four home runs, a .733 slugging percentage and eight RBI.
St. Louis Cardinals Coach & Legend Willie McGee Discusses The Rise Of Rookie Jordan Walker pic.twitter.com/Yc61gxcNJz
— MLBbro.com (@MLBbrodotcom) June 19, 2023
“His future looks bright,” said Cardinals Assistant Coach and World Series Champion Willie McGee. “I just hope he is left alone. Let him figure it out and let him play. I look for him to be one of the better players in the league for a long time.”
The Cardinals rookie entered the year as Major League Baseball’s top prospect but was sent to Triple A Memphis in late April to change his swing despite hitting over .270 at the time. He learned a lot about himself during the time, most importantly that his way was going to be the best for himself to succeed.
Now the Cardinals are reaping the benefits of Walker’s skillset and will put it on full display for the entire world to see in this weekend’s London Series against the Chicago Cubs.
3. “Money” Michael Harris II
After a pep-talk from his teammate a few weeks ago, “Money” Michael Harris has been the best center fielder in baseball. In his last seven games, Harris has a batting average of .481 with two home runs, eight RBI, a stolen base and .464 on base percentage.
Harris had the best game of his career on Father’s Day last Sunday, sealing his Player of the Week honors. The game began with him catching the first pitch from his father Michael Harris Sr. and ended with him going 5-for-5 with a home run, double, three RBI and three runs scored.
4. Josh Naylor
Josh Naylor is having the best season of his career and he quietly has been one of the top hitters in the Major Leagues. His 55 RBI are the fourth most in the Majors and his .295 average puts him eighth in the American League.
Over his last seven games Naylor is hitting .355 with seven RBI and has collected four hits twice in three games this week. He also has nine multi-hit games in June.
This past Wednesday was a night the Naylor family will never forget. Not only did Josh go 4-for-4 with a home run and two RBI, but his younger brother Bo also got the first hit of his career on an eighth inning single to center field.
5. “Late Night” LaMonte Wade Jr.
“Late Night” LaMonte Wade Jr. is an on-base machine and a key reason for the San Francisco Giants first 10 game winning streak since 2004.
Wade is tied for second in the Majors with a .415 on base percentage. He has also drawn the sixth most walks in the league and leads the Giants with an .878 OPS.
LaMonte Wade Jr. makes it a 4-run 5th 💣💥
(via @NBCSGiants) pic.twitter.com/o7SJVgyMrG
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) June 18, 2023
The highlight of Wade’s week came last Saturday when he hit a three-run homer with a distance of 399 feet against the Dodgers in a 15-0 massacre of the Los Angeles Dodgers. This weekend Wade and his Giants will welcome the Arizona Diamondbacks to the Bay for a three-game series featuring the best teams in the National League West.
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