Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes allowed two earned runs on three hits and four walks while striking out six batters over six innings of work in Friday's 5-3 victory over the Mariners. He also hit a batter. It was the former first-round draft pick's 12th quality start in 16 games started and he now has a sterling 2.30 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, and a 25.5% K-BB%. While there isn't much to complain about, it was the third time in the last four starts that the 22-year-old walked at least three batters, and he's hit a batter in five of seven, so he could be tiring with 125 1/3 IP under his belt this season between the minors and majors. Regardless, as long as he's on the mound fantasy managers should be firing him up.

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge went 1-for-4 at the plate in Friday's 3-0 victory over the Tigers, but the lone hit was his 44th home run of the season. The 32-year-old has a little five-game hit streak going now, during which time he is 10-for-18 (.556) with three home runs and has a .652 OBP. The 6x All-Star is the MVP-front runner at this point and is showing no signs of slowing down.

Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Michael Kopech was handed the ball in the ninth inning Friday, pitching a clean frame with no hits or walks and recording two strikeouts while notching the save in the 7-6 victory over the Cardinals. It was the righty's first save in a Dodger uniform after coming over from the White Sox. While the 28-year-old's tenure with the Sox was tumultuous, it has been smooth sailing so far in L.A., posting a 0.00 ERA in eight appearances, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out 13 batters. Daniel Hudson blew a save on Thursday and it has been nearly a month since Evan Phillips earned a save, so while all three are in the mix, Kopech's effectiveness should provide him more opportunities for saves going forward.

Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. had a big day at the plate in Friday's 5-4 win over the Astros. The 27-year-old went 4-for-5 with two home runs, four RBI, and two runs scored in the contest. It was a much-needed breakout that comes on the heels of a brutal 22-game stretch in which he went 12-for-89 (.135) with just one home run. It has been a disappointing season for the Cuban after he made the All-Star team and won a Silver Slugger award in 2023, now with a .212-14-31-30-17 line through 66 games after missing two months of the season with an injury. The good news is that he's collected a hit in three straight games and August is his second-best month batting average and OPS-wise over the course of his career so this run could have legs, although the bad news is that September is by far his worst.

Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Garrett Crochet threw just four innings in Friday's 5-4 win over the Astros, however, the southpaw was very effective, allowing just four hits and one earned run with no walks and nine punchouts, although he was unable to factor into the decision. It was a nice bounceback from the last time out when the 25-year-old was roughed up for seven earned runs after he allowed nine hits (four home runs) in just two-and-a-third innings. Unfortunately for fantasy managers, the former first-round draft pick has not pitched beyond the fourth inning in any of his last seven starts, which is going to preclude him from earning any wins if that will be the case for the remainder of the season, so his fantasy value has taken a hit, although he's clearly still a good source of strikeouts.