Arizona

Diamondbacks

It’s a defensible choice, though Shohei Ohtani is right there, and Trea Turner and Christian Walker also might have been better options. Marte will be followed by Ohtani, Turner, Bryce Harper, William Contreras, Yelich, Alex Bohm, Teoscar Hernández and Jurickson Profar.

Waldschmidt was not an unknown entering the 2024 season, but he improved his stock considerably after hitting .333/.469/.610 with 14 homers and 25 thefts for the Wildcats this spring. There’s plus speed at the 21-year-old outfielder’s disposal, and his hit- and power-tools aren’t far behind. There are some defensive questions despite his athleticism and there’s a below-average arm, but it shouldn’t keep him from playing in a corner outfield spot, and the bat can play in that role.

Caldwell’s best tool is his speed, and it not only allows him to be a threat on the bases, but he profiles as one of the better defensive outfielders in the class as well. At 5-foot-9, 182-pounds, he’s not likely to be a major source of power, but he’s strong enough to put the ball into the gaps and turn on fastballs on the inner-half of the plate. He sprays line drives all over the diamond, and he gets rave reviews for his acumen at the dish. Caldwell has a chance to be a helper in several categories, even if it may not happen for a few years.

Marte got the Diamondbacks’ offense started with a monstrous 443-foot (109.8 mph EV) grand slam as part of a seven-/run uprising off of Yusei Kikuchi in the fifth inning. He also had a pair of singles in the ballgame, finishing the day 3-for-5. The All-Star second baseman finishes the first half hitting .292/.362/.515 with 19 homers, 57 RBI and six stolen bases.

The right-hander walked one and struck out just one batter in the ballgame. The Blue Jays had scratched out just an unearned run against him through the first three frames, but the wheels fell off for Gallen in the fourth inning. There, the Jays’ scored on run-scoring singles by Daulton Varsho and Ernie Clement before they opened it up with a grand slam off the bat of Kevin Kiermaier. Gallen got just four swings and misses on 70 pitches in the game, registering a CSW of 26 percent. He finishes his first half with a 6-5 record, 3.87 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and a 76/21 K/BB ratio over 76 2/3 innings in his 15 starts.

Curious to see Carroll sitting after a two-homer game, but he’ll take a breather to finish up the first half with left-hander Yusei Kikuchi starting for the Blue Jays. Ketel Marte will slide into the leadoff spot and Randal Grichuk will play right field.

Carroll is attempting to wrap up a disastrous first half on a high note with his first multi-homer performance since June 9, 2023. He plated an early run with a second-inning sacrifice fly before walloping a three-run homer in the seventh inning and launching a two-run blast in the ensuing frame. The 23-year-old fantasy star, who put together a 25-homer, 54-steal campaign last year in his full-season debut, has just five round-trippers and 18 steals in 93 games leading into next week’s All-Star break. Fantasy managers have been waiting on the power breakthrough from Carroll for months at this juncture, so hopefully this is the type of game that will get him back on track entering the second half.

Diaz was nearly flawless against Toronto’s struggling lineup in his second big-league start, keeping them off the scoreboard with the exception of a run-scoring sacrifice fly to Alejandro Kirk in the second inning following a one-out triple by former Diamondbacks standout Daulton Varsho. He struck out two and also issued a pair of walks. The 23-year-old righty wasn’t overpowering in this one, as evidenced by just five swinging strikes and a lackluster 24 percent CSW, yet he was able to avoid major damage by limiting the Blue Jays to just a pair of extra-base hits on 10 batted balls with an exit velocity over 95 mph. The minor league numbers have been excellent, and Diaz looks like he’s going to get an extended opportunity for the Diamondbacks after the All-Star break over pedestrian options like Slade Cecconi and Ryne Nelson, but it’s difficult to trust him completely outside of deeper mixed leagues at this juncture. We’re intrigued by the impressive raw stuff, but he’s giving up a lot of hard contact and isn’t missing a ton of bats at the moment, which are some pretty glaring warning signs.

Carroll also scored a run, and it was the game-winner on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Geraldo Perdomo in the bottom of the ninth. The 23-year-old has now stolen 18 bases with the pair of thefts. Those are nice. His .210/.297/.316 slash requires a different word.

Nelson didn’t allow a run over the first four innings, but he allowed runners to cross over the next three. It was still a solid effort — even with the loss — where he struck out five and didn’t issue a walk. Nelson has looked much more effective over the last few outings, and his ERA has dropped from 5.96 on June 6 to a more palatable — if still not ideal — 4.98 in the process.