Benintendi's two-homer, four-for-five night powered a 12-3 win, lifting his season total to 17 homers and fueling a late-season fantasy surge for Chicago. Lenin Sosa sits atop the Sox HR leaderboard at 19, while Coulson Montgomery has shown a promising power-and-glove profile across 48 games. The win underscores a front-office shift toward internal development, a rising run differential, and a clear path for the rest of the season.

The discussion ties on-field progress to a broader rebuild: internal hires, Ryan Fuller’s influence, and a plan that emphasizes growing talent from within. With a +16 run differential and a potential edge in the 2026 draft pool, Chicago’s strategy is delivering tangible upside for fantasy managers eyeing breakout bets down the stretch.

Playoff time sharpens rosters, and 10 names mind the cut line. Otani’s pitching struggles push a split decision: in shallow leagues, drop the pitcher Otani while keeping the bat, whereas deeper formats may still stash him for potential late-season depth. Kyle Tucker’s hairline hand fracture is healing, but the clock is ticking toward the playoffs, making a cautious stance prudent. O’Neal Cruz’s concussion IL and Austin Riley’s season-ending core surgery explode the waiver-wire calculus in many formats, while Zach Wheeler’s shoulder thrombosis casts a shadow over Phillies pitching plans. Byron Buxton’s health remains a minefield, and Shane Baz’s slide raises red flags as Berios’ volatility keeps owners wary on Toronto. The insiders track, waiver picks, and rotation shuffles shape the stretch run.

Bubba Chandler’s call-up to Pittsburgh signals the Pirates are leaning into youth with a high-upside starter who can annually touch triple digits. His major-league debut window comes with a soft Friday matchup against Colorado, but fantasy managers should temper expectations given recent rough stretch in the minors. A deeper, rosters-up perspective points to keeping an eye on his development and keeping a spot warm for a potential breakout late in the season.

Meanwhile, Nolan McLean’s Mets debut is a reminder that the pipeline of young arms is real. McLean impressed in his first big-league outing, while Chandler offers elite upside if he can command his stuff. On the Yankees side, Ben Rice and Jose Caballero have been surging, adding a useful multi-position angle and sprint-speed threat to a lineup that’s heating up. Brooks Lee and Owen Casey are also drawing attention as mid-late-season risers with real multi-positional upside for dynasty and deep-league managers.

Across the league, the wave of call-ups includes Jameson Taillon’s return’s impact in Chicago and Luis Hill’s return in New York, with Hill showing strikeout upside in a supportive Yankees environment. The waiver-wire landscape remains dynamic, with matchups driving the best streaming options—Colorado, Atlanta, Boston, and Washington stand out for the immediate weeks left in fantasy ball.

Christian Javier’s return from Tommy John offers a glimmer of late-season upside, with a velocity jump back toward 94 mph and a firmer changeup that produced better whiffs. It wasn’t perfect—an early hiccup followed by four scoreless innings—but the fastball cadence and new sinker/slider dynamics hint at a usable late-stage option in fantasy. Zebby Matthews impressed with nine strikeouts and a clean leash, underscoring his big‑league upside despite allowing three solo homers. Colson Montgomery continued to mash, his 10th homer in 32 games fueling a compelling rookie profile, though a high strikeout rate tempers excitement. On the injuries and rotations front, Judge’s limited outfield action and Alvarez’s live-batting-practice return keep watchful optimism alive for Houston and New York. Everson Pereira’s acquisition chatter and a broader rookies wave (Baldwin, Hayes, and more) add depth to the week’s waiver wires. In bullpen news, Abreu’s potential uptick in close-save chances adds flexibility for holds and saves leagues. Taken together, pitching upside jumps from Javier, Matthews, and Montgomery anchor a week that otherwise teems with high-variance youngsters and patchwork middle-infield depth.