Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski threw a complete game shutout against the Phillies on Friday — one hit, 15 strikeouts, 95 pitches, no walks, and a 104.5 mph fastball in the first inning. No pitcher had ever thrown a Maddux (complete game under 100 pitches) with 15 or more strikeouts in the modern era. He also set the record for the hardest pitch ever thrown by an MLB starting pitcher. Milwaukee won 6-0.
Pirates center fielder Oneil Cruz was placed on the 10-day IL — retroactive to June 9 — with non-displaced fractures of the fourth and fifth metacarpals in his left hand. The injury occurred during a head-first slide into home plate on June 6 against the Braves. Pittsburgh expects him out approximately one month, placing the All-Star break as a realistic return target. Billy Cook was recalled in the corresponding move.
Atlanta placed Ronald Acuña Jr. on the 10-day IL with a left hamstring strain — the same injury that cost him time in early May. Manager Walt Weiss has not set a return date. This is his second hamstring IL trip of 2026, which raises durability concerns for the rest of the season. His season slash line was .305/.421/.543 with 13 home runs at the time of the placement.
Yordan Alvarez became the first player in MLB history to hit a grand slam and a multi-run home run in the same inning, doing it in the first frame of Houston's 10-8 win over Kansas City. He drove in six runs in the nine-run inning. Since the RBI stat became official in 1920, only Alvarez and David Ortiz (2008) have hit two home runs with six RBIs in a single first inning.
Who's Hot This Week
Pagan (Grade 2 hamstring) is reportedly nearing a rehab assignment after his second MRI showed healing progress. No firm activation date, but reports point to a return within one to two weeks. When healthy, he posted 30 saves and a 30% strikeout rate in 2025, and he is expected to reclaim the ninth-inning role the moment he is activated. The Reds committee has been a disaster in his absence. At roughly 30% owned, you can stash him in a bench or IL slot right now and collect saves before ownership catches up.
Worth Reading
Rotoballer's full tiered rankings for Week 11 adds, with ownership data and category-specific targets for both hitters and pitchers. Particularly strong section on streaming starters worth rostering even in shallow leagues, with two-start candidates highlighted.
Dedicated breakdown on Nootbaar's return from the 60-day IL, including his pre-injury career numbers, expected Cardinals lineup spot, and realistic production ceiling in his first few weeks back. The essential read before committing FAAB to him.
Full breakdown of Bauers' 2026 surge — .281/.376/.500 with 11 doubles, 13 homers, 40 RBI — with platoon splits, lineup context in Milwaukee, and an explanation of why the power is showing up for real this year. Good context for FAAB bidding.
Placed on the 10-day IL retroactive to June 9 with non-displaced fourth and fifth metacarpal fractures in his left hand, sustained during a head-first slide at home plate on June 6 against Atlanta. The initial diagnosis was a cut; further imaging revealed the fractures. Pittsburgh expects Cruz out approximately one month, making the All-Star break a realistic return target. Billy Cook was recalled in the corresponding move.
Placed on the 10-day IL with a left hamstring strain — his second IL stint of the 2026 season with the same injury. Manager Walt Weiss has not given a firm return timeline. Acuña's speed-dependent game creates elevated hamstring exposure, and the repeat injury warrants monitoring. He was slashing .305/.421/.543 with 13 home runs at the time of the placement.
Update from yesterday's issue: imaging on Ohtani's left knee inflammation came back clean. Manager Dave Roberts said explicitly this is not an IL situation and expects Ohtani back in the lineup this weekend. He remains on track for his next pitching start next week. As a reminder, the knee issue arose during baserunning, not a swing or pitch delivery.
The Reds' closer (Grade 2 hamstring strain, sidelined since May) had a second MRI that showed healing progress and is reportedly nearing a rehab assignment. No activation date has been set, but reports indicate a possible return within one to two weeks. Cincinnati has cycled through multiple closers in his absence — none have established themselves. Pagan had 30 saves and a 30% strikeout rate in 2025 and is expected to reclaim the role upon return.
Jacob Misiorowski did something no pitcher in the modern era had done before Friday night: he threw a Maddux — a complete game on fewer than 100 pitches — and struck out 15. The 24-year-old right-hander needed just 95 pitches to blank the Phillies, allowing one hit, walking nobody, and touching 104.5 mph in the first inning — the hardest pitch ever recorded by a starting pitcher in MLB history. Milwaukee won 6-0 and it wasn't particularly close.
What makes this analytically meaningful, not just theatrically impressive, is the efficiency. At 95 pitches through nine innings, Misiorowski averaged 10.6 pitches per frame. His night was built on a four-seamer that lived at the top of the zone and a slider he buried below it — the up-down combination that separates elite power pitchers from good ones. The Phillies, one of the better contact lineups in the National League, never made an adjustment. Misiorowski's ability to generate whiffs at the top of the zone with triple-digit heat while finishing at the bottom with a late-breaking slider puts him in a small tier of pitchers who can dominate in multiple ways.
For fantasy owners, Misiorowski's trajectory has been one of 2026's best stories. He entered the season as a talented but inconsistent young arm; he is exiting the first half as a legitimate NL Cy Young candidate alongside Zack Wheeler. His ERA has dropped steadily since April as his command tightened, and Friday's performance validates the underlying strikeout and swing-and-miss metrics that scouts have been raving about. This is not a soft-schedule hot streak. This is a young ace arriving.
The June 12 Leverage Ledger covers a busy Friday for high-leverage arms. Andrew Kittredge earned his first save of the season, preserving a two-run lead against Seattle. The Reds committee continues cycling through arms with no clear hierarchy. Alex Lange converted again for Kansas City while Andrés Muñoz retained Seattle's closing role despite an ongoing command issue that has produced five blown saves in 2026.
Read the full Ledger →| Closer | Team | Status | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zach Maxwell | CIN | 🔴 Committee | Maxwell holds short-term momentum in Cincinnati's committee after earning a recent save, but multiple arms — Tejay Antone, Pierce Johnson, Brock Burke — are also seeing ninth-inning work. Emilio Pagan's looming return makes this a temporary situation. Stream Maxwell for a week or two, but do not invest heavy FAAB on a role that dissolves the moment Pagan is activated. |
| Alex Lange | KC | 🟡 Watch | Lange has been converting saves cleanly since taking the job from Lucas Erceg, who led MLB in blown saves. Carlos Estevez (left foot contusion) remains weeks from returning, giving Lange a clear runway. He has 26-save closing experience from Detroit in 2023 and is handling the role without drama. At roughly 20% owned, he is one of the widest value gaps in saves right now. Priority add if you have a second closer spot. |
| Yoendrys Gomez | MIN | 🔴 Committee | Minnesota has used more than 10 different pitchers in save situations in 2026 — a franchise record pace. Gomez is the de facto frontrunner with four saves and a 16:4 K-to-BB ratio, but manager Derek Shelton keeps mixing in Cole Sands and Trevor Megill. Viable in deep leagues with two closer spots. Skip in standard 10- or 12-team formats unless everything better is already claimed. |
| Andrés Muñoz | SEA | 🟡 Watch | Five blown saves in 2026 and a career-worst hits-per-nine rate, yet the Mariners have not moved off him. With Matt Brash now on the 15-day IL, there is no obvious alternative. Muñoz converted a save earlier this week and his slider grip issue — which he disclosed in April — has shown incremental improvement. Hold if you own him; do not overpay to acquire him. |
Every one of Jacob Misiorowski's 15 strikeouts compiled in a single video — including the 104.5 mph first-inning fastball that set the record for the hardest pitch ever thrown by a starting pitcher. If you have five minutes and want to understand why Misiorowski is the priority add this week, this is it.
Full-game breakdown of Misiorowski's complete game shutout against the Phillies — pitch sequencing, velocity chart, and the full context of the nine-inning, one-hit, 95-pitch effort. Different viewing experience than the K reel: this one shows the strategic and command side of the performance.
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