On the day where Derek Norris & Quintin Berry hit their first career home runs we saw Lance Lynn & Cliff Lee both struggle, Santiago Casilla & Aroldis Chapman blow saves, Mike Moustakas blast a pair of home runs and so much more.  Let’s take a look at everything we need to know from yesterday’s games:

1. Jake Arrieta – Baltimore Orioles – Starting Pitcher – He took a no decision, but you have to take his outing against the Nationals as a significant step in the right direction.  He allowed 1 ER on 5 H and 1 BB, striking out 5, over 6.0 innings of work.  Even his start against the Mets earlier in the week was very good (outside of his one pitch to Ike Davis).  Over his past three starts he’s allowed 6 ER over 20.0 IP, striking out 18 in the process.  Even better, he’s walked just 3 batters over that span.  He has always had a ton of potential, it’s just a matter of him putting it all together for an extended period of time.  With the Cleveland Indians next on the schedule, I would consider him a viable option depending on your other choices.
2. Derek Norris – Oakland Athletics – Catcher – Welcome to the big leagues Mr. Norris!  He went 1-4 yesterday, but the one hit was not only his first, it was a 3-R walkoff shot.  He brings a unique potential to add 6-10 SB from the catching position, putting him along the same value that Russell Martin used to bring.  Mix that with some obvious power and he’s a must add in all AL-only and 2-catcher formats.  He’s obviously here to play, so get him in there. 

More Quick Thoughts:

• With Matt Capps out Glen Perkins had seen the first two save opportunities for the Twins.  Yesterday, however, they decided to give Jared Burton a shot.  He got the job done, though he didn’t do it the easy way by walking 2 batters in his inning of work.  Control hasn’t been an issue before, so I wouldn’t read too much into it.  That said, he also entered with a .240 BABIP and had a 3.36 BB/9 over his minor league career.  In other words, there could be worse days ahead.  My money would still be on Perkins getting the bulk of the chances.
• Has the time come to be concerned about Aroldis Chapman?  He suddenly is extremely hittable, this time giving up 2 ER on 2 H and 0 BB, striking out 2, in his inning of work.  It’s his fourth blown save and he’s now allowed runs in five of his past seven appearances.  The Reds are battling for a division title, so Chapman could be quickly running out of rope (at least in the short-term).  Stashing Sean Marshall makes a whole lot of sense.
• Greg Dobbs had the biggest offensive day for the Marlins, going 3-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 2 R.  However, he’s not going to get enough AB to even consider him.  Good day, but that’s it.
• It’s certainly starting to look like Quintin Berry has emerged as a regular in RF for the Tigers, at least until Andy Dirks is healthy.  Berry went 1-2 with 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R and 1 SB yesterday.  While we shouldn’t come to expect the power, he has now scored 21 R and stolen 11 bases in just 97 AB.  As long as he’s starting he is going to hold value for those reasons alone.  Yes, he entered play with a .439 BABIP so there is going to be a regression.  Still, his speed will give him value.
• Cody Ross put on a show for the Red Sox, going 2-4 with 2 HR, 5 RBI and 2 R to help lead the Red Sox to victory.  Since returning from the DL he’s now gone 7-22 with 4 HR, 10 RBI and 5 R.  Needless to say he needs to be back in your lineup.
• In his final start as a Boston Red Sox  Kevin Youkilis went 2-4 (including a triple) with 1 RBI.  Now that he’s a White Sox, he should regain some value so if someone in your league gave up on him I wouldn’t hesitate to grab him.
• Is J.D. Martinez starting to right the ship a bit?  He went 1-4 with 1 HR, 2 RBI and 1 R, his second consecutive game with a home run and 2 RBI.  We drafted him for his average potential, so the fact that he’s still hitting .230 doesn’t help anything.  We’ll talk about him in much more detail in the next few days, but I wouldn’t completely give up on him quite yet.
• Two young pitchers stole the show in the Brewers-White Sox game yesterday.  Mike Fiers did the job for the Brewers, tossing 7.1 shutout innings allowing 5 H and 1 BB, striking out 7.  While they sandwiched a relief outing he has allowed 1 ER over 14.1 IP in his past two starts.  Splitting time between the rotation and the bullpen, he posted a 2.36 BB/9 and 9.61 K/9 in the minor leagues.  Having shown success, he is becoming an intriguing option in deeper formats.
• For the White Sox it was Jose Quintana, who tossed 8.0 shutout innings allowing 6 H and 0 BB, striking out 4.  In his past three starts he’s allowed 1 ER in 21.1 IP and has allowed 3 ER in his past 27.1 IP (four starts).  He has pinpoint control and, like Fiers, could be considered in deeper formats.  That said, both of these pitchers should only be used depending on the matchup for now.
• Mike Moustakas went 3-5 with 2 HR, 3 RBI and 2 R.  He continues to develop into a must use option, now hitting .280 with 12 HR and 36 RBI on the year.
• For the second straight start Lance Lynn struggled.  This time he allowed 6 ER on 9 H and 1 BB, striking out 2, over 5.1 IP.  Over his last two starts he’s now allowed 11 ER over 10.1 innings.  He didn’t enter the day with unbelievable metrics, but the most notable issue of late has been the disappearance of his strikeouts (6 K).  I certainly wouldn’t give up on him off these poor outings.  He should be able to turn things back around before long.
• Ernesto Frieri just continues to couple stifle opposing offenses.  He went 1.1 innings yesterday allowing 1 H and 0 BB, striking out 2, to lower his ERA to 0.80 and earn his ninth save of the season.  There’s no arguing that he has established himself as a great relief pitcher, but he also entered the day with a 93.2% strand rate and .192 BABIP.  It almost feels like a blowup is coming, so be prepared.
• While Edinson Volquez earned the win, throwing 6.2 shutout innings, it wasn’t all good.  He walked 3 batters, the eighth consecutive start with at least 3 BB (five of them were over 4).  He’s shown the potential to be blown up over this stretch, something that is going to continue if he’s going to issue so many free passes.  It makes it nearly impossible to trust him, because his track record tells us the walks are going to continue.
• Sergio Casilla blew another save, allowing 3 ER on 3 H and 0 BB, striking out 2, over 0.2 innings.  It’s the third straight outing where he has allowed an earned run (5 ER over 1.2 IP) and you have to start to wonder how tight of a grasp he still has on the closers role.  Owners may want to quickly scoop up Sergio Romo, just in case.
• Wade Miley dazzled once again, allowing 1 R on 3 H and 1 BB, striking out 7, over 8.0 IP to improve to 9-3 with a 2.19 ERA.  He did enter the day with believable metrics (.266 BABIP, 76.7% strand rate), though the strikeout rate has been unimpressive (6.23 K/9) and he has actually been hit fairly hard (20.3% line drive rate).  In other words, despite the metrics, I have my reservations.  Now may be the perfect time to try and move him.
• Will Cliff Lee ever win a game?  He has no one to blame but himself for last night, allowing 5 ER on 6 H and 3 BB, striking out 9, over 7.0 IP to fall to 0-4.  In fact, while early on he could blame the bullpen or the offense, he’s allowed at least 4 ER in each of his past three starts (14 ER in 20.0 IP).  Obviously we have to expect him to right the ship, but this is now getting worrisome.
• How badly do the Rockies need starting pitching?  As it is they are running a 4-man rotation out there and how much longer can they continue with Alex White?  He allowed 4 ER on 6 H and 4 BB, striking out 3, over 2.2 IP yesterday to fall to 2-6 with a 6.45 ERA.  He has allowed at least 4 ER in six of his past nine starts and has been an utter disaster.  Does he have potential?  Absolutely, but he can’t keep getting hammered like this.
• We can all forgive the poor outing from R.A. Dickey, can’t we?  He allowed 5 ER on 5 H and 3 BB, striking out 3, over 6.0 IP to the Yankees last night, the first time he’s allowed an earned run in over a month (May 22 at Pittsburgh).