This article is part of our Sorare MLB series.
The dog days of summer don't apply to you. Instead, you've stayed atop your Sorare lineup week in and week out. In fact, you see no reason to simply stand pat. As August begins to wind down, it's time to assess situations across MLB. Which players look like Upgrades? Who are the guys to Hold for now? And, of course, I have to look at the Downgrades as well. Solely looking at the bright side of things won't help your Sorare lineups, now will it?
The number in parenthesis is the player's last limited card sale price as of 8/21.
Upgrades
Pete Crow-Armstrong, CHC ($9.32): The future is bright for Crow-Armstrong, but the present is beginning to look luminous a bit as well. The Cubs see the 22-year-old as their center fielder for years to come, and the team is letting him work through common rookie issues. That being said, the dude is an absolute speed demon, and that's already paying off. In only 88 games, Crow-Armstrong has six triples and 23 stolen bases, and he's only been caught stealing once. Five times in August he's had double-digit Sorare points, and as long as a righty is on the mound for the opposition, he's a threat to do that.
Javier Assad, CHC ($9.20): Apparently I'm intrigued by the Cubs. They have no chance of winning the NL Central, almost definitely won't make the playoffs, and aren't even notably bad like the White Sox, further drawing the attention away from the North Side. Last season, Assad made the move from the bullpen to the rotation. This year, he's been a full-on starter from day one. It's been a quietly steady season for him as well. Across 23 starts, never has Assad's ERA climbed higher than 3.27. He has a 2.60 ERA over his last six outings. Now, the Cubs seem to be watching Assad's innings. He's not going deep into games. And yet, Assad still managed 30.0 Sorare points in his last start. Intriguing indeed.
Manny Machado, SD ($8.08): Hey, remember Manny Machado? You know, the guy who would roll out of bed and hit 30 homers with 90 RBI? It feels like he has somehow faded into the background in San Diego. Is it because he is no longer delivering the goods? Well, he had 30 homers and 91 RBI as recently as last season. Even in a somewhat down year this season, his average is up to .268 and he has 20 homers and six stolen bases in 119 games. Over the last three weeks, he has an .880 OPS and has tallied double-digit Sorare points in three out of four games in two separate stretches. Maybe he isn't peak Machado, but too many are sleeping on him.
Whit Merrifield, ATL ($1.03): Once a key cog for Kansas City, Merrifield has become a journeyman utility player as he's gotten older. This has been a tough season for him, but his .237 BABIP speaks to remarkably-poor luck. He's now with Atlanta, where injuries to Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley mean he will be playing basically every day. Merrifield still has skill on the basepaths, swiping 16 bags in 74 games. Over the last two weeks, he has an .843 OPS and has racked up double-digit Sorare points six times.
Holds
Corey Seager, TEX ($25.01): In 2023, Seager may have won AL MVP if he had played in enough games. Pulling off an encore season was never going to be easy, and Seager feels like he's quietly slashed .271/.351/.500 with 28 homers as a shortstop. He's hit 40.0 Sorare points twice in August. Seager has been great, but he's also slipped in one way. The lefty has a .665 OPS versus southpaws. That has capped things a bit for Seager, but clearly he's well worth holding onto.
Luis Castillo, SEA ($6.12): The Mariners have an impressive rotation. If the lineup wasn't so punchless, the AL West would be theirs. Castillo has not proven to be the ace Seattle desired, but instead the steadiest of steady hands. He's tallied 17 quality starts, but a lot of them are of the bare-minimum variety (six innings, three earned runs). Still, he had two such starts recently that earned over 20.0 Sorare points. "Often good, rarely great" isn't exciting, but Castillo clearly has his place in Seattle and in your Sorare lineup.
Downgrades
Jose Altuve ($15.09): It feels strange to see Altuve with so many zeros and minus signs indicating negative Sorare points next to his name, but that has been the case a fair amount of the time recently. Over the last three weeks he has a .655 OPS. The relative offensive strength of second base is low compared to most positions, but that's still not sufficient. Yes, there have been good games, even in August, but this is about Altuve, not Generic-Brand Second Baseman. On the season he has a .761 OPS versus righties. That's decidedly average, and "average" represents a downward trend for Altuve.
Andrew Vaughn, CWS ($1.29): The Tigers recently called Spencer Torkelson back up. As a Tigers fan, I lament the arc of his career, and in truth was never enthused about the selection of a first baseman with the top pick in the 2020 MLB Draft. That was a pretty poor draft class, though. In 2019, the White Sox took Vaughn, also a right-handed college first baseman, third overall. Four hitters taken after him have already made an All-Star Game. Tork's recall made me curious to check in on Vaughn, to see if he had improved at all while hidden away on MLB's worst team. Nope! He's having the worst season of his career and has tallied single-digit Sorare points in each of his last eight starts. Basically, it's safe to give up on Vaughn. Might as well start including him in "draft bust" articles going forward.
Taj Bradley, TAM, ($1.04): I'm sure I had Bradley as an Upgrade earlier this season, and rightfully so. His sophomore campaign has been decidedly better than his rookie year. However, it may be time for the Rays to shut him down soon. Over his last four starts he has an 8.10 ERA. In two of those starts he had single-digit Sorare points, which is tough to do as a pitcher. Bradley does have "future top starter" written all over him, and the Rays are a judicious organization. He could be shut down in the not-too-distant future, or at least put on a strict innings limit/pitch count in starts going forward. Obviously, either would hinder his Sorare potential in the short term.
