Bryce Harper hit two more home runs Wednesday

The trade winds were blowing last night, with Carlos Gomez having a deal to the Mets nullified at the last second and Cole Hamels being shipped to the Rangers. There are some other big-time trades on the horizon, with David Price and Yoenis Cespedes going on the market and the Padres shopping Justin Upton and Tyson Ross. This daily update for July 30, 2015 begins with a a recently-traded superstar and his outstanding start to his new career.

Recap

Troy Tulowitzki makes splash in Blue Jays debut
Tulowitzki clubbed a home run and two doubles in his first game with the Blue Jays, finishing 3-for-5 with three RBI. Leading off for Blue Jays, Tulowitzki struck out in his first at-bat, but he had his third home run of the second half in his next trip to the plate. Tulowitzki is the top SS in fantasy baseball and his profile will only be stronger in a lineup that leads baseball in runs scored. Jose Bautista finished 2-for-5 with a run scored and RBI for the Blue Jays. He now has 17 RBI this month, adding to his 67 RBI that rank third in the American League. Bautista is a top-20 OF and his power potential has not diminished over the years. R.A. Dickey pitched his fourth straight quality start, allowing no earned runs in eight innings of work. Dickey also did not allow a home run for the third straight game, a positive sign for a pitcher that has allowed 17 long balls this season.

Jeff Francoeur was the lone Phillie with a multi-hit game, finishing 2-for-4 with a double. Francoeur is not on the fantasy radar, although he has had multiple hits in four of his last six contests.

Jon Lester twirls a gem against Rockies
Lester has regained his value as a high-end SP2, pitching eight innings against the Rockies, allowing two runs on five hits, and striking out 14 batters while allowing only one walk. Lester has pitched at least seven innings in each of his six starts in July and has a 1.66 ERA, 50 strikeouts, and only has allowed five walks this month. A rough beginning of the season has Lester at a 3.26 ERA, but he is top 10 in the National League in innings pitched (132 2/3) and strikeouts (136). He should be valued as a SP1 for the remainder of the season. Anthony Rizzo finished 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI for his first home run in the past 10 games. Rizzo has 44 extra-base hits, 14 steals, and a .893 OPS this season, making him the third-ranked 1B. Dexter Fowler finished 1-for-2 with a home run, steal, RBI, and two runs scored. Fowler is fourth in the National League in runs scored with 64, has 16 steals, and a .723 OPS to make him a OF3 this season.

Carlos Gonzalez had his 11th home run of July, finishing 1-for-3, and has eight home runs in seven games. Gonzalez is looking more like an OF1 for the remainder of the season and has a 1.289 OPS this month with 24 RBI.

Justin Verlander wins pitching duel with Chris Archer
Verlander has had a rough start to his 2015 season, but has been outstanding over his last two starts, allowing only one run in eight innings and striking out 10 batters on Wednesday for his first win of the season. Verlander has pitched eight innings in each of his last two starts and pitched 7 2/3 innings three starts ago as well. He has 23 strikeouts and has allowed two walks over his past four starts and can be an SP3 for the remainder of the season. J.D. Martinez was 1-for-3 with a RBI, his 63rd of the season. Martinez has a .319 batting average in July. He had not had a RBI for seven games, but Martinez has 15 RBI in July. Nick Castellanos finished 1-for-3 with a RBI and now has hits in four of his past five games, with RBI in five of his past 10 games. He has 20 RBI in July, and a .862 OPS, showing that he is a good candidate to be a top-15 3B for the rest of the season.

Archer did not allow an earned run in seven innings, but was saddled with a hard-luck loss, his fourth in a row. Archer has allowed only three earned runs in his past three starts, 20 innings, and has 26 strikeouts with three walks allowed. He has had two awful outings in his past 10, allowing five and nine runs, but has also seven quality starts in his past 10 appearances. Asdrubal Cabrera hit a home run in three at-bats, finishing 1-for-3, and has hits in his past two games off of the disabled list, finishing 3-for-4 with three runs scored on Tuesday as well. He only has a .654 OPS this season, but does have extra-base hits in five of his past six games played

Francisco Lindor-led Indians club Royals
Lindor finished 2-for-4 with a home run, four RBI, a run scored and now has hits in 14 of his past 17 games. After a poor start to his major league career, Lindor has gotten his July batting average up to .286 and has eight extra-base hits this month. Michael Brantley finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored and a home run for his third multi-hit game in a week. Brantley may not be the top-25 player that he was last season, but he still has 37 extra-base hits, a .833 OPS, and 11 steals this season, making him an OF2.

Eric Hosmer continued his tear, marking his third straight multi-hit game, finishing 2-for-4 with two doubles in the 12-1 loss. Hosmer has a .385 batting average this month with 14 runs scored and 15 RBI, elevating himself to the eighth-ranked 1B in fantasy baseball. He is fourth in the American League in batting average at .315 and has a .857 OPS for the season.

Bryce Harper hits two more home runs
Harper finished 3-for-4 with three runs scored, two home runs, and four RBI, moving into the lead in home runs in the National League with 29. Harper has moved behind Mike Trout as the top OF in baseball, but ranks in the top-three in the National League in many major categories; .335 batting average (3rd), 29 home runs (1st), 68 RBI (3rd), 68 runs (1st), 73 walks (2nd), .690 slugging percentage (1st), and 1.153 OPS (1st). The Nationals OF is the type of player that you buy high, no matter the price, if he is available. Michael Taylor could be a cheap sleeper for fantasy owners, finishing 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI for the Nationals. Taylor has a five-game hitting streak, 20 extra-base hits and 11 steals this season in 84 games. He has nine of his 20 extra-base hits have been home runs and his speed could make him a 20-home run/20-steal player this season. Fantasy owners should be aware that Taylor has 94 strikeouts and a .286 OBP as well, so his plate discipline is a liability.

Ichiro Suzuki was 2-for-4 with a double and a RBI for the Marlins, earning his 2900th hit in the process. Ichiro only has a .249 batting average this season in 229 at-bats, but has reached base in eight of 11 games since the All-Star break.

What to watch for

The best matchup of the afternoon sees Max Scherzer against Dan Haren in Miami. Haren has 23 walks in 123 innings this season, showcasing his pinpoint control, and six quality starts in his past 10 appearances. Scherzer has allowed five earned runs in two of his past four starts, but still is the top SP in baseball with a 13.50 K:BB ratio over his past 10 starts. Shelby Miller, Chris Sale, and Carlos Martinez will also pitch today.

Chris Zolli is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Chris, check out his archive and follow him @thezman2010.