It’s that time of the fantasy baseball season where owners really need to evaluate their rosters and see which struggling players are worth keeping on their teams, and which ones should be kicked to the curb.
Let’s take a look at players that can help you in the long term, as well as guys who are worth streaming this upcoming week to take advantage of good matchups.
PLAYERS TO PICK UP
JaCoby Jones, OF (5 percent owned in Yahoo), and Dixon Machado, 2B/SS (2 percent), Detroit: Much was made in the offseason about the elevated hard-hit rates in Detroit in 2017. This year, those rates have sustained, but two new names have raised eyebrows with how hard they are hitting the ball. JaCoby Jones has a 50 percent hard hit ball percentage, which would be seventh among hitters if he qualified. Meanwhile Machado is 25th in baseball with his 44.1 percent. Machado’s numbers haven’t translated over to fantasy success yet but Jones’ have. Both should at least be on watch lists in 12-team leagues and deeper.
Mike Soroka, SP, Atlanta (3 percent): Fantasy owners are always looking for the next big thing, and while Ronald Acuna was that target for a while for both fantasy owners and the Braves, Soroka is now the hot prospect to stash. Atlanta has said the 20-year-old is close to being ready, as his 1.99 ERA in Triple-A shows. If you have a minor-league slot or the room on your bench to stash a prospect, make Soroka your guy.
Ervin Santana SP, Minnesota (25 percent): Santana is a couple of weeks away from a return from finger surgery, and he’s vastly under-owned. Innings matter in fantasy, and in a landscape where fewer and fewer pitchers are going deep into games, Santana has tremendous value.
A.J. Minter, RP, Atlanta (15 percent): The stuff hasn’t been as nasty as we had hoped, but the writing has been on the wall for Minter to take over the closer’s job in Atlanta for some time. He recorded his first save of the year on April 25.
Eugenio Suarez, 3B, Cincinnati (50 percent): Suarez beat his timetable to return after breaking a thumb during the first week of the season, but by his ownership, you wouldn’t know it. If Nicholas Castellano is owned in 87 percent of Yahoo leagues, there’s no reason that Suarez shouldn’t be owned in at least 75 percent. Pick him up.
TWO-START PITCHERS TO STREAM
Eduardo Rodriguez, SP, Boston (42 percent): Rodriguez has three quality starts in his last three outings, but is still under-owned. Expect his ownership to go up with matchups against Kansas City and Texas on the schedule.
Matt Wisler, SP, Atlanta (4 percent): Wisler is hard to trust, but he gets the Mets in New York and San Francisco at home this upcoming week. He’s worth running out for his two-start week against two offenses that are below average according to their respective team weighted runs created metric.
Lance Lynn, SP, Minnesota (33 percent): Regression is hitting Lynn from his 2017 season, and hard. He’s a pitcher you have to pick your spots with. Luckily, he has Toronto at home and the White Sox (24th in baseball with 83 runs scored) on the road.
Jeff Samardzija, SP, San Francisco (66 percent): The Shark struggled in his last outing against Washington, but his defense didn’t do him any favors, either. He’s a top 30 fantasy pitcher and has the Padres and Braves on the schedule.
HITTERS TO STREAM
Marcus Semien, SS, Oakland (56 percent): Semien deserves to be owned across the board, but he’s available in just under half of Yahoo leagues. He and the rest of the A’s should feast on the Seattle and Baltimore staffs.
Justin Bour, 1B, Miami (59 percent): The Marlins only have one lefty on the schedule next week, and all of Bour’s home runs have come against righties this season.
Domingo Santana, OF, Milwaukee (62 percent): It’s a shame, because this would have been a perfect Eric Thames week. With Thames on the disabled list with a thumb injury, it’s Santana’s turn to make an impact for the Brewers and rebound from his early-season struggles. He’ll get that chance against Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.
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This column was provided to The Associated Press by the Fantasy Sports Network, http://FNTSY.com
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