We are just a little over a week into the 2018 baseball season. You are still trying to figure out your lineup. If you’re a streaming-heavy guy, figuring out which guy you should drop to free up a streaming spot can be an issue.
We look at some players who started out hot, some who are struggling and maybe some guys who should be targeted in your free agent pool on April 8th, 2018.
I’ll be posting a weekly fantasy baseball F/M/K every Sunday this baseball season…so keep coming back!
Before I begin, let’s go over the F/M/K terminology. The guys that I list under “F*ck” are guys that are currently hot and you need to pick them up. “Marry”, are guys that you need to stick with the whole season, even if they are struggling a bit. “Kill”, are guys that need to be dropped for better players in the free agent pool.
OF Preston Tucker – Atlanta Braves – 45.5% owned – When it comes to bad teams, there are going to be many guys that pop up on the radar and fall off. Atlanta and Miami will probably have the most guys like that. Tucker was a guy who was owned in less than 1% of leagues last week, but thanks to a .385 average, two homers and nine RBI, he’s a nice guy to add short-term. He’s starting everyday and ride him while he’s hot.
3B Matt Chapman – Oakland A’s – 74.6% owned – Matt DAVIDSON got all the praise last week for starting out the year on fire, but Matt CHAPMAN is just as hot at third base for Oakland. He’s batting .405 with three homers, nine runs and eight RBI so far this season. He currently has a nine-game hitting streak. He should be owned in just about every league. His long-term prospects are still up in the air, but get him now in case he can keep it up.
RP Greg Holland – St. Louis Cardinals – 79.0% owned – Holland is just about ready to be called up, but the jury is still out on him immediately closing games for St. Louis. They are paying him handsomely, so it would be odd if he was just a setup man. You may have to worry about Luke Gregerson when he comes off the disabled list, as he has had success closing out games as well. It’s best to add Holland right now and see what happens with the closer situation.
SS Tim Anderson – Chicago White Sox – 68.6% owned – Anderson has been on my radar this offseason. He was a highly-regarded prospect had a pretty good year last season. I predicted that he will best those numbers in 2018. He is currently hitting .269 with three homers and seven runs. The reason you should pick him up is that he has four stolen bases. I think White Sox manager Rick Renteria has given Anderson the green light to steal bases this season.
SP Sean Manaea – Oakland A’s – 56.8% owned – Manaea has a huge upside and we are starting to see it this season. He is creeping into the ‘keep him on your roster’ territory. If you love streaming pitchers, you may permanently lose him if you drop him right now. In 15.2 innings, he has only given up seven hits, two runs and struck out 11 batters. He is pitching strikes, which he had trouble doing last season.
1B/DH Daniel Vogelbach – Seattle Mariners- 1.9% owned – This would be a short-term add for your team. Vogelbach had a huge Spring and has a nice power stroke. He has been starting at DH while Nelson Cruz is out with an ankle injury. In the three games since taking over that role, he is 4 for 10 with two RBI. I bet you can squeeze out a few homers from him while Cruz is out.
OF Michael Brantley – Cleveland Indians – 30.0% owned – Brantley has been injured for most of the last two seasons. He has been very good when he’s in the lineup. It was only three seasons ago that he got some MVP votes and nearly had a 30/30 season for the Tribe. He was just activated from the DL three games ago and has hit safely in two of those games. He’s a must-start in AL-only leagues and is worth a bench spot in mixed leagues. He could be huge dividends for you if he regains his past form.
2B Starlin Castro – Miami Marlins – 59.7% owned – Castro is trying to play his way out of Miami. He was traded to the Miami Marlins this offseason in the Stanton trade and he couldn’t have been happy. He knows that if he increases his worth by playing well, teams could come a’calling…and the Marlins need young assets. Castro is currently hitting .314 and has hit safely in every game this season (as of Sunday afternoon). He may not have a ton of RBI opportunities or ability to get Runs, but if you need a solid 2B/SS, he could help boost your team batting average if you have some guys struggling right now.
SP Jakob Junis – Kansas City Royals – 22.3% owned – Junis is a two-start pitcher for those in weekly leagues. These kind of pitchers can come in huge when you have limited weekly acquisitions or set a weekly lineup. Junis pitched seven scoreless innings against Detroit in his season debut. He’s worth a pick-up this week.
C Mike Zunino – Seattle Mariners – 64.3% owned – Zunino is a power machine and could help fill the gap if you have Salvador Perez on the disabled list. He may only hit .200, but catcher position is not very deep, especially now with two of the top catchers on the disabled list. The 30+ homers he should hit will greatly help.
1B/DH Logan Morrison – Minnesota Twins – 48.4% owned – Morrison is a popular guy to dump as has he has started off the season in the crapper. He is only 1 for 19 for the Twins, but his track record shows that he will come back from this slump. He had a career year in 2017 and needs to be on a roster. Throw him on your bench and let him fix his early-season issues at the plate. The Twins have a very good lineup and will have plenty of RBI opportunities this year.
SS Orlando Arcia – Milwaukee Brewers – 58.3% owned – Arcia hit .429 this Spring over his final ten preseason games, so it is odd to see him start the season in a slump. The Brewers had held him out of a couples games this week as they are giving him a little rest. The Brewers backup shortstop is Eric Sogard, so Arcia is in no threat to lose his spot. He’s a young guy who is still improving. He’s worth holding onto and will produce very soon.
SS Jose Peraza – Cincinnati Reds – 30.3% owned – I wasn’t high on Peraza going into the season, but he needs to be owned in more than 30% of leagues. He needs to get back on track as prospect Nick Senzel is in Triple-A just waiting for a spot in the lineup. I have reason to believe that Peraza will turn this around. He has been pretty darn good the last two seasons. He is a must-own in NL-only leagues and is a streamable middle infielder in mixed leagues.
3B Evan Longoria – San Francisco Giants – 75.9 % owned – Longoria has started out the season 0 for 11 against a very good Dodgers pitching staff. He is still struggling a little, but hit safely three times this week (including a two-run homer against Seattle). He should be just fine and shouldn’t be dropped for Brian Anderson or Josh Harrison. Longoria still has plenty in the tank and it just started off the year against a very good pitching staffs.
OF Manuel Margot – San Diego Padres – 79.0% owned – If you own Margot, you most likely drafted him for his speed potential. He has yet to steal a base, but it’s because he hasn’t had a ton of opportunities to do so. He’s been unlucky so far with a BABIP of .115. Once he gets on base more regularly, you should see the stolen bases numbers shoot up. I still think he ends up with 30+ stolen bases this year.
RP Corey Knebel – Milwaukee Brewers – 87.9% owned – I know DL spots are at a premium, but you may not want to dump Knebel right now. I know Josh Hader is breathing down his neck (and should probably be added short-term), but let’s remember what a stud Knebel was last season for Milwaukee. He will miss six-to-eight weeks, but it would be a shame if you lose out on a lot of saves from June thru the end of the season. I guess it’s your decision to risk losing him if you drop him now.
OF Corey Dickerson – Pittsburgh Pirates – 70.0% owned – In 2017, Dickerson had his best year since leaving Colorado. He was an All-Star, but due to the Rays slashing payroll, saw himself get traded to the Pirates for a hill of beans. He started off the season in and out of the lineup, but is currently on a five-game winning streak and is 9 for 20 with a homer and six RBI during the streak. He needs to be added in all leagues and don’t drop him for short-term plays like Preston Tucker, Kevin Pillar or Chris Owings.
1B Greg Bird – New York Yankees – 48.7% owned – Bird is one of the unluckiest players in all of baseball. Things just haven’t went the right way for him, and injuries get in the way when he’s on a roll. Bird will miss the first two month of the season after removing a bone spur in his ankle. Tyler Austin is taking over a first base and has already hit two (game-tying and game-winning) homers in his first six at-bats. Austin could have the job permanently if he keeps his power stroke. Bird isn’t worth your previous DL-spot…it’s time to dump him.
SP Julio Teheran – Atlanta Braves – 60.0% owned – I think it’s time to drop Teheran right now. He has given up nine runs in only eight innings over his first two starts this season. He also faces the Nationals again on Monday. I don’t trust him in that match-up, at all. He may be a nice spot starter when he faces Miami or another lowly team, but I’d steer clear of him until then.
OF Bradley Zimmer – Cleveland Indians – 36.7% owned – Due to Brantley getting off the disabled list, Zimmer will see his playing time drastically cut. He is now stuck in a platoon with Rajai Davis. He will only start games against right-handed pitchers. He shouldn’t be owned in standard mixed leagues.
1B Chris Davis – Baltimore Orioles – 49.8% owned – There are plenty of first baseman out there worth owning over Davis. He is currently only batting .100 with a solo homer to his name. He is in danger of losing at-bats to Trey Mancini. He’s struggling as a leadoff hitter and should be moved farther down the lineup for the Orioles. I’d rather have Yonder Alonso, Josh Bell or Eric Thames over Davis right now.
C Yasmani Grandal – Los Angeles Dodgers – 75.5% owned – Unless you’re using Grandal while Salvador Perez or J.T. Realmuto occupies your DL-spot, there are better catchers out there than Grandal. He’s in a time-share with Austin Barnes and could eventually end up on the wrong side of it. Also, Grandal doesn’t have a second position to play as first base is taken by Cody Bellinger. I’d rather have Mike Zunino, Welington Castillo or Brian McCann over Grandal.
SP Danny Duffy – Kansas City Royals – 79.6% owned – Duffy has been dealing with a shoulder injury since March 24th. I knew the Royals were pushing the timetable a bit too hard as he gave up five earned runs in four innings. He than allowed three runs over 5 2/3 innings at Cleveland. I have always thought of Duffy as a borderline streaming pitcher in standard leagues. There are guys out there that are more consistent and will be in a better position to get wins. He’s not worth keeping on your roster while he stretches himself out.
RP Hector Neris – Philadelphia Phillies – 67.4% owned – Going into the season, I thought Neris could be a nice fantasy closer with 30+ saves this season. Well, thanks to Gabe Kapler being bad at his job, the Phillies bullpen is in bad shape. I have no faith in Kapler using a closer in a traditional way to obtain a large number of saves. There are better closer options out there right now like Hunter Strickland, Josh Hader or Brad Boxberger.
OF Kevin Kiermaier – Tampa Bay Rays – 58.0% owned – He has started out the year 3 for 32 and the Rays don’t have any help around him in the lineup. The other two outfielders Carlos Gomez and Denard Span are nearly just as bad. He made it clear this offseason he was unhappy as the Rays unloaded nearly everyone worth a damn. I look at Kiermaier as a good streaming bench guy and that’s about it right now. I’d rather have waiver wire outfielders Michael Brantley, Mitch Haniger or Ben Zobrist.
Follow us on Twitter @Sweetbob & ‘LIKE’ us on Facebook!
About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.