We are now seven weeks into the 2018 baseball season.
Some impact players like Paul DeJong and A.J. Pollock landed on the disabled list this week…and Robinson Cano got busted for PEDS. You are probably in the market for some player to help you bridge the gap until they return.
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 May 20th, 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.
SP Seranthony Dominguez – Philadelphia Phillies – 5.5% owned – I mentioned last week that I didn’t think the Phillies would replace Hector Neris at closer so soon since Dominguez is still very raw. I did say that Phillies manager Gabe Kapler is unpredictable as hell, so it could happen…well, it happened. It hasn’t been officially announced, but it appears Dominguez is the closer in Philly. He has yet to allow a hit or walk in his six appearance since being called up. He earned his first save of his career on Saturday against the Cardinals. Neris hasn’t wowed anyone this season, so if Dominguez keeps guys off base, he should run away with the closing job.
1B/OF C.J. Cron – Tampa Bay Rays – 60.3% owned – This is probably the third time I’ve listed Cron in this section. I actually put him in the ‘Marry’ section last week due to people dropping him cause his bat went a tad cold. He had eight hits this week and three of those were home runs. He is batting .285 with 11 homers and 27 RBI. He’s a guy you need in your lineup. He plays everyday and is placed in the heart of the order. He’s only 28 years old, so he is just getting into his prime. He had success in short bursts early in his career. He never got consistent at-bats, so he could very well keep this hot streak going for awhile. The Rays aren’t a very good overall team, but they do have some guys who get on base, and Cron is the guy driving them home.
SP Fernando Romero – Minnesota Twins – 53.5% owned – Romero has been a revelation for a rotation that needed a change. Fernando Romero was a strikeout machine in the minors and he pitched 11.2 scoreless innings over his first two starts of the year. He has been inducing groundballs and has swing-and-miss stuff. He does have the risk of walking a few too many batters. The 23-year-old did have two starts last week and gave up four runs over ten innings. He did not factor in the decision in either game. His walks hurt him as he still wasn’t allowing many hits in those games. He is young, so he will have his ups and downs, so you may need to navigate those bad starts. He has yet to have one, so keep starting him.
SS Brandon Crawford – San Francisco Giants – 29.5% owned – Crawford is on a seven-game hitting streak and had 12 hits just last week. Middle infield is a tad thin when it comes to the 2B/SS flex spot. Crawford is hitting .302 with four homers and 19 RBI. He’s on fire after a rough start to the season. He is playing everyday and rarely takes a seat (he only rested one game so far this month). You should pick him up in an NL-only leagues and ride him while he’s hot in mixed leagues. He could be a short-term guy that sticks in your lineup for a long time.
1B/3B Ryon Healy – Seattle Mariners – 64.2% owned – I’ve now placed Healy in this section for three-straight weeks. He was on fire and was one of the hottest hitters in baseball, but he did cool off a bit this week. He went hitless in three of his games this week, but I have faith he will keep hitting. His track record shows he is a good hitter with 30+ homer power. He has hit eight dingers so far this season and most of those games in the last three weeks. He’s an everyday player and should be owned in all leagues.
OF Juan Soto – Washington Nationals – 12.1% owned – I can’t remember the last time a young prospect went from Low-A to the Majors in a month and a half. Soto is a 19-year-old outfielder that has been in the Nationals system since 2016. He destroyed pitching at every level he appeared, but he didn’t take a single at-bat in Triple-A. I’m sure the Nationals would have liked for him to stay in the minors for a season or two, but due to the run of injuries to their outfielders, he was just called up. He hit 14 homers this season in only 152 at-bats through Lo-A, Hi-A and Double-A. Adding Soto is a risky add, but it could pay huge dividends if he hits anything like he did in the minors. I think he could be worth the risk.
SP Alex Reyes – St. Louis Cardinals – 30.2% owned – Reyes was once the best pitching prospect in baseball. He was set to start last season in the rotation, but had to undergo Tommy John surgery. He is making rehab appearances and is killing it against lower-level batters. He has worked up to 93 pitches and will most likely be called up after a start in Triple-A this week. It’s unknown which starter he will replace, but with Wainwright dealing with elbow issues, Reyes could permanently take his spot. He could also take the spot from Luke Weaver (who still has options left). He could be a stud and might be worth an early add this week.
1B Jesus Aguilar – Milwaukee Brewers – 7.7% owned – Aguilar is on a hot streak and has hit safely in nine of his last ten games. He has also hit three homers in his last two games. He plays everyday now that Eric Thames is out for an extended period of time. Aguilar is hitting .327 with six homers and 19 RBI this season. He has plus power and the fact that he plays in a homer-friendly park, he could eclipse 30 homers this season. Aguilar could be a nice 1B/3B flex spot play as I like him more than Christian Villanueva and Matt Carpenter.
C Devin Mesoraco – New York Mets – 2.3% owned – This is a deep league recommendation. Mesoraco was traded to the Mets on May 8th and has hit three homers since being swapped for Matt Harvey. He doesn’t play everyday, but it appears that he has taken the starting spot over Jose Lobaton. Mesoraco had all the talent in the world in 2014, but injuries derailed his career. He is an NL-only catcher, but could creep into mixed leagues if he keeps hitting homers at the rate of one per week.
2B Yoan Moncada – Chicago White Sox – 71.6% owned – Moncada was on fire before injuring his hamstring in early-May. He was activated from the disabled list on May 15th and has hit safely in all but one game since he returned. Many fantasy owners dropped Moncada while he recovered, so he is still available in a good number of leagues. He is batting .269 with six homers, 15 RBI and four steals. He should be owned in more leagues as he has a very high ceiling.
1B John Hicks – Detroit Tigers – 5.7% owned – Hicks is barely owned in any leagues, but he is getting regular playing time with Miguel Cabrera on the disabled list. Miggy will be on the sideline for at least another week or two to nurse an injured hamstring. Hicks has been pretty darn good. He has hit safely in all but three games in the month of May. He is currently hitting .297 with four homers and 15 RBI. Hicks is a short-term addition, but could be a nice fill-in if you’re dealing with injuries.
OF Michael Conforto – New York Mets – 58.8% owned – Conforto has been featured in every section of my weekly F/M/K as he wasn’t producing coming off an injury. It appears that he is feeling better as he is seeing the ball well right now. Conforto had hit safely in four of his last five games and even went 4-for-4 on Friday night against the Diamondbacks. The only issue with Conforto is that he sits a lot against lefties. If he can start to hit southpaws, he could really develop into a great fantasy player. He has a high ceiling and hopefully this is just the start of a hot streak for Conforto.
OF Byron Buxton – Minnesota Twins – 60.2% owned – Buxton is off to a pitiful start. He was hitting below .200 before he broke his toe and landed on the disabled list due to migraines. He is just 2 for 23 since being activated from the DL on May 10th. He started off last season just as bad, but was one of the hottest hitters in the Majors the second-half of the season. His ceiling is crazy high and it may just take another week or two more to get back to his normal production. It would be easy to dump him right now, but you most likely drafted him in the first six rounds of your draft. You may need to be patient and keep him on your bench until his bat comes alive.
SP Blake Snell – Tampa Bay Rays – 85.2% owned – Snell has been success story for the Rays. He has limited his walks and sports a thin WHIP of 1.04. He has only allowed more than two runs in a start just twice this season. He has upped his strikeout rate on top of increased control. A lot of people dumped Snell after he allowed five runs in 3.1 innings last Sunday. He bounced back at the Angels by only allowed two runs in 6.2 innings, and added eight strikeouts. Snell is really the only starter worth owning on the Rays and should be owned in all leagues. His next start is at home against Boston, a team that he has faced twice this season and only gave up two runs in 13 innings.
1B/OF Matt Adams – Washington Nationals – 77.4% owned – Adams has always been a streaky hitter. He goes from unbelievably hot to ice cold. It’s something you will need to navigate. Adams is going to be in the lineup five or six games a week, especially with all the injuries the Nationals have endured. Mark Reynolds and Juan Soto could start to eat up some of his at-bats, but you should hold onto Adams for at least another week. His bat could heat up in a hurry again and you’ll miss out. I’d say Adams is a must-own until Ryan Zimmerman and another outfielder gets off the disabled list.
C Mike Zunino – Seattle Mariners – 46.6% owned – Zunino may have a bad average, but his power numbers are hard to ignore. Catcher is thin as hell and the fact that he has already hit six homers in basically three-and-a-half weeks of games, is solid for the position. He only takes about one game off a week and is in a high-octane offense. The average does suck, but you need to stick with Zunino in your lineup. I will continue to put him in this section until his ownership starts to consistently increase.
SP Jameson Taillon – Pittsburgh Pirates – 59.5% owned – If you take away his two bad starts in mid-April, Taillon has been great. He appears to have corrected his issues and has only allowed three runs over his last three starts. He starts two games next week (at Reds & home against Cardinals). He pitched a complete game one-hitter against the Reds in early April. The Pirates aren’t a very good overall team, but Taillon should still get to double-digit wins this season.
2B Rougned Odor – Texas Rangers – 47.1% owned – Odor was activated off the disabled list early this week and is off to a cold start. He is trying too hard and isn’t letting the game come to him. He is wildly swinging and his strikeout-rate is through the roof since he returned. He is an everyday player and is expected to hit 20+ homers and steal low double-digit bases. He’s just getting used to Major League pitching and may take another week before you start seeing some production from him. Middle infield is becoming more and more thin due to injuries to Paul DeJong and Corey Seager, and now the PED suspension of Robinson Cano.
RP Hunter Strickland – San Francisco Giants – 74.3% owned – Strickland has been fantastic for the Giants since taking over the closing role. He has nine saves with a 2.29 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. His ownership dropped a tad this week due to the news that Mark Melancon will start his rehab assignment soon. Giants manager Bruce Bochy recently said Melancon will not resume his role in high-leverage situations…so Strickland appears to permanently have the closer job going forward. His ownership should shoot up now that the uncertainty of his job became more established. Those who dumped Strickland a bit too early could regret it.
3B Miguel Sano – Minnesota Twins – 75.4% owned – Sano has been on the disabled list for a little over two weeks while nursing an injured hamstring. He is expected to start his rehab assignment this week and could be activated by next weekend. He was off the a slow start before the injury. Sano has plus power and should be huge addition to the Twins lineup. He is currently batting .213 with five homers and 14 RBI. If you still own Sano and had him sitting in your DL-spot, stay patient. There’s no need to dump him now after holding him for over two weeks. He’s going to be a stud by mid-June.
C Wilson Ramos – Tampa Bay Rays – 74.3% owned – Ramos had a two-homer game on Friday, so why did his ownership percentage drop? His bat hasn’t went cold and this past week’s production was roughly his average. People could be jumping to pickup Tucker Barnhart or Evan Gattis now that he’s hitting for power. Ramos is a consistent fantasy catcher and you shouldn’t jump on the Flavor of the Week. Catcher is really thin and Ramos plays nearly every single day. He’s hitting .281 with six homers and 22 RBI on the year.
SP Drew Pomeranz – Boston Red Sox – 29.5% owned – It’s time to cut bait. I gave Pomeranz the benefit of the doubt this season and thought that he just needed a few starts to correct his issues after coming off the disabled list. He has now started six games and has a 5.97 ERA and a whopper of a 1.78 WHIP. His next start is at Tampa Bay and I want nothing to do with him right now. He could fix his control at some point this season, but right now he isn’t rosterable.
OF Jay Bruce – New York Mets – 61.9% owned – Bruce has been featured in this section a few times this season. I gave him a week off since he did have a couple multi-hit games two weeks ago, but he has since went back to his weak-hitting self. Bruce is an all-or-nothing hitter that relies on launch angles. His uppercut swing isn’t doing anything positive for the Mets. He’s hitting .235 and only has three home runs on the season. He is struggling mightily against lefties and has taken a seat a few times against them this season.
C Kurt Suzuki – Atlanta Braves – 41.6% owned – Why isn’t Suzuki’s ownership percentage lower? He only appeared in two games last week. He has been a good hitter when he’s in the game, but now that Tyler Flowers is back, Suzuki is the clear backup in their timeshare. He’s not in the lineup enough to help your team. I’d rather own Evan Gattis or Jonathan Lucroy than Suzuki. Those guys are in the lineup nearly every day and will accumulate stats across the board more than Suzuki.
RP Hector Neris – Philadelphia Phillies – 54.0% owned – As I said earlier, it looks like Seranthony Dominguez is the new closer in Philadelphia. It hasn’t been officially announced, but it’s pretty obvious. Neris could takeover a seventh inning role and it would kill any fantasy value of once had. You should drop Neris and pick up Dominguez, Blake Treinen or Fernando Rodney.
SP Danny Duffy – Kansas City Royals – 31.5% owned – I placed Duffy in this section earlier this season after he gave up six runs and ten hits against the Tigers. It was a sign of things to come. He has allowed five or more runs in five starts and his ERA now stands at 6.88, and his WHIP is an atrocious 1.73. There’s no need to keep him on your team. I wouldn’t even start him in AL-only leagues. His control is all over the place and is giving up multiple dingers a game.
OF Manuel Margot – San Diego Padres – 25.6% owned – The Padres outfield is becoming a crowded mess. It’s a good problem to have since most of the guys are hitting well, but it leaves Margot as the man left out. Travis Jankowski, Franchy Cordero, Matt Szczur, Margot and the recently-called up prospect Franmil Reyes, are all fighting for at-bats. Jankowski has a hot bat and they want to get rookies Cordero and Reyes in the lineup as much as possible to further their development. Margot and Szczur are now used as pinch hitters and rarely start. The situation will be even more crowded when Hunter Renfroe is activated from the disabled list this week.
OF Jackie Bradley Jr. – Boston Red Sox – 24.3% owned – Bradley was drafted in almost every league to start the year, but he has steadily been dropped in ownership. He is striking out too much and has not been getting his bat on much. He is 4 for his last 54 at-bats, but thanks to his plus defense, he is still getting plenty of at-bats. I want nothing to do with him. You should drop Bradley and target Delino DeShields, Mark Trumbo or Yasiel Puig.
2B Ian Kisler – Los Angeles Angels – 41.2% owned – Kinsler has been one of the worst middle infielders over the last three weeks. He’s not doing anything positive for any fantasy category. He’s owned in nearly half of leagues and I’m sure guys are still hoping he turns back the clock and becomes fantasy relevant again…but I don’t see that happening. He has only driven in five runs, he’s batting .208 and has two homers. I’d rather add Scooter Gennett, Brandon Crawford or Matt Duffy.
1B/3B Matt Carpenter – St. Louis Cardinals – 52.9% owned – I haven’t wanted anything to do with Carpenter for weeks. We are well over a month into the season and he’s only hitting .177 and is still owned in over half of leagues! It has been at least two seasons since Carpenter was fantasy-relevant. He did have his best week of the season with three multi-hit games. He has a week like this about once a month, just enough to keep you on the hook. Drop him now and you’ll thank me later. I’d rather have Ryon Healy, C.J Cron or Justin Bour.
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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.