Hitters to Start and Avoid in Week 5 (5/1-5/7)

What’s up everyone!

If you’re unfamiliar with this article series, each week I take a look at some hitting matchups you should take advantage of and some hitting matchups you should avoid, based on who the hitters will likely be facing on the mound.

If you’d like to learn more about when it becomes less risky to stream hitters (and pitchers) and when certain team stats start to stabilize during the year, check out this article.

So let’s take a look at the hitters to start and avoid in Week 5 (5/1-5/7) of the fantasy baseball season.

Notes: All pitching matchups mentioned here are based on projections as of this post’s publication. It is entirely possible that the actual matchups could change for any number of reasons. Keep in mind, this article is geared toward middle-of-the-road players, meaning you should be starting top-of-the-line bats regardless of the matchup. Always start your studs.

 

START

 

New York Mets hitters – The Mets have a full seven-game week this week, starting with one game on Monday to close out their series against Atlanta where they’ll face Bryce Elder, which could prove a tricky matchup. But after that, the Mets will have three games against the Tigers, who own the sixth-worst team FIP in baseball, and they’ll close the week out with three games against the Rockies, who own the fourth-worst team FIP in the league. Unfortunately that Rockies series won’t be in Coors Field but still, that should be a nice matchup for your Mets hitters. Brett Baty has been heating up lately, slashing .333/.394/.467 over the past two weeks, and is worth a start this week.

Colorado Rockies hitters – The Rockies have six games this week, three of which will be in Coors Field against the Brewers. The Brewers’ pitching staff has been relatively middle-of-the-road so far this year, so they’re definitely not strong enough to stop me from starting my Rockies in Coors. And after that, the Rockies will have three games against the Mets, who own the second-worst team FIP in all of baseball, meaning it’s a good week for your Rockies hitters, even if they’ll only be in Coors for half of it.

Washington Nationals hitters – The Nats have a full seven games this week, starting with four games against the Cubs. There are a couple of matchups in there, notably against Drew Smyly (given how good he’s been lately) and Marcus Stroman, that could potentially be a bit tricky for hitters, but it’s not enough to ward me off from starting my Nats. Then, they’ll close the week with three games against the Diamondbacks who own the eighth-worst team FIP in baseball. Joey Meneses has been hitting well lately, slashing .317/.333/.439 over the past two weeks, and is worth a look this week.

Toronto Blue Jays hitters – The Blue Jays also have seven games this week, starting with four against the Red Sox who have the seventh-worst team FIP in the league. Then, they’ll close the week with three games against the Pirates where they’ll see Vince Velasquez, Johan Oviedo, and Roansy Contreras. It’s possible Oviedo and/or Contreras could prove a bit tricky, but I’m not overly worried about it, and the production potential of a full seven-game week with four games against the Red Sox is too good to ignore. Whit Merrifield has been hitting really well, slashing .419/.486/.581 over the past two weeks, and is definitely worth a start this week.

 

AVOID

 

Tampa Bay Rays hitters – The Rays get six games this week, starting with three against the Pirates, a series where they’ll see Mitch Keller who has looked really solid so far this year. They’ll also see Roansy Contreras who, as I mentioned earlier, could be a difficult matchup for hitters (though one that I’m not especially concerned with). Then, they’ll have three games against the Yankees, who own the seventh-best team FIP in baseball. So in all, there are maybe two games out of the six that I’d be comfortable starting my Rays hitters, and in a weekly league, that’s not enough value.

Cleveland Guardians hitters – The Guardians also have six games this week, starting with three against the Yankees who, as I mentioned, have the seventh-best team FIP in the league (and they’ll see Gerrit Cole in that series). Then, they’ll close the week with three games against the Twins, who own the second-best team FIP in baseball, and in that series, they’ll face both Joe Ryan and Sonny Gray, making it a really tough week to start your Guardians.

San Francisco Giants hitters – The Giants are looking at a six-game week this week starting with three games against the Astros who own the fifth-best team FIP in baseball and where they’ll face Luis Garcia, Hunter Brown, and Framber Valdez, all of whom can be pretty tough for hitters. Then, they’ll close their week with three games at home in pitcher-friendly Oracle Park against the Brewers, a series where they’ll get to see Corbin Burnes. All in all, there are maybe two games that don’t worry me for my Giants hitters, meaning there’s not a ton of value here for weekly leagues.