Apologies for the inconsistent timing in getting this piece published the last several weeks. My family’s work/life balance has been thrown into disarray over the last month and a half and it has been a struggle to get everything lined back up. This will start publishing at it’s usually scheduled time (Wednesday afternoons) much more often going forward.
No matter how much you like a player (like Edouard Julien or Spencer Torkelson), you can’t really hold them in redraft leagues without an N/A slot. I think both are fantastic uses of such a slot, as we know their upside and that they will both likely be back up with the team at some point in the next one or two months, but it’s hard to use a bench spot for them in redraft.
For those of you in dynasty leagues, thi is the worst possible time to try and move one of these players. Don’t sell low.
- As a reminder, these rankings are geared toward a standard, daily, 12-team H2H redraft league, as that is typically the most popular fantasy baseball format. They will only factor in the five standard categories: Runs, RBI, Home Runs, Batting Average, and Stolen Bases.
- I would recommend not paying super close attention to the specific ranks of each player, and honing in more on the respective tiers that they’re in. Each tier represents a grouping of players that I think could arguably perform at a similar level, and/or carry similar levels of risk in terms of injury concerns or playing time obstacles. If Player X is ranked at #55 and Player Y is ranked at #65, but they’re in the same tier, it means that I personally like Player X a lot better, but think there’s a valid argument to be made for Player Y performing just as well.
- I take rankings like this as more of an art than a science. Every person’s rankings are influenced by their own biases, strategic philosophies, determinations of risk, and projections. It’s why no two rankings are ever exactly alike. My way of evaluating and ranking players has worked out well for me over the years, but it might not be a great fit for you. I can’t possibly predict your team’s specific needs, your league mates’ player evaluations, or your current waiver wire, and if I could it’d be weird. In a bad way.
- This is a safe space for me where I answer to no one but myself…and you if you leave a comment.
- I’m doing my best to use five starts or 10 appearances as the threshold for positional eligibility. I have not included presumed eligibilities based on likely new positions, but once those eligibilities are earned I’ll add them in. This is just a maintenance thing and we will update eligibility throughout the season. Feel free to let me know if I’m missing any!
Ranking Philosophy
To keep things in the same ilk, here are a couple of notes on how I generally evaluate hitters before we dive in:
- In 12-team formats, I just don’t see much value in guys who only provide stolen bases. It’s an important category, especially in Roto, but in shallower formats, there are too many other (and better) ways to get the steals you need without sacrificing production in the other categories.
- If I want to get some insight on whether what I’m seeing is new or if it’s just normal fluctuation, I’d use my favorite tool—the rolling chart, which I’ll also reference as appropriate. You can also get rolling charts from sources like FanGraphs or Baseball Savant. If you have any questions about how to do that or how to read these charts, reach out to me!
- No stat is an island and they should all be taken in proper context. For ranking purposes, the primary starting points I use are plate discipline, wRC+, quality of contact metrics (also known as Statcast batted ball data), lineup context, and the skills we can measure using tools such as our PLV Hitter Attributes (available for PL Pro members). I also use various projections (some free, some I buy) and dollar value generators.
- Positional eligibility, and specifically multi-eligibility, is neat but also isn’t a huge factor in many 10- and 12-team leagues anymore due to the prevalence of multi-eligible players. It’s of more value in deeper contests like the NFBC, or in leagues with limited roster moves (draft and hold leagues, transaction limits/costs, extremely short benches, etc.), but even then the value is fairly situational and context-dependent.
- On a similar note, I don’t penalize players for only qualifying in the utility slot. At most, it is a mild inconvenience if a DH-only player is available at a great value and you already have filled your utility spots.
- Anyone talented enough to make it to the big leagues can be brilliant or putrid for 50 to 100 at-bats—regardless of true talent. Heck, it could even last a month with no change in potential or skill. It also could be wildly meaningful. We can’t and don’t know which of these will be true until it’s over, though track record, scouting, and trends give us hints.
- If you’d like input on a player or have any feedback, your best bet is to reach out to me on the website formerly known as Twitter (@ifthechufits) or in the comments!
Read The Notes
- These rankings talk about what I generally project for a player, but these rankings are not projections. They include projections but also take into account performance risk, injury risk, team context, ceiling, and floor.
Check out the Hacks & Jacks podcast featuring Scott Chu and Joe Gallina, which also happened to be a finalist for Best Baseball Podcast of 2021 by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA)!
I also host an AMA in the r/fantasybaseball subreddit every Friday (starting sometime in late March) starting around noon ET that lasts through the rest of the day and into the weekend, so feel free to join the fun and ask questions or make comments.
Tier 1
- Skenes vs Shohei Ohtani was fun, right? That’s perfect baseball to me.
- Dropping Mookie Betts for a minor slump is more about the incredible quality we see in the top tier than it is an indictment of Mookie.
- José Ramírez has been a monster of late, and with the major issues with third base depth out there, it made sense to put the top dog at the hot corner in the top tier.
Tier 2
- Elly De La Cruz looks pretty rough out there (except in Coors) and that’s just par for the course. I’ll keep saying it as a reminder, but this roller coaster is likely something we will experience for a while. Possibly even for most of his career. That said, the highs will be so sweet that the lows will be worth managing. That said, if you’re in a points league where steals are only worth one or two points and strikeouts cost you points, Elly would be dropped a tier (or even two) as much of his elite value comes from his speed.
- Julio Rodríguez has mostly stayed in the top-20 bats because he is one of a select few who can sustain top-tier production for more than a month or two at a time. The power has been missing for most of the season, but things appear to be trending up both in the box scores (three home runs in his last 11 games) and in our ability metrics.
- I am insanely curious about how long Gunnar Henderson can keep this up. In his last 25 games, Gunnar has more walks than strikeouts to go with nine home runs, two steals, and a 1.034 OPS. Is he really the 40 home run, 20 steal guy he has appeared to be in the first half? History suggests that we will see more bumps in the road as he’s really only into his second full season in the majors, but the adjustments he’s made from last season are phenomenal. If he can keep bouncing back from bad weeks the way he has so far, this is a Tier 1 guy. I’m obviously not there yet, but the path is there.
- Corey Seager is back on track to hitting 30 or more home runs if he stays healthy all season and the batting average is quickly approaching his career .291 mark. More importantly, though, he seems to be fine after being removed from Wednesday’s game.
Tier 3
- Fernando Tatis Jr. doesn’t look like the perennial MVP candidate he was before he missed all of 2022 with a significant shoulder issue and also a PED suspension. That said, he still looks like he’s a very good ballplayer who can hit 30 home runs and steal 20 bases with solid ratios if he’s fully healthy.
Tier 4
- I have been asked a lot if Austin Riley is “broken” and the more I dig into the numbers, the more I think that he’s much closer to the Riley of years past than the stats suggest. He’s been extremely unlucky with the fastballs he’s put in play (slugging .333 with an expected slugging of .455) and he’s not quite pulling the ball as much as usual, but the only real change for Riley that I can see is that a decent chunk of balls that used to be considered barrels, solid contact, or flares/burners have been shifted to the bad side of the spectrum (weak, under, or topped). That suggests to me that he’s just one micro-adjustment away from heating up, but exactly what that adjustment is and how quickly he can make it is what they pay hitting coaches for. It’s nearly impossible for him to get to 33 or more home runs for a fourth consecutive season, but I am in agreement with most projects that say he can be a 20 home run hitter from now to the end of the season with the strong ratios we’ve come to expect.
- Alex Bregman is actually a good example of a guy who was pretty close but just a little off in his quality of contact. Most guys won’t have such instantaneous results, of course, as Bregman’s five home runs and .387/.424/.968 line over his last eight games is absolutely ridiculous. That said, he appears to be on track to finish the season with 22-24 home runs and a decent chunk of counting stats.
Tier 5
There is an average net change of +1 to all players in this tier.
- Adley Rutschman is back at the top of the catcher pool, but I continue to rank him, William Contreras, and Will Smith right next to each other for the time being. I’m tempted to make Rutchman and Contreras stand alone at the top and move Smith down slightly, though.
- Anthony Volpe feels criminally underrated to me when I look at publicly available projections. There is no sweeter spot than the top of the Yankees’ lineup when Soto and Judge are cruising and that’s exactly how Volpe has scored 16 runs over his last 13 games. Sure, he doesn’t have a home run in that stretch, but I see a clear path to Volpe getting to 20 home runs, 25 steals, and at least 100 runs scored, possibly even 110-120.
- Welcome back to the list, Luis Robert Jr.. The streakiness will drive you nuts but the hyper-aggressive slugger’s combination of contact, power, and speed means he’s capable of going on an insane run at any time. Don’t get too cute by benching him when he slumps a bit.
Tier 6
There is an average net change of +4 to all players in this tier.
- Anthony Santander runs hot and cold and he always will. The result at the end should be a top 40-60 player.
- I’m worried about CJ Abrams. Guys who swing as often as Abrams are prone to extreme inconsistency on a week-to-week basis, and it’s worse when you never take a walk. Since May 7, Abrams has zero steals and has been caught twice. In that stretch, the Nationals lead all of baseball in steals (38) and stolen base attempts (51). That means the problem isn’t management, but instead it’s Abrams. Never being on base is of course the major issue, but he’s been ineffective even when given the green light lately. Until or unless Abrams can start getting back on base and running, it’s hard to stop this freefall down the ranks.
- Christopher Morel seems to be turning around this slump over the last six games, so let’s hope the foot injury is a minor one and doesn’t derail this rebound.
- Jeremy Peña is slumping over the last few weeks, and the most concerning part to me is that the strikeouts are up over 25%. I was hoping this was a 15 home run, 20 steal guy with amazing ratios with 170 or more combined runs and RBI. I still think he can be, and I love that he hit second on Wednesday, but the floor is probably 80 spots lower on this list.
Tier 7
- Randy Arozarena was going to fall more down these ranks but then he strung together a few hits and a whole bunch of walks to keep me intrigued.
- Gleyber Torres is hitting .278/.341/.506 over his last 22 games with four home runs and a steal. The counting stats are a bit light (23 combined runs and RBI) due to his move to the bottom third of the order, but the skill set is enough to keep him in the top-75 hitters. I rank him closer to 50 because I think he can move up to fifth or so and really ramp up his RBI opportunities, but if he doesn’t, he’ll fall somewhere around 75.
- Welcome back, Royce Lewis. If this was only a ranking of talent, Lewis would be two or three tiers higher, but the extreme injury risk cannot be ignored.
- Ryan Mountcastle is on fire. I don’t think it’s more than a pretty good player on a pretty good run, but it’s still fun. Hitting third for the Orioles means a lot more than it did a few years ago, though, so there’s room to move up a little if he holds on to that spot.
- This high strikeout version of Paul Goldschmidt still freaks me out a little. It’s gotten slightly better the last handful of games, but the power is also absent during that stretch so I don’t really know what to do.
Tier 8
There is an average net change of +2 to all players in this tier.
- Another week, another fall for Corbin Carroll. With just one steal and one home run since April 18, it’s time to recalibrate once again. Carroll did have a little stretch about two weeks ago where he hit a bunch of doubles and a triple, but that has stopped too, so what if this is a 10 home run, 20-25 stolen base guy with bad ratios until he’s fully healthy (or cured of whatever curse is ailing him)? That’s a guy who is well outside the top-100 hitters and that’s something I’m getting closer to believing. The healthy upside will keep him on the list, but that healthy upside gets foggier with each barrel-less day.
- George Springer is heating up, but my expectations overall remain tempered due to his injury history and streaky nature these last few years.
- Jordan Westburg isn’t really the feature of this piece, but I absolutely recommend Tanner McGrath’s recent work highlighting the way hitters can have high whiff rates and low strikeout rates. Spoiler alert: it has incredibly little to do with two strike swings or two strike approach.
- Lane Thomas might steal 30 bases, but it’s still very unclear how good this bat can actually be as 2023’s stat line never made much sense to me.
Tier 9
- Oneil Cruz just can’t sustain his moments of decent decision-making long enough for us to enjoy it. I think that will change with time, but how much time is anyone’s guess.
- Alex Verdugo hits right behind Soto and Judge and as a result has 13 RBI in 15 games. Verdugo seems likely to set a career high in home runs (he only needs six more to do it) and might even approach 20 home runs thanks to the dimensions of Yankee Stadium, but the real reason he made a jump is that the RBI opportunities should keep rolling thanks to his new place in the lineup. Verdugo is especially valuable in points leagues as he rarely strikes out and put everything in play.
- Brandon Nimmo had climbed the ranks mostly due to attrition, so this is a correction. He’s had a nice week, though, and the average should keep rising.
- Bryson Stott has gone pretty darn cold after that incredible streak so I’m still trying to get a feel for the “true talent” here.
- Welcome back, Rhys Hoskins. You can expect him to be what he has been for several years now.
Tier 10
- Steven Kwan is back and should continue to be a slap-hitting contact machine with decent speed.
- David Fry felt like a flash in the pan at first but our PL Hitter Ability metrics just love him and I featured him just to show off the charts below. I think he’ll earn more DH and outfield appearances as we go and think we could definitely be looking at a guy with strong ratios and 20-22 home runs.
- Alec Bohm is pretty boring but also pretty decent so, I don’t know, enjoy it I guess? My lack of interest in a dependable third baseman in a world where so few exist is probably why I can’t have nice things.
- Seiya Suzuki has been prone to slumps the entire time he’s been in the states, so you’ll have to stick it out if you want the OBP and power goodness to shine though.
Tier 11
There is an average net change of +11 to all players in this tier.
- Ha-Seong Kim’s last 18 games have given me hope that he can stay in the top-100 even at the bottom of this lineup. A return to earth from some of the guys in the middle of that order will either be an opportunity for Kim to move up or a dagger to the heart of what upside he still has outside of stolen bases. Only time will tell.
- A lot of Patrick Bailey’s recent success is line drive driven (31.3% line drives this year, which is about 10% too high), but he did have some prospect hype in the minors and has legitimate power, so I think he can stick around the rankings even when those line drives turn back into grounders (for the most part).
- Bryan De La Cruz has been slumping and this part of the ranks gets extremely volatile. Additionally, he had risen up mostly from attrition, which eventually has to get corrected for certain types of players, particularly those who are more of a high floor, low ceiling archetype like De La Cruz and Nimmo.
- This might be your last chance to capitalize on Giancarlo Stanton. Even with six hits in his last four games, Stanton’s .179/.220/.411 line in his last 15 games is more indicative of what to expect going forward than his full season stat line. I would absolutely shoot for a guy in Tier 8 or Tier 9 and hope my leaguemates are obsessed enough with the new bat tracking data to overlook his flaws.
Tier 12
This tier is chaos.
- Speaking of guys who rose up through attrition (and an early season hot streak), here’s Jake Cronenworth. Cronenworth is hitting .200/.232/.292 with zero home runs over his last 17 games, and is likely to fall short of 20 home runs over the full season despite the head start. He’ll accumulate 80-90 RBI because he plays a lot and hits near the middle of the order, and the ratios should be mostly fine, but that’s about it. For an upside, take his 2021 stats but with the runs and RBI reversed.
- Ceddanne Rafaela is on track to steal 20 bases and hit 20 home runs with a reasonable amount of runs and RBI, but good golly do I hope that he finds a more level way to provide it. He’s piled up 12 of his 33 RBI in 2 games with the remaining 21 RBI coming over 59 games. It’s incredible and maddening.
- Nolan Gorman is hot so scoop him up. We’ll probably drop him once he’s cold and at the bottom of the order again. If he ever gets a handle on consistency then he’ll be a top-75 sort of player, but I don’t see that happening soon due to the severe contact and decision-making issues.
- Alec Burleson doesn’t have Gorman’s upside but the floor is several stories higher.
- From 2016 to the end of 2023, Jesse Winker played in 834 games across the major and minor leagues. In that time, he stole a grand total of five bases and was caught 10 times. In just his last 12 games in 2024, Winker has six stolen bases. It is by far the most improbable thing I’ve seen so far this season.
- Sure, Thairo Estrada got a lot of hits over the last week, but he has just two home runs and no steals in his last 20 games. Estrada can be a valuable fantasy contributor, but the upside is very limited if he won’t be running at all.
Tier 13
This tier is chaos.
- Is Jake Burger back? Please tell me Burger is back. He overcame his contact issues once before and seems to be doing it again, at least to some extent. He’s worth a speculative add if you’re dying at third.
- Jorge Soler continues to struggle and I can’t really think of a good reason why. His home run environment was just as bad last year and he was fine. He’s the type of guy who can go on a bender and hit five homers in seven games, though, and he’s strung together a few decent games so perhaps we’ll see him catch back up to a 25 home run pace soon.
- Luis Garcia Jr. and Nico Hoerner are both guys who might hit 10-15 home runs and steal some bases, but I’m starting to get the feeling that we won’t see another level to their game in 2024.
- Jackson Merrill is an empty ratios guy in fantasy and a very good real life ballplayer.
Tier 14
This tier is chaos.
- I had hoped that Dylan Moore could overcome his streakiness issues with improved plate discipline, but it doesn’t look like that’s the case.
- The pending return of Taylor Walls might be the end of José Caballero’s 12-team relevance.
- We will learn a lot about Mark Vientos when we see him have more plate appearances against right-handed pitching, which Baty had been handling. There’s plenty of power upside here, if you’re looking to chase it.
- Edmundo Sosa may have done enough to earn a role even after Turner comes back.
- I’m still skeptical about TJ Friedl overall but leadoff guys who can don’t grow on trees.
- Jonathan India is heating up and there’s a path to moving to the middle of the order. Let’s see if he can seize it.
- Jose Miranda has good bat-to-ball skills and 15-17 home run power, and if he keeps a full-time role then he’s worth scooping up.
- Joey Ortiz is mostly empty ratios, but they’re good ratios, and he’s eligible in both the middle and corner infield.
- J.P. Crawford leads off for Seattle, and if Julio Rodríguez keeps rebounding that could mean more than it does currently.
- Adam Duvall is an extremely streaky power bat who isn’t a must roster in 12-teamers at all times, but he’s got a good opportunity in front of him.
- Zack Gelof is hanging on by a thread here. That weird swing of his might have too many holes in it to become a consistent contributor.
- The Angels clearly have no interest in letting Zach Neto out of the basement.
- Miguel Andujar was smoking hot and has plenty of playing time, but it’s been a long time since he was relevant for an extended period of time.
- David Hamilton can run but I’m not convinced yet that he can do anything else consistently.
- Willi Castro will get second base eligibility soon in Yahoo leagues, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Taxi Squad
This year, the Taxi Squad will be a handful of players at each position who either are on the cusp of the list or who have been hot topics of late.
Players are listed in no particular order.
Another update: Hitters who hit the IL will end up in the Taxi Squad until they return to the roster.
Catcher
- Elias Díaz (C, COL) — Always streamable at home.
- Connor Wong (C/2B, BOS) — Makes a ton of contact and is getting batted ball luck, but can fill in for you when the matchups are right.
- Gary Sánchez (C, MIL) — Sure, why not?
- Ryan Jeffers (C, MIN) — A fine fantasy catcher, but with so many producing there’s not a need to hold onto a slumping one unless there’s a lot of upside.
- Mitch Garver (C, SEA) — Overdue for a hot streak but too much talent out there to keep waiting.
- Jonah Heim (C, TEX) — He’s been putrid at the plate recently and his history of being mediocre is a lot longer than his history of being good.
- Keibert Ruiz (C, WAS) — A few more multi-hit games did not happen but he’s a streamable points league catcher.
- Henry Davis (C, PIT) — There’s definitely a quad-A player vibe going on right now, but if he gets hot he’s probably streamable.
- Iván Herrera (C, STL) — Streamable while Contreras is out.
First Base
- Luke Raley (1B/OF, SEA) — Power and speed that comes with streakiness and contact issues.
- Ryan O’Hearn (1B/OF, BAL) — It’s a strict platoon. Stream against righties and nothing else.
- Alex Kirilloff (1B/OF, MIN) — Hard to see how he gets out of a platoon.
- Mark Canha (1B/OF, DET) — Mostly valuable in points leagues.
- Carlos Santana (1B, MIN) — The hot streak is over and he’s moved into a part-time role.
- Gavin Sheets (1B/OF, CWS) — Kind of intrigued by the walks but the hot streak seems driven by line drives that are likely to fade away soon.
- Spencer Torkelson (1B, DET) — I still believe long term but he’s not rosterable unless oyu are in a deep keeper or have an NA slot.
- Justin Turner (1B/2B/3B, TOR) — If he wasn’t eligible everywhere then I wouldn’t even mention him.
- Elehuris Montero (1B/3B, COL) — The power is streamable in Coors.
Second Base
- Brendan Rodgers (2B, COL) — Streamable when in Coors.
- Edouard Julien (2B, MIN) — Nothing that happens in the minors is likely to change my opinion of what he can do. He’s an elite decision-maker with big contact issues against major leaguers.
- Connor Norby (2B, BAL) — I’d be a lot more fun if I ranked him, but a 30.7% strikeout rate in triple-A in 238 plate appearances (35.2% since April 21) is a scary thing ahead of a major league debut.
- Otto Lopez (2B, MIA) — It’s stolen bases and ratios, which just might be what you need.
- Colt Keith (2B, DET) — The hot streak is over but hopefully he can bounce back.
- Brandon Lowe (2B, TBR) — He’s streaky, gets platooned, and has a long injury history. There is pop, though.
Third Base
- Junior Caminero (3B, TBR) — Struggling lately and I worry a call-up won’t lead to immediate playing time.
- Tyler Freeman (2B/3B/OF) — Decent prospect with a good hit tool and some speed but very limited pop.
- Coby Mayo (3B, BAL) — There’s no room for him but the power and plate discipline (prior to 2024) is exciting.
- Isiah Kiner-Falefa (2B/3B/OF, TOR) — Low upside, but eligible all over and playing a lot.
- Gio Urshela (1B/3B, DET) — He doesn’t have a ton of power and has zero speed, but puts a lot of balls in play.
- Abraham Toro (3B, OAK) — No single stand-out tool but does enough of everything to be relevant when he’s hot.
- Noelvi Marte (3B, CIN) — He’ll be eligible soon, but I don’t recommend stashing quite yet unless you have a deep bench. He’ll be ranked around 100 when he’s back.
Shortstop
- J.P. Crawford (SS, SEA) — Not yet showing the improved power from last year.
- Jackson Holliday (SS, BAL) — Long-term outlook hasn’t changed, but the O’s are in a tough spot.
- Edmundo Sosa (3B/SS, PHI) — Had a nice run against a bunch of lefties but still likely in a platoon.
- Dylan Moore (2B/SS/OF) — Streakiness is part of the package but the upside is very real.
Outfield/DH
There are probably 5-10 more guys at any given time who you could argue belong on this part of the list.
- Jackson Chourio (OF, MIL) — The strikeouts are back and outfield is too deep in redraft leagues to keep holding, even for the faithful.
- Joc Pederson (OF, ARI) — Interesting in spurts as a power streamer against righties.
- James Wood (OF, WAS) — Top-10 prospect with plenty of pop but may not be up until mid-summer (or later).
- Heston Kjerstad (OF, BAL) —Not the worst use of an N/A slot, assuming you have one.
- Cedric Mullins (OF, BAL) — Droppable. This outfield is a mess.
- Jordan Walker (OF, STL) — If you want a silver lining, he rebounded nicely after his last trip to the minors.
- Will Benson (OF, CIN) — The strikeouts are tough to watch outside of OBP, and I think the Reds want someone more reliable leading off.
- Byron Buxton (OF, MIN) — You can chase the talent, but the injury risk, strikeouts, and prolonged slumps have worn me out.
- Jarred Kelenic (OF, ATL) — Should get a bit more playing time, but not convinced he can do enough with it to be scooped in a 12-team league.
- Jack Suwinski (OF, PIT) — He’s still the same left-handed streaky power bat he’s always been, which means there will be times he should be rostered.
- Justyn Henry-Malloy (OF, DET) — Love the character and the on-base skills, but not sure he’ll get the playing time or do enough damage with the bat to be worth a scoop in standard leagues.
- JJ Bleday (OF, OAK) — He’s more valuable in OBP because of the walks but the rest of the package isn’t that exciting.
- Pete Crow-Armstrong (OF, CHC) — The speed is intriguing in deep leagues and there’s long-term upside but the contact issues will make it tough to roster him in most formats.
- Josh Lowe (OF, TBR) — Between the durability issues, playing time issues, and streaky performance, I am struggling to put him on the List.
- Austin Hays (OF, BAL) — He’s hot, which happens when you’re aggressive. Without a full time role he’s a daily streamer at best.
- Jake Meyers (OF, HOU) — Just not enough juice to justify holding through a cold streak.
- Nelson Velázquez (OF, KCR) — Aggressive and has pop, and like most guys with this profile, prone to streaks.
- Blake Perkins (OF, MIL) — Feels like just a hot streak to me.
- Jose Siri (OF, TBR) — Has speed and power to spare, but injury issues, strikeouts, and streakiness hold him back.
- Jake McCarthy (OF, ARI) — Pure speed streamer.
- Jesus Sanchez (OF, MIA) — Hits the ball hard but doesn’t pull it much which kills his home run upside.
- Jacob Young (OF, WAS) — Pure speed streamer who isn’t running at the moment for some reason.
IL Stashes
- Willson Contreras (C, STL) — Droppable if your IL is full. Still five or six weeks away at best.
- Francisco Alvarez (C, NYM) — Getting closer but the depth at catcher makes it hard to justify getting too excited.
- Triston Casas (1B, BOS) — Almost ready to swing a bat. Will likely be a Top 50-75 player when he’s ready.
- Christian Encarnacion-Strand (1B/3B, CIN) — Taking fielding drills. Curious about his role when he’s ready. Droppable if your IL is full. Outside of top 100 on return.
- Matt McLain (2B, CIN) — Not back until the last month or two of the season. Droppable if your IL is full.
- Josh Jung (3B, TEX) — Getting very close. Will be a top 50-75 player when he’s ready.
- Max Muncy (3B, LAD) — Will likely be a top 75-100 player when he’s ready.
- Trea Turner (SS, PHI) — Had a setback while working out.
- Jordan Lawlar (SS, ARI) — He’s on a rehab now and will be with the big league club when ready. Outside of top 100 on return but worth watching.
- Mike Trout (OF, LAA) — He should be back this season and should definitely be stashed on ILs. Should be in the top 25-35 on his return.
- Nolan Jones (OF, COL) — Rehab is back on. Outside of top 100 on return. I just have no faith.
- Eloy Jiménez (DH, CHW) — Death, taxes, yada yada yada. Outside of top 100 on return.
- Kerry Carpenter (OF, DET) — Hard to stash if your IL is already full. Borderline top 100 on return.
- Evan Carter (OF, TEX) — Makes you wonder if back issues have been an issue all season. Droppable if your IL is full. Outside of top 100 on return.
- LaMonte Wade Jr. (1B/OF, SFG) — I’d expect him to be back around the All-Star Break. Droppable if your IL is full.
- Jordan Beck (OF, COL) — Droppable if your IL is full.
- Michael Massey (2B, KCR) — Droppable if your IL is full. Outside of top 100 on return.
- Ronald Acuña Jr. (OF, ATL) — Obviously, he’s a drop in redraft leagues.
- Xander Bogaerts (2B/SS, SDP) — Tough stash if you’ve already got a loaded IL.
- Tommy Pham (OF, CWS) — Droppable if your IL is full. Outside of top 100 on return.
- Wilyer Abreu (OF, BOS) —Droppable if your IL is full. Outside of top 100 on return.
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In a 12tm H2H points league, would you trade Max Fried and Luis Gil for Kyle Tucker and Gunnar Henderson?
Points are weird because some have huge imbalances between hitting and pitching. Assuming hitting and pitching were equal, it’s the two hitters by a mile.
Brandon Lowe? Not even Tier 14.
That’s gonna leave a mark.
Just for you, I gave him a blurb in the Taxi Squad.
MI is a wasteland in 12 team roto’s, particularly at SS.
Mike Tauchman is off the list after being in the top 100 last month. Was he a mistaken omission or are you worried about the playing time?
No room for Andy Pages in the top 150 or taxi squad?
No Hayes at shallow 3B?
Nootbaar seems worthy of a taxi squad mention.