Brad Penner-Imagn Images

American League

Angels

• Denzer Guzman (.588 OPS) started eight straight games at third base while batting 5th to 7th in the lineup.

• There has not been a lineup without Mike Trout (IL), but I suspect Nolan Schanuel and Vaughn Grissom will handle 1B/DH duties, and Jose Siri (.881 OPS) will be in center field. One wrinkle is that Wade Meckler usually sits against lefties, so he might get full-time at-bats. I could be wrong, so monitor any pending moves.[Editor’s note: Friday’s lineup posted after Jeff wrote this. Siri was in CF, Schanuel at 1B, with Christian Moore at DH with Grissom getting the day off. Meckler did, in fact get the start against a LHP.] Read the rest of this entry »

Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

While the NFBC Main Event garners most of the attention, there are a handful of leagues with even larger entry fees ($2.5K to $15K). They are named Elite leagues (previously called High Stakes Leagues), and there are nine of them. With so much money on the line, these fantasy managers try to gain every advantage. Most of the time, these managers will be a week or two ahead of everyone else on their adds. Here are the players and some information on the ones added in five or more leagues. Read the rest of this entry »

Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

American League

Angels

• Vaughn Grissom went on a rehab assignment.

INF Vaughn Grissom
Injury: Left oblique strain
IL date: June 8 (10-day IL, retroactive to June 6)
Expected return: Mid-June
Status: Began a rehab assignment with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga on June 14, going 2-for-5 and playing nine innings at third base. Is expected to play in a few more rehab games but is nearing a return.

I’m not sure where and how much Grissom (.735 OPS) will play when he returns. I will guess that Denzer Guzman (.567 OPS) gets demoted. Also, I could see Grissom splitting time at first (Nolan Schanuel, .687 OPS), second (Oswald Peraza, .732 OPS), and third (Guzman). Nobody knows. Read the rest of this entry »

Tim Vizer-Imagn Images

While the NFBC Main Event garners most of the attention, there are a handful of leagues with even larger entry fees ($2.5K to $15K). They are named Elite leagues (previously called High Stakes Leagues), and there are nine of them. With so much money on the line, these fantasy managers try to gain every advantage. Most of the time, these managers will be a week or two ahead of everyone else on their adds. Here are the players and some information on the ones added in five or more leagues. Read the rest of this entry »

7:32	Jeff Zimmerman:

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Jordan Johnson-Imagn Images

In this article, I cover the players using CBS’s and Yahoo’s ADD/DROP rates. Both sites have the option for daily and weekly waiver wire adds. CBS uses a weekly change while Yahoo looks at the last 24 hours. Yahoo is a great snapshot of right now, while CBS ensures hot targets from early in the week aren’t missed. I start players being added at CBS who started the week on less than 40% of rosters.

The players are ordered for redraft leagues by my rest-of-season preference, grouped by hitters, starters, and relievers. Read the rest of this entry »

Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

American League

Angels

• Before going on the IL, Vaughn Grissom (oblique) had been working on making more contact.

Vaughn Grissom, who has been filling in for Schanuel, also went 2-for-5 with a homer and three RBIs while Peraza, who started in place of Neto, went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs. Grissom noted the new approach that’s been working in recent weeks and said making more contact has been a huge key for the offense’s turnaround.

While his strikeout rate is down from 21% K% last year to 11% K% this year, the rate had grown back to 21% in June.

A deep league bench bat with his position eligibilities (1B, 2B, and possibly 3B) Read the rest of this entry »

Note: I normally dig through regular articles for information, and during the season find little useful information. I’m going to transition to at least going through the team injury information to find some actionable items.

American League

Blue Jays

• While the team likes Brandon Valenzuela’s pitch calling …

His work behind the plate has also improved during that span, with ace Kevin Gausman saying his pitch framing “is getting close to Kirky’s level where you think you’re throwing way more strikes than maybe you are.” Read the rest of this entry »

7:33	Jeff Zimmerman:

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Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

In this article, I cover the players using CBS’s and Yahoo’s ADD/DROP rates. Both sites have the option for daily and weekly waiver wire adds. CBS uses a weekly change while Yahoo looks at the last 24 hours. Yahoo is a great snapshot of right now, while CBS ensures hot targets from early in the week aren’t missed. I start players being added at CBS who started the week on less than 40% of rosters.

The players are ordered for redraft leagues by my rest-of-season preference, grouped by hitters, starters, and relievers. Read the rest of this entry »