Just starting with the trade as it has been reported:

The Guardians trade Cesar Hernandez to the White Sox for Konnor Pilkington

While the White Sox filled a void at second base that was created when Nick Madrigal was lost for the season, the trade might be a linear move for Hernandez’s fantasy value.

So far this season, Hernandez’s fantasy value has him as the 28th middle infielder boosted by his 18 HR and 60 Runs (T25th in the majors). Hernandez’s biggest valuation gain will come from the other White Sox hitters. They are just better than those in Cleveland and should give him a better chance for at-bats, Runs, and RBI. So far this season, the White Sox have averaged 4.94 R/G while the Guardians are at 4.28 R/G. Also, the White Sox have not been at full strength. They just got Eloy Jiménez back from the IL and Luis Robert could return soon.

While the park is an upgrade on the surface, it shouldn’t make a major difference. The new park would not have allowed just one additional projected home run on the season. His value will hinge on where he gets slotted into the lineup. Read the rest of this entry »

The Astros added some much need bullpen depth with the following trade.

Astros trade outfielder Bryan De La Cruz to Miami for reliever Yimi García

Truthfully, I was hoping for some more closer trades to add to this one, but it’s time to clean the slate and wait for some more trades.

Note: The following players are ranked from most redraft fantasy value added to the most lost.

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The Yankees acquired much-needed outfield by adding Joey Gallo and trading away some better than slap-dick prospects.

• The Rangers trade Joey Gallo and Joely Rodríguez for prospects Ezequiel Duran, Josh Smith, Trevor Hauver, and Glenn Otto

There are some obvious players gaining and losing value, but there is some murkiness that should clear up by the end of the weekend. As of now, here is who I see as the players gaining and losing values in the trade.

Note: The following players are ranked from most redraft fantasy value added to the most lost.

Up

Joey Gallo

The Yankees needed at least one outfield replacement since they’ve been rolling out the likes of Estevan Florial, Greg Allen, Brett Gardner, and Ryan LaMarre. And they have been the replacements in the last two games. For the season, Gallo is hitting .223/.379/.490 with 25 HR and 6 SB. This is what has always been expected from Gallo. His 162 game average is .211/.336/.497 with 41 HR and 7 SB. With the Yankees dealing with several injuries (e.g. Aaron Judge and Luke Voit), Gallo should slot into the top of the lineup dropping down either Gleyber Torres (.678 OPS) or Rougned Odor (.757 OPS). Read the rest of this entry »

I’m now back from a nice vacation with my two kids and it is now time to finish the season strong. Many of the drops listed below make sense because they were headed to and from the minors or the IL. A few names do stick out as being decent options for adds (e.g. Zimmer and Brubaker).

For this weekly feature, I use the NFBC Main Event because of the number of identical leagues. Additionally, the managers stay engaged longer on the whole since each spent $1700 per team. I tried to find that sweet spot between the obvious and bizarre drops and will focus on players dropped in seven to ten leagues. Previously the number was six to nine, but I adjusted with the Main Event adding four leagues since I did the report. Read the rest of this entry »

Note: During the All-Star break, at least Paul and I are going to break down pitcher results and they will all be in this article for easy reference. The article will grow throughout the week as more and reports get done. Please submit pitcher recommendations in the comments making sure it’s only actionable pitchers (no Cole’s or Giolito’s).

Background

For those coming back from a two-year submarine tour, here is some background on the current state of the sticky substance ban. Pitchers who use sticky stuff on baseballs create more spin and more spin can lead to more strikeouts for certain pitches. Someone(s) felt it was finally important to start enforcing the rule after decades of turning a blind eye. Here is the time timeline for the crackdown. Read the rest of this entry »

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Good luck finding available talented players this week. Besides Vidal Brujan and just a few players who might not have been picked up last week (Sheets and Megill), there is not much on the wire. If there is a week to spend a minute on each team and have a few cool refreshing beverages, it’s this week. Here are three items to consider when making decisions for the short upcoming week.

1. The Dodgers are at Colorado after the break so someone like Yonathan Daza (14% rostered) might be worth adding.
2. The Yankees and Red Sox play an extra game (4 vs 3) and maybe someone like Enrique Hernandez (featured below) might be worth an add.
3. In the next full week, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Colorado all have five games.

In the article, I cover the players using CBS’s (40% or less initial roster rate) and Yahoo’s ADD/DROP rates. Both hosting 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. The players are ordered for redraft leagues by my rest-of-season preference grouped by starters, relievers, and hitters. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m being a little selfish this week. A few of the players who were dropped in six leagues interested me, so I included them. I seperated out the hitters in Colorado. I think they were not good enough hitters to roster, but I don’t know for sure. I’ll study the Colorado threshold later this week.

For this weekly feature, I use the NFBC Main Event because of the number of identical leagues. Additionally, the managers stay engaged longer on the whole since each spent $1700 per team. I tried to find that sweet spot between the obvious and bizarre drops and will focus on players dropped in seven to ten leagues. Previously the number was six to nine, but I adjusted with the Main Event adding four leagues since I did the report. Read the rest of this entry »

I always rank the players by who I’d draft first in a redraft league. It’s getting to the point in the season when an individual team’s focus may need to be category-based (e.g. AVG or SB) so move down the list since several players may be able to fill those needs. Also, if a team is needing a closer, this is the week to do your homework. Several bullpens are up in the air and with other managers taking the day off to drink beer and blow stuff up, it may be time to grab a couple.

In the article, I cover the players using CBS’s (40% or less initial roster rate) and Yahoo’s ADD/DROP rates. Both hosting 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. The players are ordered for redraft leagues by my rest-of-season preference grouped by starters, relievers, and hitters. Read the rest of this entry »

This past Sunday, there were just a few available middle relievers who seemed to be better additions than some starter, so my co-owner Fred Zinkie settled on Ranger Suárez. Right now, Ranger Suárez has a 0.93 ERA, 0.72 WHIP, and 8.1 K/9 and is ranked as the 52nd pitcher according to our auction calculator. While his strikeout rate isn’t the highest, he does average 1.7 IP for each appearance and accumulates 1.5 K in each of those appearances. Also, he has been able to get 3 Wins so far this season (18% Win Rate).

The other option was Giovanny Gallegos who has also been great this season (2.53 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, and 10.3 K/9). He’s averaged throwing 1.2 IP per appearance with 1.4 K per appearance. He’s been able to get 5 Wins during that time (14% Win Rate).

Since the pitcher was supposed to take a starter’s spot, the hope was to get good ratios, some strikeouts, and possibly vulture a Win. After historically finding pitchers with these traits, our two choices were fine with a major flaw. We ignored recent usage.
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