Boxscore Bits: April 11th, 2022

A few thoughts on the games from Sunday, April 10th.

FOR STARTERS

• There were only 5 SP wins: Jefferies, Urquidy, Quantrill, Greene, and Ober.
• Kluber walked four and his velo was down to a career-low, but Baltimore couldn’t take advantage and the 14% SwStr rate was still good.
• I would’ve liked Eflin to at least go 5 against OAK, but a scoreless appearance works and he gets at MIA next, hang onto him.
• Crismatt filled in admirably for a scratched Blake Snell (left adductor – same injury that he had at the end of ’21), but the bigger news is that this could open the door for MacKenzie Gore if Snell heads to the IL.
• Don’t overrate the Jefferies start as the batted balls were finding gloves, but the stuff wasn’t particularly impressive.
• Carrasco was great with a solo shot being the only damage against him. He is an all-formats option so check your wire in shallower leagues (Y! 39%, ESPN 28%).
• Kopech survived, but he was inconsistent inning-to-inning and his velo was down 2 mph from last year (some of that is SP to RP, but it’s still a big dip). Nothing actionable, but worth monitoring.
• Greene was the standout of the day, pumping 100 mph consistently (20 pitches at 100+) as a couple 5th-inning homers were the only blemishes on his line. The Reds let him throw 92 pitches, too. He is facing a trip to the Dodgers this weekend, though, so I understand if you slot him on the reserve list after picking him up (Y! 52%, ESPN 44%).
• Milwaukee’s trio of aces struggled mightily in Wrigley (9.21 ERA in 12.7 IP), but Peralta settled nicely after allowing all 3 of his runs in the first. He allowed just 3 base runners (1 H, 2 BB) in his final 3 IP with 5 Ks.
• Ober’s offense gave him cover with a 6-0 lead after 2 innings so his 4-run third inning powered by a 3-R HR from Mitch Haniger didn’t hurt as much. Homers remain his biggest issue, but he’s good enough to still be rosterable across many formats even with the longball problem.
• Houck wasn’t great in his debut, but the velo was up 1 mph from last year and only 1 of the 6 H went for extra bases. I’d immediately pick him up if anyone cuts him and I’m starting him against MIN.
• Skubal is also a HR machine but kept the ball in the park during his season debut. Unfortunately, it didn’t net strong results with 7 H leading to 5 R (4 ER).
• Ryu was rough as he couldn’t seem to command anything consistently and blew a 6-1 lead to TEX. They did score a league-high 23 runs in the opening weekend, though, so I wouldn’t necessarily panic about this start based on opponent. I’m hanging onto him for a home start v. OAK this weekend.
• Coors aside, Urias saw his velo down 2+ mph and his secondary stuff did not pick up the slack at all. This is carryover from Spring Training, though I don’t view it as actionable. I’m not sitting the lefty against CIN this weekend, but I’m keeping a close eye on him for sure.
• Have to wonder if the toe blister that impacted I.Anderson at the end of spring lingered into his first start and caused issues with his mechanics as he walked 5. With most of the damage being self-inflicted, I’m not worried about this outing. I’m keeping him in for a trip to SD this weekend.
• Matz was dominating through 2 IP but then got singled to death before a Michael Chavis grand slam turned it into a disaster outing in the third inning. Despite the 5-run third, they brought him back out for the fourth, but he opened BB-1B-1B before being lifted. It stinks for your SP to get worked over by a bottom tier team, but if this lands Matz on waiver wires, I’m going to pick him up and even start him at MIL this weekend. We learned of a blister after the start and that might’ve played a role at some point during the outing.

HIT THE KWAN

• Steven Kwan collected 5 H on Sunday and reached based six times with a HBP in his other PA. He is 8-for-10 with 3 BB and that HBP so far this year. He was a huge pickup last night across the NFBC but check your wire to see if he’s still out there. He isn’t an automatic in 10-teamers with just 3 OF, but the Michael Brantley comps are clear and if you need an AVG boost with a little pop, he’s your guy.

COMBO MEALS

Shoutout to ESPN’s Fantasy Focus podcast for coming up with the “combo meal” term when guys get a HR and SB in the same game. Here are the weekend (Fri-Sun) combo meals… or the one as it were:

• Francisco Lindor – Sunday

MULTI-HR/MULTI-SB

Guys with 2+ HR or SB over the weekend (Fri-Sun):

• Byron Buxton, MIN – 3 HR (2 on Sunday)
• Giancarlo Stanton, NYY – 2 HR
• Anthony Rizzo, NYY – 2 HR
• Danny Jansen, TOR – 2 HR
• Jean Segura, PHI – 2 HR
• Mitch Haniger, SEA – 2 HR
• Jurickson Profar, SDP – 2 HR
• Kyle Tucker, HOU – 2 HR
• Brad Miller, TEX – 2 HR
• Andrew Vaughn, CWS – 2 HR
• Travis Jankowski, NYM – 2 SB
• Luis Robert, CWS – 2 SB

Notes:

• The Jays did trade Reese McGuire to clear some of their catcher surplus out. Jansen is the primary guy and did have a strong September (1.072 OPS, 5 HR). He is a must-roster in 2-catcher formats and could even be worthwhile in 1-C lgs with 15+ teams. He has some pop and is part of a great lineup.
• Vaughn can be an all-formats gem if he has the playing time, but I don’t see that being the case just yet.
• Miller will be consistently be atop the Rangers lineup v. righties which has value, though is likely limited to deeper formats or ones where you can make daily moves and maximize his playing time.

NOTABLE CALLUPS

• Heliot Ramos, OF | SF – Ramos was 5th on SF’s list and 101 overall. He posted a double-double (14 HR/15 SB) across AA/AAA last year, though he did have a 27% K rate and just .740 OPS in 495 PA. He is only a deep league consideration at this point, likely playing primarily against lefties, but keep tabs on him as he could play himself into all-formats relevance if he cuts the Ks and finds himself in the lineup more often.
• Tommy Romero, P | TB – TomRom was placed on the taxi squad for now and is expected to be added to the official roster on Tuesday. He was brilliant in a two-level effort last year with a 33% K and 7% BB rate in 110.3 IP at AA/AAA. He was 32nd on TB’s list and is expected to be more of a multi-IP reliever, but that could be a Win-friendly fantasy role a la Ryan Yarbrough in 2018. I’d keep him on my Watchlist for now, but stay tuned to see how the Rays utilize him.
• Roansy Contreras, P | PIT – Contreras is an exciting live arm (3rd on PIT list; 42nd overall), though it’s not clear if he will be placed into the rotation just yet. I would scoop him in NL-Only formats, but I’m not sure he’s a pickup yet in any mixers that have fewer than 16 teams until he is inserted into the rotation.

WTWT

Here is What To Watch Today for Monday, April 11th:

• Aaron Civale & Carlos Hernández are a couple of mid-tier starters who could be pivotal this year with some development. I still think Civale has some strikeout upside with his secondary arsenal, while Hernández is a power arm who needs to refine his command and control to be fantasy viable.
• How many pitches will the Rays give Luis Patiño?
• I’m eager to see Ranger Suárez’s debut after his excellent 2021 season. The Mets will be a solid matchup for the 26-year-old lefty.
• Alek Manoah and Jameson Taillon will be a fun matchup in Yankee Stadium.
• I’ll be keyed in on Michael Lorenzen’s SP debut against Miami while also seeing if Elieser Hernandez can keep the ball in the park.
• Nick Martinez returns from Japan and immediately dives into the deep end with a start at the Giants. His counterpart, Alex Wood, will be looking to build on his excellent 2021.

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A different setup from the April 8th iteration. Which do you prefer? I’m still very open to feedback as we figure out the right setup.