The Lineups Strategy episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guest: Clay Link

Strategy Section

• Setting Lineups
  • General points of what to look for when setting your fantasy lineups
  • Streakiness
  • Sitting struggling starters
  • Looking at matchups
  • • 2-Start Pitchers
  • When to consider category standings while setting your lineups?
  • Protecting pitcher ratios in roto
  • How to use Shohei Ohtani?
  • When to look at the “overall contest” categories vs. league specific ones in the NFBC.

Trade Deadline Deals

• Injury Guru’s Trivia of the Week
• News and fantasy analysis of recent MLB deadline deals
  • Reaction to the Los Angeles Angels becoming “buyers.”
  • Other potential players who may be traded
  • Who to pick up in fantasy in anticipation of trades?

Read the rest of this entry »

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American League

Angels

• Zach Neto has led off for six straight games.

• Mike Moustakas has started in nine of the last 10 games.

• Trey Cabbage has started in three of the last four games, all against a righty.

• Twenty-seven-year-old Michael Stefanic (.349/.445/.441, 2 HR, 6 SB) has started the last two games at second base. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• What a mess with the trades for Mike Moustakas and Eduardo Escobar. Hunter Renfroe got pushed off first base and back to the outfield where he shares two spots with Mickey Moniak and Taylor Ward.

• David Fletcher has started in five of the last six games at shortstop. Since being recalled he’s posting a .900 OPS. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Hunter Renfroe (.736 OPS) no longer has a permanent spot in the lineup with just three starts in the last six games. He’s now in a rotation with Mickey Moniak (.941 OPS) and Taylor Ward (.693 OPS).

• Andrew Velazquez (.250/.429/.313, 0 HR, 4 SB) has started six straight games at shortstop. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Taylor Ward (.853 OPS over the last two weeks) has started and led off for five straight games.

• Luis Rengifo has started in eight of the last 10 games while playing four different positions (2B, SS, 3B, and OF).

• Andrew Velazquez (.203/.337/.392, 3 HR, 7 SB) has taken over shortstop with Zach Neto on the IL (oblique).

Astros

• Jake Meyers (.236/.314/.402, 6 HR, 3 SB in 194 PA) is starting to get most of the centerfield starts (eight of last 10).

Athletics

• Jace Peterson has started in 11 of the last 12 games while hitting .378/.465/.568 with 2 HR and 4 SB over the last two weeks.

• JJ Bleday has only started in two of the last five games.

Blue Jays

• With Brandon Belt on the IL (hamstring), Cavan Biggio (.192/.270/.385, 6 HR, 2 SB) has started in four of the last five games.

Guardians

• Josh Naylor and Will Brennan have started against the last three lefties.

Mariners

• Mike Ford (vs RHP) and AJ Pollock (vs LHP) are in a platoon.

• Dylan Moore (just 11 PA) has only two starts, both against lefties.

• Jose Caballero (.245/.397/.367, 2 HR, 9 SB) has started four straight games at second base. Kolten Wong started a few games at second base but has struggled by hitting a .282 OPS over the past two weeks.

Orioles

• Adam Frazier is no longer leading off but instead it is Austin Hays against lefites and Gunnar Henderson against righties.

• Ryan O’Hearn has started in seven of the last 10 games while hitting .315/.363/.603 with 5 HR in just 80 PA this season.

Rangers

• Steady.

• Since returning from the IL, Ezequiel Duran (.838 OPS, 8 HR, 3 SB) has started in nine of 12 games.

Rays

• Isaac Paredes (.862 OPS over the past two weeks) has started nine straight at third base.

• Taylor Walls (356 OPS over the past two weeks) has started in nine of the last ten games.

Red Sox

• Christian Arroyo (.654 OPS) has started seven of the last eight games at second base.

• Pablo Reyes (.257/.385/.351 in AAA) has started three of the last four games at shortstop.

Royals

• Michael Massey (.387 OPS in June) has started in eight of the last 10 games.

• Dairon Blanco (.347/.444/.451 in AAA) has started three straight since being recalled from the minors.

• Edward Olivares (1.109 OPS in June) has started five straight games.

Tigers

• Consistent.

• Andy Ibáñez (.217/.262/.400) sat for five games with no reason given but then started in four straight games.

Twins

• Edouard Julien (vs RHP) and Kyle Farmer (vs LHP) are in a second base platoon.

• Willi Castro (.473 OPS the last two weeks) has only started one of the last four games.

White Sox

• Clint Frazier (.594 OPS) has started the last two games in the outfield.

• Jake Burger is back at third base with Yoán Moncada on the IL (back).

Yankees

• Jake Bauers (.763 OPS) has led off for the last two games (10 straight starts).

• Giancarlo Stanton has hit second in the last two games.

• Billy McKinney (.960 OPS) has started seven straight.

National League

Braves

• Steady.

Brewers

• Blake Perkins (vs LHP) and Jon Singleton (vs RHP) are in a platoon.

• Since coming off the IL, Luis Urías (.521 OPS) has started in seven of nine games.

Cardinals

• Steady.

Cubs

• Mike Tauchman (.296/.414/.338 with 2 SB in 88 PA) has started five straight while leading off with Nico Hoerner dropping down to second and Dansby Swanson to fifth.

• In his first game off the IL, Cody Bellinger hit sixth.

Diamondbacks

• Josh Rojas has only started three times in the last eight games. Rojas has been splitting time with Emmanuel Rivera who has only three starts in the last five games.

• Geraldo Perdomo (.299/.402/.478, 5 HR, 7 SB) looks to be the full-time shortstop.

Dodgers

• Jason Heyward (vs RHP) and Jonny DeLuca (vs LHP) are in a platoon.

• James Outman (.539 OPS in June) has only started in six of the last 10 games.

Giants

• It’s even tougher than normal to figure out what is going on since several guys have nagging injuries.

• Luis Matos (hitting .350/.415/.561, 10 HR, 15 SB across all levels) hit second in his debut against a lefty.

Marlins

• Garrett Cooper (.783 OPS, 3 HR over the last two weeks) has started four straight while hitting third or fourth in the lineup.

• Jon Berti (.469 OPS, 1 SB over the last two weeks) has started three straight at shortstop.

Mets

• Mark Vientos has started in four of six games (three at first base) and is stealing at-bats from Mark Canha who has started in only five of eight.

Nationals

• No changes.

Padres

• Consistent. The only possible issue is that Ha-Seong Kim 김하성 has sat in two of the last four days.

Phillies

• Kody Clemens (.254/.309/.412, 4 HR) has started at first base in eight of the last 10 games.

Pirates

• What a mess to figure out. It has some Tampa Bay vibes going on where it is easier to point out the four guys in full-time roles: Bryan Reynolds, Carlos Santana, Andrew McCutchen, and Ke’Bryan Hayes.

Reds

• Steadier with TJ Freidl (vs RHP) and Jose Barrero (vs LHP) in a center field platoon. Also through some lineup manipulation, T.J. Hopkins (vs LHP) and Will Benson (vs RHP) are in a platoon. Update: No idea now with Wil Myers coming off the IL and Barrero demoted.

• Stuart Fairchild (.776 OPS, 3 HR, 2 SB over the past month) has started in nine of 10 games in left field.

Rockies

• Jurickson Profar has led off in five of the six games while hitting .260/.333/.380 with 0 HR and 0 SB over the last two weeks.

• Ezequiel Tovar has hit second over the last five games while batting .289/.296/.481 with 2 HR and 1 SB over the last two weeks. It seems like the team is making lineup decisions based on the past two weeks.

• Rookie Coco Montes has started in three of the five games since being called up.

American League

Angels

• The team is back to being healthy (i.e. Walsh and Rendon) and there are just not enough at-bats to go around. At this point, only Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, and Anthony Rendon are getting everyday at-bats.

• Zach Neto (.425 OPS over the last two weeks) has only started in two of the last four games. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Hunter Renfroe has sat in two of the last five games. He might have joined Taylor Ward and Mickey Moniak in an timeshare for two outfield spots.

• Jared Walsh (vs RHP) and Luis Rengifo (vs LHP) are in a platoon.

Astros

• Jake Meyers (.730 OPS), Chas McCormick (.710 OPS), and Corey Julks (.673 OPS) are sharing two outfield spots. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Taylor Ward and Mickey Moniak are splitting time in left field.

• Luis Rengifo, Gio Urshela, Brandon Drury, and Jared Walsh are sharing three infield spots. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Taylor Ward (.649 OPS) has sat in two of the last four games.

Astros

• Chas McCormick (.762 OPS, 2 HR, 4 SB) has started all four games since coming off the IL.

• Jose Altuve is about to come off the IL so Mauricio Dubón (.723 OPS) will need to find a spot in the lineup. Read the rest of this entry »

I have a short amount of time to get this done today (son’s final track meet) so I’ll give each team a quick look and move on. I’m not going to include any stats. I might look into lineups a little more at the meet on Twitter.

American League

Angels

• Taylor Ward has led off for four straight games with Zach Neto batting ninth.

• Gio Urshela has started five straight.

Astros

• It’s possible Jake Meyers (vs RHP) and Chas McCormick (vs LHP) are in a centerfield platoon.

• David Hensley is filling in for Mauricio Dubón at second base.

Athletics

• JJ Bleday sat against both lefties on the schedule with Brent Rooker moving from DH to the outfield.

• Kevin Smith and Jace Peterson are in a third-base platoon.

• Ryan Noda has started at first base in six of the last seven games.

Blue Jays

• Steady. Some movement since Springer is sick.

Guardians

• Josh Naylor has sat against the last two lefties with David Fry playing first base instead.

• Will Brennan (vs RHP) and Gabriel Arias (vs LHP) are in a platoon.

Mariners

• J.P. Crawford led off on Wednesday with Julio Rodríguez moving down in the lineup.

• The speedster, Jose Caballero, has started in five of the last nine games.

Orioles

• Adam Frazier has started five straight at second base.

Rangers

• Steady but with Corey Seager about to come off the IL, it will get a mix-up in the next few days.

Rays

• The three regulars and everyone else is in a two-thirds role.

Red Sox

• Steady.

• In the 13 games since Enmanuel Valdez got recalled, he’s only sat twice, both times against a lefty (did start against two lefties).

Royals

• The lineup looks like someone from the Rays are in charge … oh wait.

• Maikel Garcia has started in nine of ten games since being recalled.

• Nick Pratto has started in 11 of 13 games since being recalled.

Tigers

• Matt Vierling is now leading off against lefties.

• Since being recalled, Andy Ibáñez has started in 10 of 11 games.

Twins

• Since being recalled from AAA, Alex Kirilloff has started four straight while hitting fourth or fifth.

• Kyle Farmer has started two straight at third base with the demotion of Jose Miranda.

• Michael A. Taylor and Nick Gordon are splitting time in center field.

White Sox

• Lenyn Sosa and Elvis Andrus are splitting time at second base.

• Seby Zavala has started at catcher in five of the last eight games.

Yankees

• Harrison Bader has started in eight of the last nine games.

• Two spots (OF/DH) are a revolving door of quad-A talent.

National League

Braves

• With Michael Harris II struggling at the plate, the other outfielders are getting a two-thirds role.

• Travis d’Arnaud is back so Marcell Ozuna will lose time at DH.

Brewers

• Tyrone Taylor has started in eight of nine games since coming off the IL.

• Owen Miller (vs LHP) and Brice Turang (vs RHP) are in a second base platoon.

Cardinals

• Dylan Carlson has started 12 straight in center field.

• Paul DeJong, Tommy Edman, and Nolan Gorman are splitting time at the two middle infield spots.

• And as everyone has heard by now, Willson Conteras has played six straight games at DH.

Cubs

• Matt Mervis (vs RHP) and Trey Mancini (vs LHP) are in a first-base platoon.

• Christopher Morel’s role and usage aren’t clear at this point.

Diamondbacks

• Since being promoted, Dominic Fletcher has started in eight of the nine games.

• Pavin Smith, Alek Thomas, and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. are splitting time with one outfield spot and the DH.

• Emmanuel Rivera (.906 OPS) only starts against lefties.

Dodgers

• Chris Taylor is acting like a super sub and has started in seven of the last 10 games.

• Trayce Thompson (vs LHP) and Jason Heyward (vs RHP) are in a platoon.

Giants

• Michael Conforto is one of the few full-time bats and has started in 17 of the last 18 games.

• Four different guys (Johnson, Slater, Wisely, and Stevenson) have started in center field over the last four games.

• Joey Bart has started at catcher in seven of the last 10 games. Blake Sabol with only five starts (two in left field) during those same ten games.

Marlins

• Joey Wendle has started three straight at shortstop since coming off the IL.

• Jean Segura sat in the last two games.

• Yuli Gurriel has started in eight of the last 10 games.

Mets

• Tommy Pham and Daniel Vogelbach are still in a platoon.

Nationals

• Lane Thomas has led off for five straight games.

• Stone Garrett has started in five of the last seven games.

• Ildemaro Vargas (vs LHP) and CJ Abrams (vs RHP) may be in a shortstop platoon.

Padres

• Steady

• Keep an eye on the playing time for Rougned Odor and Ha-Seong Kim 김하성 because Odor has started two straight at second base.

Phillies

• Steady. The exact same lineup for three straight days.

Pirates

• The two middle infield spots are shared by several people (Owings, Marcano, Bae, and Castro).

• One outfield spot is being shared by three guys (Andujar, Joe, and Palacios).

Reds

• Steady.

• Wil Myers took over the right field job from Henry Ramos라모스.

Rockies

• Charlie Blackmon has sat against the last two lefty starters.

• Ezequiel Tovar hit second for the first time (.273/.304/.546 over the last two weeks).