Cutting Bait on Choo, LeMahieu, Duda

While everyone is on #hugwatch we’re also in prime trade territory in the fake leagues as trading deadlines loom for most of us and the vast majority of you dedicated readers are not in first place. Some decidedly so. And while we’ve taken great pains to point out players you might want to target as an acquisition for your second half, I’d like to point out a few players who may still have some value that you ought not shed a tear when you see them go.

I wrote about Shin-Soo Choo about a month back because boy howdy did he have a horrific start to the season and then he absolutely went nuts. From May 1st through early June, he was slashing .295/.366/.500 with oodles of doubles, home runs, and RBI. All systems go. And if you rode that pony, be happy you got something out of him because lately it’s been pure famine. Over his last 20 games, Choo is hitting .189/.244/.351, not to mention he’s still not running one bit. His hard hit rate by month, for those of you interested:

On top of this, he’s been just useless versus left handed pitching all season long, slashing .153/.226/.243. In weekly lineup formats, it’s impossible to run him out there any longer — but Choo still might be someone an opposing manager might be interested in as he does have 11 home runs, 38 runs, and 38 RBI, plus that whole “used to be really good” part. He’s not going to be the cornerstone of a blockbuster, but if you can get anything for him in a package, by all means, throw him in.

From March to the end of May, it was the days of Duda as he was slashing .298/.394/.539 with nine home runs and 16 doubles and it was looking like Lucas Duda was ready to step into the upper echelon of fantasy first basemen after coming off a 30 home run season in 2014. But since that time, over his last 33 games and 140 plate appearances, Duda has hit .158/.271/.233 with a single home run. Now, anyone can go through a rough patch, but over the last 30 days, he’s striking out at a 31% clip and his BABIP doesn’t suggest miserable luck sitting at .250, although that is below his career average of .294. It’s beginning to look a lot like Duda is settling in to his career rate of .247/.344/.438 which is nice, but not particularly thrilling. If you can find someone in need of a power bat with a short term memory, Duda might fetch you a decent return.

DJ Lemahieu is hitting a very respectable .303/.357/.390 while stealing 10 bases and managing four home runs, easily on pace for his finest season. He started the season off sizzling hot, batting .335/.385/.441, while maintaining perhaps an unsustainably high .390 BABIP for a guy with a career .337 rate. Since the start of June, he’s looking far more mortal as his BABIP settled into his career rate at .333, slashing .266/.325/.331 with just six doubles, a home run, and nine RBI. But his season numbers are strong enough that you should be able to find a taker if they’re suffering through a recent spate of injuries or ineffectiveness at second base.