FAAB Frenzy and Waivers Wild: Week 20

Every Monday, this column will break down the most popular waiver wire and free agent acquisitions of the weekend. I dig into the top adds on the ever-popular Fantrax and in the NFBC Online Championship (OC), a national mid-stakes contest with 240 total leagues of 12 and a six-figure grand prize. Reviewing player adds between the two should provide us with a well-rounded perspective and barometer of the fantasy baseball marketplace.

Week 19 Overview

Hitters

What an absolutely monster week for the Detroit Tigers offense. They scored 60 runs in six games, while no other offense produced more than 39. It was the second time this season that an offense scored 60 or more runs in a fantasy week. The Brewers scored 61 in in the first week of June, but played seven games. Current AL Rookie of the Year favorite Kevin McGonigle led all hitters with nine runs, and hit two home runs in Sacramento against the A’s. Rookie backup catcher and DH Eduardo Valencia hit two homers and drove in four runs against the Orioles on Tuesday and drove in another four in Sunday’s contest. Valencia may have flown under the FAAB radar if not for Sunday’s results. Ceddanne Rafaela was the top offensive producer of Week 19. He led all hitters in runs (seven), homers (five) and runs batted in (11). Ironically, the bulk of his production occurred in the weekend series sweep of the Dodgers (7-for-14, 6 R, 4 HR, 5 RBI), not in their four-game set in Sutter Health Park. The Red Sox have a 21-3 record since July 3, traded for Adley Rutschman on Monday, and hope to have Roman Anthony and Trevor Story back sometime in September or earlier.

Pitchers

Of the 32 starting pitchers who started two games last week, only Sandy Alcantara and Gerrit Cole earned wins in both of their starts. Griffin Canning earned two wins as well despite not starting either contest (COL, SF) as planned. Canning pitched five total innings in bulk relief, behind opener Kyle Hart. Alcantara pitched two quality starts, posting a 10:3 K:BB without allowing a run in 13 innings of work. Cole allowed just one run in his two starts in Chicago against the White Sox and Cubs, striking out 12 in 11.2 innings. Gavin Williams led all pitchers with 22 strikeouts in Week 19. Williams has double-digit punchouts in five straight starts and overtook Dylan Cease for the AL lead, 178 to 174. My pitcher predictions last week was a mixed bag. Griffin Jax came through (10.2 IP – 18 K – 1.69 ERA – 1.13 WHIP) despite earning losses in both starts, Max Scherzer also pitched well (8.2 – 9 – 2.08 – 1.39) while Landen Roupp did not (8.1 – 7 – 9.72 – 2.04). Tampa Bay Rays closer Bryan Baker earned another three saves last week and now leads the majors with 31.

Most Added Players: NFBC Main Event, NFBC OC, and Fantrax

The last few free agent bidding weeks have been quiet. This weekend, there was a reason for everyone to come out of the woodwork. His name is Max Clark. The 21-year-old Detroit Tigers outfielder, who was the third overall pick of the 2023 draft, made quite the splash in his first series in the Majors. Clark went 6-for-12 with four runs, a homer, three runs batted in, and three walks. It was the perfect storm with a series against the Athletics in the Sacramento heat as lulling managers with FAAB dollars burning holes in their pockets needed a hero to spend on. Clark’s average winning bid in the NFBC Main Event ($93) and the Online Championship ($89) were the highest we’ve seen in over a month. He was the most added player around the fantasy world, including Fantrax (16%) and in Yahoo leagues, where he was added by a nearly 20,000 teams. Will he be a fantasy savior over these final eight weeks? Only time will tell. Not to be a hater, but the Tigers matchups the next couple of weeks won’t be all puppy dogs and ice cream. Quite the opposite, in fact, as they continue on the road this week in two of the toughest hitter parks, T-Mobile (Seattle) and Oracle (San Francisco). After that, it’s back to their own pitcher park for a six-game homestand against division rivals, the Guardians and White Sox. Opposing matchups and ballpark environments aren’t the be-all, end-all, but they matter and could cool the young hotshot.

Quinn Mathews and Hayden Wesneski were added to the NFBC free agent pool the day after making their season debuts. Wesneski’s post-TJS outing was against the Angels on Wednesday, his first start since May 5 of last year. He threw 79 pitches over 5.2 innings, allowing three runs, walking two, and punching out four. St. Louis Cardinals former top pitching prospect Mathews threw 97 pitches over five innings in his MLB debut, with similar results: 2 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, on the road against the Blue Jays. Both pitchers currently have rotation spots for their respective clubs. Two-start weeks will be a problem for Mathews if the Cardinals remain on their current six-man rotation. This week’s start (vs. COL, at home) looks nice on paper, but the next two do not — at Cubs in Week 21 and at Reds in Week 22. Wesneski has a better setup over the next three weeks: vs. TOR (Week 20), at SF, vs. SEA (Week 21), and vs. ATH (Week 22). Those are three of the four lowest-scoring offenses over the last 30 days, and the Giants. I prefer Wesneski to Mathews over the next month.

Cristian Javier and Andrew Painter didn’t fly under the radar as they were picked up in almost every league, but their average winning bids were reasonable. The interest in Javier was bolstered by his gem in Anaheim last Monday (5 IP – 3 H – 0 ER – 0 BB – 7 K) and the fact that he draws two starts this week, Monday at home against the Blue Jays and Sunday in San Diego. Since returning from his shoulder strain injury early last month, Javier has 17 strikeouts in 12 innings. I landed Javier in one of my Main Events and will start him, but I’m not doing it with much confidence. At the time Painter was optioned to Triple-A (June 17), he was one of only two starters with an ERA over 7.00, along with Rockies’ Michael Lorenzen. Painter made five starts in the minors, pitching four gems and getting torched for seven runs in the other. He pitched well in his return to the rotation last week in Baltimore (6 IP – 3 H – 2 ER – 3 BB – 6 K) and lines up for a home start against the dangerous Nationals this Wednesday. Unless the Phillies acquire another starter before the deadline, Painter should stick in the rotation and potentially draw two reasonable road starts (at STL, at MIN) in Week 21.

Erik Miller (Giants), Brandyn Garcia (Diamondbacks) and Steven Cruz (Royals) were the top acquisitions among relief pitchers. The left-handed Miller unofficially took over the closer role last week, earning two saves while former closer Caleb Kilian appeared in earlier innings. Kilian was dealt to the Phillies on Monday. Garcia earned the only two saves for the Diamondbacks last week, as veteran Paul Sewald was removed from closer duties to focus on lower-leverage work. Garcia is currently the only southpaw in their bullpen and isn’t a lock to earn the bulk of save chances over these final two months. Garcia hasn’t allowed a home run in 30 innings and sports a strong ERA (2.10) and excellent K%-BB% (25.7). Juan Morillo (20.7 K%-BB%, 2.62 ERA) and veteran Kevin Ginkel (15.9, 3.07) have been good as well. Morillo has the best swinging-strike rate of the trio, 14.1 percent. Steven Cruz was a strong speculative add since he’s been pitching well and moving up the leverage ladder, while veteran Alex Lange has been pitching poorly (11 ER in his last 7.1 innings/seven appearances). Update: Say goodbye to Erik Miller the Closer. He was traded to the Phillies on Monday. Thankfully, I was able to pull him out of my lineups before they locked.

Yankees rookie slugger Spencer Jones has been making the most of his opportunity with outfielders Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger, and Giancarlo Stanton sidelined. Jones returned for his third cup of coffee on July 22 and has been relatively productive: a 164 wRC+ with three homers, six runs batted in and two stolen bases in eight games (27 plate appearances). Most importantly, Jones has cracked the starting lineup in three of their last five games against left-handed starters. He may lose work against lefties at some point this month, but should stick around against righties. Jones has huge power upside, but the $19 AWB in 12-teamers at this point in the season feels like a slight overpay. If Jones cools off this week, we’ll see him back in the free agent pool in dozens of OC leagues next week. Update: The Yankees traded for right-handed-hitting outfielder, Heliot Ramos and demoted Jasson Domínguez. Spencer Jones’s job is safe. 

Drop of the Week

I love weekly leagues, but there is one big downside — not being able to get a pitcher out of your lineup. I mentally dropped Paul Sewald from my Main Event squad, but hadn’t physically dropped him. I’m sure you can only imagine the feeling of Sewald’s five earned run parting gift on Saturday, erasing much-needed ratio category gains provided to me by Cristopher Sánchez and Shane Baz earlier that day. I muttered “good riddance” to myself as I clicked the ‘drop’ button. It was a not-so-subtle reminder to avoid playing Closer Chicken in draft rooms or you might end up with a Sewald-Beeter-Lange Special.