Ottoneu Cold Right Now: August 7, 2025

Cold Right Now (CRN) is a weekly Ottoneu feature focused on players being dropped or who should be dropped in Ottoneu leagues. In this feature, we will break down players into three sections:

1. Roster Cuts: Analysis of players who have been cut in a high percentage of leagues.
2. Recent Injuries: A look at the implications of recent injuries (not all, just some high-profile ones).
3. Cold Performers: Players with a low P/G or P/IP in recent weeks.

This article will typically run once per week and will help fantasy managers keep track of players that need to be given extra attention to improve rosters.

Roster Cuts

Michael Toglia, Add% Change (7 Days): -18.4%

The 26-year-old was optioned to AAA on August 3rd and now only has one minor league option left. He simply cannot cut down on his strikeouts, and it must have been difficult for the Rockies to justify rostering at the big league level, as it did not come with the power results that help ease the pain:

A steady K% above 35% needs to be paired with an above-average slugging percentage to be fantasy relevant. While it’s nice to see two months of above-average walk rates, it wasn’t enough to balance out such a poor batting average to get him on base often enough. That’s frustrating because he has stolen base potential. He stole 10 in 2024. The clock is ticking for the Rockies and Toglia to figure this out.

Tommy Kahnle, Add% Change (7 Days): -13.8%

Nine saves and 13 holds have helped Kahnle to a 5.51 P/IP season, but that mark is too low to continue rostering. The 36-year-old righty has taken a big step back in his ability to get strikeouts, and he’s been homer-prone in 2025.

Kumar Rocker, Add% Change (7 Days): -12.5%

With a mostly healthy pitching rotation and the addition of Merrill Kelly 켈리 at the trade deadline, there’s no space left for Rocker, and the Rangers have optioned him to AAA. In some ways, that’s positive news for the 25-year-old righty as it means the Rangers are not taking a quick route of sending him to the bullpen. Rocker’s 2025 has been a tale of two halves. The first half, between the start of the season and the end of April, was prior to Rocker hitting the IL with a shoulder injury. The second came after his return from the injury and prior to this recent demotion. Let’s start with pitch mix:

Rocker’s best pitch by Stuff+ is his cutter, but early in the season, he practically abandoned the pitch altogether. You can see how the young pitcher is trying to figure things out. There are some dramatic shifts here, from dropping the slider’s usage in stint two, to finding the right balance of fastball usage, Rocker, and the Rangers are clearly looking for the best mix to use.

A little luck came in the second stint, or perhaps less bad luck. Rocker’s BABIP dropped, his K% went up, but he increasingly walked batters, and that is his biggest issue as he heads to AAA, command. Or, perhaps it’s not command and instead his approach. Notice how his elevated walk rate corresponded with an increased chase, or O-Swing%. If being outside of the zone garnered more swing and miss, then maybe that’s something in his game to work with. The trick is finding the zone again when you need it, and finding it with something that can still miss bats. On to Stuff+:

For all the tweaking Rocker did with his pitch mix, he made real improvements in the quality of the pitches regardless of how often he threw them. That huge drop in his cutter’s Stuff is likely due to a larger sample size after he increased its usage. That’s my guess anyway. If you look at his player page, his cutter jumps off the page as his best pitch, but breaking it down into recent performance makes it look a little more like an average offering. Still, it’s his best fastball. Now, it’s time to focus on improving his Location+ while keeping his Stuff gains.

The story here is that Rocker and the Rangers are trying to figure out who he is as an MLB starter. They did not move him to the pen; they sent him back down to AAA to work on things without the pressure of seeking a playoff spot. These are good signs. If you’re dropping Rocker because what he’s showcased so far doesn’t seem to be worth the elevated price you’re rostering him at, then fine. But, if you’ve got him for a salary less than or equal to his $5 average, you might be wise to hold on and be patient. It feels like things could simply click one day for Rocker, and he could become a top-of-the-rotation talent.

Injuries

Kirby Yates, Add% Change (7 days): -25.1%

Lower back pain has sent Yates to the 15-Day IL. His 2025 6.34 P/IP mark has been decent, and he’s been a great addition for sneaking points from holds (13) to your totals through his 31.1 IP. He’s a 38-year-old professional athlete, so you could logically assume that lower back pain is normal and that a professional staff will help get him back on the field before too long. But, then again, the Dodgers seem to have an endless stream of relievers who can take over at any time. This time, it’s likely that newly acquired Brock Stewart or Alexis Díaz are in line for holds.

Nolan Arenado, Add% Change (7 days): -21.7%

The veteran third baseman was placed on the IL with a shoulder injury on August 1st and is already headed to the Cardinals’ spring training complex to rehab. It’s possible Arenado’s time on the IL will be short, but we’ll have to keep an eye on his progress. Regardless, Arenado is not the hitter he once was, and he’s not making quality contact again in 2025. No matter which angle you view it from, Arenado’s offensive production continues to trend downwards:

This is most revealed by his points per game achievements over the last four seasons:

2022: 6.37 –> 2023: 5.10 –> 2024: 4.37 –> 2025: 3.70

He’s only rostered in 60.24% of FanGraphs points leagues at this point.

Cold Performers

Cold performers are marked by measuring low P/G or P/IP in the last 14 days.

Carlos Narváez,  -1.4 P/G

The 26-year-old Red Sox catcher has not had a ball land in play in the month of August. That’s a .000 BABIP, folks. But, his 8.3% BB% and 16.7% K% tell you he’s putting the ball in play. Things will start to fall.

James Wood,  -0.1 P/G

Wood has been on a wRC+ slide through the season:

Mar/Apr: 151 –> May: 178 –> June: 139 –> July: 63 –> Aug: 18

His August BABIP is down to .154, and he’s lowered his K% from July, which was a crazy 40.6% in the month, so maybe the ship will start to right itself soon.

Tyler Anderson, -1.5 P/IP

Anderson has been getting shelled. He’s given up 11 home runs in his last six starts. In his last two starts, in a combined 10.0 IP, he’s given up six, or three in each start.

Kyle Freeland,  -1.5 P/IP

It’s been a little of everything that has accumulated into poor outings for Freeland as of late. In his last two, he’s only lasted 7.2 IP total. He’s given up a home run in each start, and he only struck out four. The Ottoneu point system works in a way that discourages this type of behavior.