Roto Riteup: April 27, 2018

by
April 27, 2018

I’m the King of the World!!!!

On the Agenda:
1. Acuna’ – Moncada
2. Return of Kang
3. Various News and Notes
4. Streaming Pitchers

 

Acuna’ – Moncada
I’ll be honest, I really just wanted to get in on the “Acuna’” pun variations that have been swirling around the inter-webs, but to my credit, I’ve had this exact team name for multiple years now in one dynasty format. Moving away from that, Braves prospect phenom Ronald Acuna’ swatted his first home run of his career on Thursday against the Reds, a solo-shot off of Homer Bailey in the second inning.


Acuna was taken around pick 100 in NFBC drafts, and while he may not have been promoted quite as fast as fantasy owners would’ve hoped, he’s arrived now and looks every bit as exciting as advertised. He went 20/40 between three levels in the minors last year and has the opportunity to go 15/25 in his first exposure to the big leagues in 2018. There will certainly be an adjustment period, but I’d expect him to be at least a second round pick heading into 2019 drafts.

The uber-talented Yoan Moncada also homered on Thursday – his second lead-off homerun in as many days.


The bomb gives him six on the year with four stolen bases, 15 runs, and 12 RBI to go along with an over 13% BB%. Strikeouts will remain an issue (40 K in 96 PA), hindering his possible BA upside – but a player who could flirt with 30/30 doesn’t grow on trees. We’ll have to see how both of these players pan out this year, but these are two of the premier prospects many dynasty players have been waiting for – it’s an exciting time.

 

Return of Kang
According to Rob Biertempfel of the Athletic, Jung-Ho Kang will rejoin the Pirates after obtaining a work visa in the United States.


Kang was obviously not allowed in the United States last year after receiving his third DUI in December of 2016. There’s no telling what type of shape he’s in or how long it’ll take him to get ready for MLB exposure. He just turned 31 earlier this month, and hasn’t played for the Pirates since October 2, 2016. In that year he finished with a .255/.354/.513 line with 21 HR, 45 R, 62 RBI, and 3 SB over 370 PA. He’s worth an add in deeper mixed formats at the moment in the case he’s back with the club relatively soon.

 

Various News and Notes
Eugenio Suarez returned to the Reds lineup on Thursday, hitting fifth and starting at third base – going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. He beat the initial timetable by a mile and should be activated in all formats. Phillip Ervin was also optioned to Triple-A for the Reds.

Joe Musgrove threw about 35-pitches in a simulated game on Wednesday. Things went well and he was able to mix in all of his pitches. He should gain clearance to begin a minor league rehab assignment soon, with a return date sometime in mid-May. Musgrove suffered a shoulder strain prior to the season starting but is still a worthy mixed-league stash if you have the room.

Andrew Miller was placed on the 10-day disabled list due to a left hamstring strain. The Indians remain steadfast in their opinion that he’ll return in approximately the minimum amount of time.

Ryon Healy was activated from the disabled list on Thursday, with Dan Vogelbach being sent down to Triple-A Tacoma resulting in the corresponding move. This isn’t shocking, as we’ve heard murmurs that this would happen over the last couple of days. Healy was shelved for about two weeks due to an ankle sprain but was off to a horrid start before that. He did have a solid rehab assignment though, going 5-for-15 (.333) with a home run and six RBI with 3 BB and 0 K.

According to Rich Dubroff, Zach Britton had another successful side session on Thursday. Brad Brach and Darren O’Day continue to own the ninth inning, but if Britton continues to progress we could see him in about a month. He’s worthy of a stash in most formats.

Hunter Pence will begin his rehab assignment with Triple-A Sacramento today. He was placed on the disabled list last Friday with a thumb sprain but should only need a few at-bats before returning to the big league club. Pence was essentially an NL-Only asset prior to going down.

Kendall Graveman and Chris Bassitt were both optioned to Triple-A Nashville on Thursday. Graveman started Opening Day for the Athletics and has posted an 8.89 ERA with a 1.84 WHIP over 6 GS thus far (one QS). He should return once he sorts things out in the minor leagues.

In Orioles news, Jonathan Schoop and Mark Trumbo are both nearing returns, with Trumbo possibly being activated as soon as Tuesday next week. Trumbo has been dealing with a quad injury that has delayed his start to the season. Schoop suffered an oblique injury and was placed on the disabled list almost two weeks ago. Trumbo obviously has more question marks in terms of fantasy value. Based on his results in 2017, we should expect about 20 home runs with decent counting stats, making him a borderline deeper-mixed league play.

According to Red Sox manager Alex Cora, Xander Bogaerts is expected to be activated from the disabled list today against the Rays. He’s making it back from a fractured ankle in less than three weeks and only played in one rehab game. He was off to an amazing start before going down and should be activated in all formats.

 

Streaming Pitchers
A Pitcher for Today: Mike Minor (Justin’s recommendation yesterday)

A Pitcher for Today: Hyun-Jin Ryu @ SF
1.17 ERA and 0.98 WHIP against the Giants over 3 GS last year, amazing pitchers-park.

A Pitcher for Tomorrow: Jack Flaherty @ PIT
Less than 20% owned in ESPN leagues. Allowed 1 ER on 6 H with 1 BB and 9 K in Milwaukee, I like his chances against PIT despite their improvements offensively this season.





 

Fantasy Baseball and Tampa Bay Rays enthusiast. Restaurant manager by day, fantasy analyst by night. Contributor to Rotographs, Baseball HQ, Fantasy Pros, and co-owner of Friends with Fantasy Benefits. Follow me @MikeWernerFWFB.

3 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
JEdwardMember since 2016
6 years ago

I wish that GIF followed that guy. The slightly longer video shows that he just keeps on going, around the corner, and on down the concourse.

2