Roto Riteup: August 1, 2019

The running theme for this week is anger.

Hey, we were watching that! pic.twitter.com/l4q7dO3vYG

— Cut4 (@Cut4) July 31, 2019

On the Agenda:
1. Trades!
2. Streaming Pitchers

 

Trades!

Zack Greinke is headed to the Astros in exchange for Seth Beer, Corbin Martin, J.B. Bukauskas, and Josh Rojas. From a baseball perspective, this is an amazing deal for the contending Astros, who were primed for another deep postseason run before the move, and are in an even better position now. Greinke owns a 2.90 ERA, 3.89 SIERA (prior to yesterday’s start), 0.95 WHIP, and 8.3 K/9 over 23 GS this season, and has posted upper-tier skills in five of-the-last six seasons. There’s not much to glean from a fantasy perspective here. There’s a slight shift in ballparks, as Minute Maid has been favorable to RHB over the last three seasons – Chase Field has been a strong pitchers park – but overall, it’s not something actionable in terms of value. The haul of prospects the Diamondbacks received is rather sizeable. Bukauskas, Martin (TJS), and Beer were all firmly in the top-ten among Houston prospects for fantasy (all top-20 in FG prospects list). Beer has nice power upside; Martin and Bukauskas both have high-upside stuff and are interesting dynasty/keeper league plays. Rojas wasn’t listed in many top-30 lists, but he’s posted 20 HR and 32 SB with a .315 ish BA between Double and Triple-A. He’s demonstrated some nice plate skills throughout his minor league career, and could get some playing time with Arizona this season. He’s worth keeping an eye on.

The Astros also added Aaron Sanchez, Cal Stevenson, and Joe Biagini from the Blue Jays for the previously and possibly still interesting, Derek Fisher. Sanchez still possesses a nice curveball, and has had some success in the past. He’ll likely be used in a relief role with the club this season, but there’s definitely an avenue for him to be a part of the Houston rotation come 2020. I think his stock rises quite a bit in keeper leagues due to this move – especially if he can get those blister issues in order. Biagini is fairly irrelevant for fantasy purposes, but Fisher has some pop and speed, he just needs to get the plate skills under control. Stevenson was a 10th round pick last season and was ranked 33rd on the Fangraphs prospect list for the Blue Jays prior to the start of the season. He has 5 HR and 11 SB in 390 PA in High-A with a 1.079 OPS and 137 wRC+. Sean Reid-Foley should be monitored as well. He wasn’t great at Triple-A this season, but he’ll likely get some run in the rotation the rest of the way.

The Braves acquired Shane Green in exchange for Tristan Beck and Dan Winkler. Greene and Joe Jimenez both get a bump in this scenario. Greene has only been slightly better this season from a skills perspective, but currently has a 1.18 ERA versus a 5.12 mark in ’18. He’ll have more opportunities for saves in Atlanta however, so it’s overall a bump for fantasy purposes. Beck is a nice flier for the Tigers to take as he’s been highly regarded in the past, and still possesses some high-velocity with flashes of plus secondary offerings. Winkler is a non-factor.

The Braves added Mark Melancon to their bullpen as well – snagging him for for Joey Wentz and Travis Demeritte. Melancon has loads of experience, and should provide some stability for Atlanta has they push for the playoffs. He could theoretically be a candidate for saves, but Greene should be considered the front-runner for that right now. Wentz was ranked 11th on our list heading into the season, but has had some mediocre results at Double-A. He has some nice secondary offerings, and his future ballpark venue is amazing for pitchers, so his stock rises a tick. Demeritte has a 137 wRC+ at Triple-A this season, but his stolen base totals have dropped off in recent years and despite his strong BB%, he may never be able to make enough contact to put some of those physical tools to use. With that said he could definitely get some MLB time this year.

Speaking of the Giants, they added Scooter Gennett and cash from the Reds for a player to be named later. Gennett has yet to turn things on this season after getting a late start, but maybe he’ll find his way with a change of scenery.

The Cubs added Nick Castellanos before he heads to free agency, as they sent Detroit Paul Richan and Alex Lange. The addition definitely means trouble for Ian Happ’s playing time, but we’ll have to see how everything plays out. Victor Reyes gets a bump on the Detroit side. We could see a slight boost in his value as well, as Wrigley offers a slight bump to RHB HR the last three years. Both Lange and Richan were top-20 prospects on some lists and were first and second round picks. They’re much needed arms for Detroit, and have some interesting stuff too.

Tanner Roark found out he was being traded while he was ordering some Arby’s. Well, I suppose there’s worse ways to find out your services are being sent elsewhere. He heads to Oakland, a much better ballpark situation, where he gets a slight upgrade In my opinion. The Reds received Jameson Hannah in return. He’s ranked 10th on the Prospects Live list for the Athletics; citing his speed as his best possible tool for fantasy. His raw power hasn’t amounted to much in the minors so far, which is kind of the overwhelming theme with him. Interesting possible buy low guy – especially with a potential park change – but we’ll need to see some more tangible progress in fantasy categories soon.

Corey Dickerson is heading into a much better fantasy situation in his move to Philadelphia. Of all the moves yesterday, this one might actually be the biggest swing in fantasy value right now.

The Diamondbacks and Marlins exchanged some top-level talent, as Jazz Chisholm is headed to Miami for Zac Gallen. Gallen has been solid in his brief major league stint in 2019. I’m not the high guy on him, but I think he’s a fine number three for fantasy teams moving forward, with some possible downside; mostly due to command. Chisholm has 18 HR and 13 SB in 364 PA at Double-A this year, but his BA has cratered to .204. Aggressive hitter, with limited stolen base upside due to past lower-body injuries, but still an interesting fantasy commodity who takes a hit going to one of the worst parks for hitters.

Keeping with the Marlins, they made another significant move, adding top prospect Jesus Sanchez and reliever Ryne Stanek from the Rays in exchange for Trevor Richards and Nick Anderson. The Rays love sliders, and Richards has a good one. He could be relegated to a relief role initially, but I think he gets a sizeable bump in value due to the situation and the Rays pitching staff. Anderson also gets a bump in his value as he could be the teams closer moving forward, and has elite-level strikeout talent (18% Swing-Str%, over 14.0 K/9). Sanchez was firmly in the Rays top-10 prospect list prior to the start of the season, but has struggled at Triple-A in 18 games (.206 BA, 52 wRC+) after posting 8 HR and 5 SB with a .275 BA and 116 wRC+ in 316 PA at Double-A Montgomery. The Rays are a savvy organization, so it’s not a great sign that they were willing to give up on one of their most coveted prospects, but Miami could theoretically call him up in September and give him a shot to play next season, so it’s kind of a linear move, with a shade more risk due to the park. Stanek has elite velocity, but struggles with command. He likely won’t be used as an opener anymore, but he could be in the mix in the late innings. He probably gets a bump in value.

The Rays needed some RHB power, and they got it in their deal for Jesus Aguilar. He continues to hit the ball incredibly hard, and has started to turn things on the last two months despite not having consistent playing time. It’s unclear if this is actually a good move for fantasy – it’s probably a situation where he gets maybe one or two more starts a week due to the DH in the AL – but the ballpark difference is profound. The Brewers snagged Jake Faria in return here. He’s been better in a relief role, and will likely stay in that capacity with Milwaukee.

Other notable players that were dealt that could have some fantasy implications this year or next are:
Mauricio Dubon: traded to Giants

Hunter Strickland/Roenis Elias: traded to Nationals

Carl Edwards: traded to Padres

Max Stassi: traded to Angels

Jedd Gyorko: traded to Dodgers

Martin Maldonado: traded to Astros

Tony Kemp: traded to Cubs

 

Nate Jones: traded to Rangers

 

Mike Leake: traded to Diamondbacks

Sam Dyson: traded to Twins

 

Streaming Pitchers (Less than 50% owned)
Pitcher for Today: Asher Wojciechowski vs TOR
Wojciechowski is hard to spell, but is pitching really well. That was a poem.

High Risk Options: Anthony Desclafani at ATL

 

Pitcher for Tomorrow: Steven Matz at PIT
The Pirates are dead last in wRC+ against LHP this season and Matz just threw a complete game shut-out against them in his last outing.

High risk Options: Kevin Gausman vs CIN, Martin Perez vs KC