Roto Riteup: June 13, 2019

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June 13, 2019

Retaliation!

On the Agenda:
1. Grand Slams and Extra Innings
2. Quick Hits
3. Streaming Pitchers

 

Grand Slams and Extra Innings
Rowdy Tellez went 2-for-5 with a grand slam in the Blue Jays 8-6 victory over the Orioles on Wednesday.

The home run was his 10th of the season and first since May 22nd. His current line sits at .227/.280/.432 in 185 AB, and while things are destined to get better (uptick in Statcast power metrics/xwOBA), there’s just not a lot of mixed league value here.

Ramon Laureano continued his hot streak against the Rays yesterday, going 2-for-5 with a grand slam (five RBI) and two stolen bases.

Laureano has now been on base in 22 of-his-last 24 games overall, compiling a .318/.344/.517 line with four home runs, 13 RBI, 15 runs scored, and five stolen bases during that time. This is someone that was being taken in the top-200 in NFBC leagues this year, and is only owned in 21-25% of leagues on ESPN and Yahoo (100% in NFBC). That is criminal.

Garrett Cooper went 3-for-5 with a grand slam and two runs scored in the Marlins shellacking of the Cardinals on Wednesday.

Coopers slam was his second of his career and sixth home run of the season. He’s posted a serviceable line of .296/.384/.491 with only a 20% K (32% last season) and 11% BB, but unfortunately his heavy-ground ball batted ball profile and mediocre power metrics paired with the offense he plays for makes for a rather uninspiring projection the rest of the way.

Mike Moustakas hit a go ahead two-run home run in the top of the 14th inning against the Astros to help seal a win for the Brewers on Wednesday.

The homer was “Moose’s” 21st of the season, tied for third behind Pete Alonso and fellow teammate Christian Yelich. He’s actually been getting better as the season has gone on and has a legit chance to crack 40 home runs for the first time in his career. He’s currently fourth among third baseman on the ESPN Player Rater and I believe he’ll finish somewhere around there when it’s all said and done.

Byron Buxton hit a game-tying two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning against the Mariners on Wednesday.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough for the win, but the home run was Buxton’s second in three games so it was a pleasant scene nonetheless. For the season, the Twins 25-year old former top prospect is hitting .271/.321/.537 with nine home runs, 76 combined runs and RBI, and 10 steals. The Twins are 29th in stolen base attempts per game under Rocco Baldelli thus far, but Buxton continues to be one of the fastest players in the game according to the Statcast Sprint Leaderboard (third in sprint speed). If he can stay healthy and get the green light just a little bit more, we could see him post 15 HR and 25 SB with a .265 ish average. That would net him a top-75 pick in drafts next season in my estimation.

The game-winning run in that same game came off of this nonsense.

On the plus side, Dee Gordon – the person who scored in the video above – went 2-for-5 with two doubles and two runs scored in the seventh spot in the lineup in his second game back from the IL.

After Josh Bell hit his 19th home run in the top of the ninth to give the Pirates a one run lead (off Luke Jackson of course), Austin Riley tied it back up in the bottom of the inning.

 

Riley would come up in the bottom half of the 11th inning and get hit on his hand. He would stay in the game and get the chance to do this.

Not much to say about Riley or Bell in this instance. They both are probably two of the most coveted players in fantasy right now.

 

Quick Hits:
According to Jon Morosi, the Tigers are now, “open for business.”

In an effort to limit his innings, the Padres sent Chris Paddock down to High-A Lake Elsinore. This won’t be a long-term situation and fantasy owners shouldn’t drop him. Matt Strahm is returning to the mound today and Robert Stock was promoted in a corresponding move.

Giancarlo swatted two home runs for High-A Tampa yesterday – his third in the last two games — and could return sometime next week.

Justin Verlander tallied 15 strikeouts for the first time in his career against the Brewers. All 15 were on swinging strikes. Jordan Yamamoto – one of the key pieces in the Christian Yelich deal – had a strong MLB debut against the Cardinals yesterday (7 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 5 K, 0 ER, 38% CSW). He’s definitely worth picking up to see what happens. Jon Duplantier landed on the injured list due to shoulder inflammation. Joey Votto exited Wednesday’s game against the Indians with back stiffness. He homered before leaving. Willie Calhoun is set to return sometime next week as he begins a rehab assignment with Triple-A Nashville today. Mike Clevinger will be activated from the injured list to start on Monday against the Rangers. Corey Seager will miss several weeks after suffering a severe left hamstring strain late on Tuesday night. Chris Taylor could receive more playing time and will be productive. Ken Giles was placed on the 10-day IL due to right elbow inflammation – Joe Biagini is expected to fill in as closer – but allowed two runs late in the game against the Orioles. Daniel Hudson notched the save for the Blue Jays. Merrill Kelly had his third strong start in a row against the Phillies on Wednesday. Buster Posey was activated from the injured list and went 1-for-4. Adalberto Mondesi and Mallex Smith both tallied steals yesterday and continue to lead the league in that category. Daniel Vogelbach notched his first four-hit game of his career and Shed Long hit his first home run. Lance Lynn posted seven or more strikeouts in a start for the fifth time in a row. He’s eighth in SIERA (3.08) over the last month and is about 37-50% owned in ESPN/Yahoo.

 

Streaming Pitchers (Less than 50% owned)

Pitcher for Today: None

High Risk Options: Michael Pineda vs SEA

Pitcher for Tomorrow: Steven Matz vs STL
Matz has a 1.80 ERA at home against some decent competition and the Cardinals sit 25th in wRC+ over the last week.

High Risk Option: Trevor Richards vs PIT
Richards has allowed 1 ER or less in three of his last four at home and the PIT offense ranks 23rd in RPG on the road (4.2).





 

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.

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