Roto Riteup: May 15, 2018

The Roto Riteup approves of this troll job by Vladimir Guerrero Jr.:

On the Agenda:

1. Closer Chaos

2. Playing with the Banda

3. I’ll Take Reyes for $500, Alex

4. Various News and Notes

5. Streaming Pitchers

 

Closer Chaos

Kenyan Middleton was officially placed on the 10-Day DL, opening up a closing role for the Angels. Manager Mike Scioscia would not name a replacement however, leaving an apparent closer by committee situation. Blake Parker, Justin Anderson, Cam Bedrosian, and Jim Johnson all appear to be in line for saves moving forward, but Anderson received the opportunity first on Monday. At this point, fantasy owners should look elsewhere unless they are in the deepest of formats as this looks like more of a headache than anything else right now.

 

Playing with the Banda

According to Marc Topkin Anthony Banda is expected to make his 2018 MLB debut for the Rays on Tuesday. Banda was the key part of the Steven Souza trade in the offseason and has been pretty good in AAA so far this year. He is worth a pickup as the Rays don’t have much of anything standing in his way in their rotation right now.

 

I’ll Take Reyes for $500, Alex

Alex Reyes threw a minor league rehab assignment on Monday. Reyes threw five innings and struck out 12 while only allowing one hit. He threw 51 of his 80 pitches for strikes in the outing and was reportedly sitting 95-99 while touching 101 at times. This is pretty big news for arguably the top pitching prospect in the game. Most believed he would be eased back into a bullpen role to start, but throwing that many pitches and innings may signify a change in that line of thinking. With the Cardinals struggles in the rotation this year, he would be a welcome addition to the team and a coup for fantasy owners that have been stashing him.

 

Various News and Notes

Lucas Duda was place on the 10-Day DL with a foot injury. Duda was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis which is never good news as it is an injury that can often linger. In response the Royals called up former top prospect Hunter Dozier. Dozier has never quite lived up to the hype that surrounded him when the Royals took him in the top 10 of the 2013 draft, but he appears to be healthy as of now and should get a decent opportunity to play. He is worth a gamble in AL Only or deeper mixed leagues.

Alen Hanson was placed on the 10-Day DL with a hamstring injury. It doesn’t sound like the injury is extremely serious, which is good as the 25-year-old former top prospect has been great for the Giants hitting .298/.346/.638 with four homers and three stolen bases. Hanson will likely return to an everyday-ish role at second base once healthy until Joe Panik returns, but then could slide into left field where the Giants are still in search of a solution. Austin Slater was recalled to replace Hanson on the roster and proceed to steal two bags and might be a nice short term NL Only replacement, mostly since Kelby Tomlinson is garbage.

Franmil Reyes of the Padres has been called up by the Padres to make his Major League debut. Reyes has been destroying the ball in AAA, having already swatted out 14 home runs in 35 games while hitting .346/.440/.748. Reyes has never had much prospect pedigree He does have a long swing, inconsistent mechanics and lack of athleticism. He does have plus raw power, but this seems to be more Kyle Blanks than Rhys Hoskins.

DJ Lemahieu was placed on the 10-Day DL with a thumb injury. While this injury did not appear serious at first, rumors are that he may need surgery which could keep him out until after the All-Star Break. Both Ryan McMahon and top prospect Brendan Rodgers have been playing second base in the minors, so the Rockies have in house options, though they didn’t play McMahon much when he was up to start the season anyhow.

A.J. Pollock left Monday’s game with a thumb injury after an awkward diving attempt versus the Brewers.

There was limited news after the game that Pollock would undergo an MRI and xray tomorrow. Consider him day-to-day at this time.

Joey Votto left Monday’s game against the Giants with back stiffness. Following the game, Votto stated that he should be fine, so fantasy owners should breathe a sigh of relief. Consider him day-to-day at this time.

 

Streaming Pitchers Options

A pitcher for today: German Marquez @ SD

Marquez has been up and down this year, but is sporting a 1.96 ERA with 9.39 K/9 on the road.

A pitcher for tomorrow: None

Hail Mary Play (by popular demand): Andrew Suarez who gets a Matt Harvey led Reds squad at home.





Justin is the co-host on The Sleeper and The Bust Podcast and writes for Rotographs covering the Roto Riteup as well as other periodic articles. In addition to his work at Rotographs, Justin is the lead fantasy writer/analyst and co-owner for FriendswithFantasyBenefits.com, and the owner of The Great Fantasy Baseball Invitational. He is also a certified addiction treatment counselor. Follow Justin on Twitter @JustinMasonFWFB.

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Bartolo Colon
5 years ago

Hey Justin, would you drop Y. Chirinos for Banda? Deep AL-Only where I have 5 DL guys and only 3 DL spots right now.

Bartolo Colon
5 years ago
Reply to  Bartolo Colon

Could also drop him to snag Justin Anderson, but snagged Parker yesterday. I just won’t get Chirinos back if I drop him.