Welcome to the Week 11 Fantasy Baseball Stock Report. Let’s take a look at some players whose fantasy stock is on the rise, and some whose stock is on the fall.

WEEK 11 FANTASY BASEBALL STOCK REPORT

WEEK ELEVEN PLAYERS’ STOCK ON THE RISE:

Brock Holt, 3B/OF, Boston Red Sox

The case of Holt is one of a player who is probably a much better real baseball player than a fantasy baseball player. He’s a fun guy to watch, but he doesn’t really offer much in fantasy, other than a decent average, a little speed, and multi-position eligibility. In ESPN formats, he’s eligible at 3B and OF, but in Yahoo leagues, he’s eligible at every position besides pitcher and catcher. It’s nice to have that flexibility on your roster, but he’s really only useful in deep leagues and AL-only leagues.

Taijuan Walker, SP, Seattle Mariners

Walker got a lot of hype heading into the season as a top prospect who was dominating Spring Training. He’s had a rough year so far, though, and through 78.1 IP, his ERA and WHIP stand at 4.94 and 1.39, respectively.

Those numbers look a lot better now than they did a few weeks ago, as Walker has been hot recently. Over his past five starts (35.1 IP), his ERA/WHIP is 2.04/0.85 and his K:BB ratio is a sparkling 38:3. It looks like the rookie is starting to find his groove, but be wary of his matchup this weekend in versus the Angels. He has struggled mightily on the road this year (7.03 ERA on the road versus a 2.79 at home in Safeco).

Jace Peterson, 2B/SS, Atlanta Braves

Peterson is quietly putting together a great season, and is making it easier for the Braves to let top prospect Jose Peraza develop in the minors. He’s a good contact hitter who also has good plate discipline, and that has allowed him to succeed at the top of the surprisingly not terrible Braves lineup. He doesn’t have much pop, but he will hit for a decent average, score some runs, and steal around 20 bases when all is said and done. Compared to the rest of his middle infield counterparts, that is pretty good.

Yovani Gallardo, SP, Texas Rangers

After getting off to a slow start in his first season with the Rangers, Gallardo has gotten himself on track. He’s registered a quality start in 7 of his past 10 starts, and in one of the 3 that wasn’t a quality start, he threw 5 shutout innings before being pulled due a high pitch count. He’s turned himself into a groundball pitcher since he’s lost some of his velocity, so the Ks (formerly his best fantasy asset) are down, but he can still be a decent innings-eater for your team.

Also keep an eye on:

Justin Turner, 3B, Los Angeles Dodgers

Kevin Pillar, OF, Toronto Blue Jays

Chris Parmelee, OF/1B, Baltimore Orioles

Tommy Milone, SP, Minnesota Twins

C.J. Wilson, SP, Los Angeles Angels

Jesse Chavez, RP/SP, Oakland Athletics

WEEK ELEVEN PLAYERS’ STOCK ON THE FALL:

Rusney Castillo, OF, Boston Red Sox

Castillo has been a disappointment so far this season. The Cuban import hit well in his cup of coffee in 2014, in 2015 Spring Training, and in Triple-A, but since his May 22 call up, has slashed .230/.260/.284 with just 1 HR and 1 SB, while struggling to stay in the lineup. His performance earned him a trip back to Triple-A, and at this point, he might not be worth holding onto in shallow redraft leagues. In deep redraft leagues, hold onto him if you have space, and definitely hold onto him in keeper/dynasty leagues.

Brett Cecil, RP, Toronto Blue Jays

After struggling in the role, Cecil has been removed from the closer position for the Blue Jays. He’s allowed earned runs in 5 of his past 6 outings (5.2 IP) as well as 13 total baserunners. It is unclear at this point whether Steve Delabar or Roberto Osuna will enter into the ninth inning role, but one thing is clear: Cecil is done as the Blue Jays closer.

Ian Desmond, SS, Washington Nationals

Desmond has been perhaps one of the biggest busts of this season. Entering 2015, he was the only player in the league to go 20/20 in HR and SB in each of the past three seasons. He was even getting hype as a top-20 overall player. So far, he has been dreadful, sporting a .222/..266/.341 slash line with just 5 HR and 2 SB over 289 PAs. His defense has been equally dreadful, and if he doesn’t start to turn things around, manager Matt Williams might find it hard to keep rolling him out there.

Joakim Soria, RP, Detroit Tigers

Joakim Soria is on a recent cold stretch similar to Cecil’s. He’s given up a HR in 4 of his past 5 outings. His peripheral stats look decent. However he is getting unlucky in the HR/FB% department. His 21.4 HR/FB% is almost 17% higher than his 4.5% mark of 2014 and about 10% higher than his career high of 11.8% from 2013. It is concerning that he’s giving up so many HR, but he is still the closer for a very good team. At this point, it would be best to be patient with him.

Also keep an eye on:

Neil Walker, 2B, Pittsburgh Pirates

Brandon Belt, 1B, San Francisco Giants

Gregory Polanco, OF, Pittsburgh Pirates

Mike Wright, SP, Baltimore Orioles

Collin McHugh, SP, Houston Astros

Jimmy Nelson, SP, Milwaukee Brewers

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