{"id":75531,"date":"2024-06-03T18:00:56","date_gmt":"2024-06-03T22:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=75531"},"modified":"2024-06-03T17:20:10","modified_gmt":"2024-06-03T21:20:10","slug":"fantasy-baseball-players-waiver-wire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2024\/06\/03\/fantasy-baseball-players-waiver-wire\/","title":{"rendered":"Fantasy Players to Target Now That a Few MLB Stars Are Injured"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fantasy baseball has its ups and downs, especially when it comes to injuries. Currently, there are 265 players on their team’s respective injured list.\u00a0 Some are out for a few weeks while some are done for the season.\u00a0 Much like Ronald Acuna Jr.<\/a>‘s ACL<\/a>, you have a hole in your roster and you need to fill it.\u00a0 You can’t replace a generational talent but you can’t give up because he is out for the season.\u00a0 So what do you do now that your No. 1 draft pick is done for the season?\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Fantasy Baseball Targets: Outfielders\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Tyler Freeman<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Tyler Freeman <\/a><\/span>has been flying under the radar this season and <\/span>is only owned in<\/span> 40% of Yahoo! leagues.\u00a0 The utility man brings qualifications at 2B, SS, 3B, and OF.\u00a0 The Cleveland Guardians have scored the second most runs in the American League this season and Freeman has been batting lead-off.\u00a0 Anyone batting in front of the red-hot Jose Ram\u00edrez<\/a> is bound to score some runs if they get on base.\u00a0 Freeman is slashing .219\/.310\/.654 with four home runs and 22 runs batted in.\u00a0 Freeman also has stolen base upside with eight bags swiped in 2024.<\/span><\/p>\n

TJ Friedl<\/span><\/h4>\n

TJ Friedl is back from injury and is batting lead-off for the disappointing Reds.\u00a0 It appears TJ Friedl<\/a> is finally healthy, stealing a base and hitting a home run in his first two games back. It’s also a good sign that the coaches are letting Friedl run<\/span>.\u00a0 <\/span>Just<\/span> another threat to steal bases on a Cincinnati team that is second in MLB in stolen bases.\u00a0 Friedl brings stolen bases and home run pop to any fantasy lineup and is only rostered in 40% of Yahoo! leagues and 27% on ESPN.<\/span><\/p>\n

J.J. Bleday<\/span><\/h3>\n

JJ Bleday<\/a> is quietly putting together a strong season.\u00a0 <\/span>Going<\/span> mostly unnoticed because he is in Oakland, but the center fielder has been batting around .250 most of the season. Bleday has raised his OPS to .794 over the last month, heating up over May.\u00a0 Bleday is rostered in 21% of Yahoo! leagues and 19% on ESPN.<\/span><\/p>\n

Other outfielders to Consider<\/span><\/h3>\n

Jake Meyers<\/a>\u00a0 37%, Jesse Winker<\/a> 26%, Ceddanne Rafaela<\/a> 38%<\/em><\/p>\n

Fantasy Baseball Infielders to Target<\/span><\/h3>\n

Getting the call-up in early May, <\/span>Nick Gonzales<\/a> <\/span>put together an impressive month at the plate.\u00a0 The 25-year-old is slashing .306\/.360\/.860 <\/span>with three home runs and 16 runs batted in.<\/span>\u00a0 Gonzales should come back down to earth a little, but these stats <\/span>are indicative of<\/span> what he has been doing with Triple-A Indianapolis all season.\u00a0 The rookie should continue to get playing time as long as his bat stays hot.\u00a0 Gonzales is rostered in 37% of leagues and rising on Yahoo! Fantasy<\/span><\/p>\n

Patrick Bailey<\/a> <\/span>Bailey is just too good behind the dish<\/a>. Unfortunately, defensive stats do not play into fantasy points or Bailey would be a top-tier catcher.\u00a0 If you had Wilson Contreras and need someone to stand in at the catcher position the Giants backstop is worth holding a roster spot.\u00a0 Bailey is slashing .298\/.354\/.819 with four home runs and 19 runs batted in. After a decent sample size, those numbers should stay near the same for the season.\u00a0 The only downside to Bailey, as it is with many catchers, is playing time and rest.\u00a0 <\/span>Rostered<\/span> in 24% of Yahoo! leagues.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

PATRICK BAILEY FOR THE WIN ? pic.twitter.com\/fySa0A8c5L<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 SFGiants (@SFGiants) August 13, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Mark Vientos<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Mark Vientos’s<\/a><\/span>\u00a0stock is rising and it may be too late in your league to add this 6’4 power-hitting third baseman.\u00a0 With Brett Baty<\/a> back with Triple-A Syracuse, Vientos has had only one day off since May 15th.\u00a0 Vientos is slashing a substantial .321\/.327\/.984 over 56 at-bats this season.\u00a0 The 24-year-old provides pop with RBI and scoring opportunities. He is <\/span>currently<\/span> rostered in just 19% of Yahoo! leagues but has risen 7% over the last week.<\/span><\/p>\n

Other Infielders to Consider<\/span><\/h4>\n

Brett Wisely<\/a> 3%, Masyn Winn<\/a> 25%, Josh Smith<\/a> 37%<\/em><\/p>\n

Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitchers to Target<\/span><\/h3>\n

Tylor Megill’s<\/a><\/span> 0-2 record is lackluster.<\/span> If you are playing in a league where wins aren’t counted, the New York Mets right-hander is a great option.\u00a0 Megill still has an upside, however, if you are looking to reduce your team’s ERA and WHIP.\u00a0 With Blake Snell<\/a> going down with a groin injury <\/a>Megill can fill that gap in your roster.\u00a0 In three games this season, Megill has a 1.69 ERA with a 1.00 WHIP.\u00a0 The big 6’7″ right-hander also brings 20 strikeouts over 16 innings pitched.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The starting pitcher is rostered in just 29% of leagues on Yahoo, but this is probably larger due to Megill pitching on the day of this article and fantasy managers streaming pitchers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Tylor Megill matches his season-high with his seventh strikeout of the afternoon pic.twitter.com\/U32e8ljiEL<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 SNY (@SNYtv) May 28, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Kyle Gibson<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

The 36-year-old <\/span>Kyle Gibson<\/a> <\/span>is still getting it done on the mound.\u00a0 Gibson has allowed two runs or less in eight of his last nine starts, who also has a 52:25 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 65 innings this season. He isn’t flashy but is averaging 27+ fantasy points on Yahoo! per start and has yet to have a negative outing. Gibson is rostered in 30% of Yahoo! leagues and 13% on ESPN.<\/span><\/p>\n

Trevor Williams<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

Since Trevor Williams<\/a> plays for the Washington Nationals it seems most fantasy owners have stayed away from him.\u00a0 Despite playing for a team that refuses to score runs, Williams is <\/span>currently<\/span> 5-0 on the season. In his last outing, Williams held the Atlanta Braves to just one run on four hits in 5+ innings.\u00a0 Williams has a 47:16 strikeout-to-walk ratio over the season and looks to continue dealing against the Mets later this week.\u00a0 <\/span>Rostered<\/span> in only 49% of Yahoo! leagues.<\/span><\/p>\n

Other Starting Pitchers to Consider<\/span><\/h3>\n

Ben Brown<\/a> 55%, Andrew Abbott<\/a> 47%, Hunter Brown<\/a> 45%<\/em><\/p>\n

Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitchers to Target<\/span><\/h3>\n

Jalen Beeks<\/strong> and Tyler Kinley<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

If you are starved for saves because you were banking on Edwin D\u00edaz<\/a>, there’s another option. Jalen Beeks<\/a> has picked up two saves in his last three opportunities for the Rockies.\u00a0 Beeks will raise your ERA and WHIP if you can stand it, allowing runs in four straight games during May. Tyler Kinley<\/a> picked up his second save on May, 26 and is sporting a 2.45 ERA with a 10:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio.\u00a0 Neither pitcher has a grasp on the closer role in Colorado but if options are limited in your league both of these relievers should be available.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the absence of Toronto Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano<\/a>, Yimi Garc\u00eda<\/a> looks to be in line to take the 9th inning for <\/span>the time being<\/span>.\u00a0 Garcia’s last appearance came against the Pirates on June 2 to close the game out.\u00a0 Despite giving up a double to Oneil Cruz<\/a>, Garcia grabbed his first save of the year.\u00a0 Upon Ramano’s return, Garcia will <\/span>most<\/span> likely be relegated to the 7th and 8th innings.\u00a0 In deep leagues where saves can be hard to come by, Garcia may be the band-aid you <\/span>are looking for<\/span>.\u00a0 Rostered in 38% of Yahoo! leagues<\/span><\/p>\n

Jeff Hoffman<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

The Philadelphia Phillies’ reliever has been lights, with a 0.94 over <\/span>the month of<\/span> May.\u00a0 Jeff Hoffman<\/a> also brings a 14:2 K:BB over the last month.\u00a0 For the season Hoffman has five saves with an ERA of 1.05.\u00a0 Hoffman should be considered in most leagues with a strikeout and save upside and shouldn’t harm your ERA and WHIP too much.\u00a0 He should also be capable of levelling out these categories for fantasy owners who use starting pitchers who tend to give up runs.\u00a0 Rostered in 43% of Yahoo! leagues<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Jeff Hoffman picks up the save! pic.twitter.com\/2l1u0fUxJ2<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Phillies Nation (@PhilliesNation) April 10, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Other Relief Pitchers to Consider<\/span><\/h3>\n

Jeremiah Estrada<\/a> 36%, Bryan Hudson<\/a> 22%, Reed Garrett<\/a> 43%<\/em><\/p>\n

Main Photo: \u00a9 Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fantasy baseball has its ups and downs, especially when it comes to injuries. Currently, there are 265 players on their team’s respective injured list.\u00a0 Some are out for a few weeks while some are done for the season.\u00a0 Much like Ronald Acuna Jr.‘s ACL, you have a hole in your roster and you need to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5131,"featured_media":75643,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2886,1071],"tags":[124,5042,4352,3435,1378,3605,3609,6395,3433],"class_list":["post-75531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fantasy-baseball","category-mlb","tag-cincinnati-reds","tag-cleveland-guardians","tag-jeff-hoffman","tag-jj-bleday","tag-mark-vientos","tag-nick-gonzales","tag-patrick-bailey","tag-tj-friedl","tag-tyler-freeman"],"modified_by":"Matt Graves","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}