Skip to main content

5 Burning Questions: Justin Turner, Chris Carter, Adam Eaton

Justin Turner has seen his ownership rise significantly over the last week

Justin Turner has seen his ownership rise significantly over the last week

The days get hotter and the questions keep burning. What have fantasy owners been thinking about this past week?

Get Start/Sit & Waiver Wire Advice

Who are some top waiver wire additions?

There were a lot of injuries over the past week, which means fantasy owners are rushing to find replacements. Here are five of the top added players in ESPN leagues.

  • Justin Turner – 3B – Dodgers (59.2% owned, +35%)
    Last 15 days: .326/.396/.860, 11 runs, 6 HR, 12 RBI
    Depending on your league and where you play, Turner could have eligibility at every infield position. Chances are he’s already owned in leagues like this, but he’s still worth consideration even if he’s only eligible at third base like he is in ESPN leagues. Turner is currently being trumpeted by many fantasy analysts out there so this isn’t any groundbreaking analysis, but his ownership percentage suggests there simply isn’t ENOUGH trumpeting in Turner’s favor.
  • Maikel Franco – 3B – Phillies (73.5% owned, +22.9%)
    Last 15 days: .327/.373/.582, 9 runs, 4 HR, 16 RBI
    Franco is probably owned in your league, but if he isn’t, go grab him now! He’s been batting third in the Phillies’ order lately, and even though the team is at the bottom of many offensive categories, Franco has been a bright spot for their offense. He currently has 10 home runs since his call-up, and 20 for the season should be easy at Citizen’s Bank Park.
  • Brock Holt – UTIL – Red Sox (55.4% owned, +20.6%)
    Last 15 days: .281/.369/.509, 9 runs, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 1 SB
    A good deal of Holt’s value comes from his multi-position eligibility. Depending on your league, you can slot him into a number of different positions. He’s moved around the Red Sox lineup, sometimes leading off. He’s shown hot streaks before, and he may not be rosterable for the rest of the season, but he’s playing well as of late and you could definitely do worse.
  • Randal Grichuk – OF – Cardinals (29.0% owned, +17.2%)
    Last 15 days: .295/.360/.636, 10 runs, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 2 SB
    Grichuk has benefitted from regular playing time with Matt Holliday out, and he’s been producing quite well. He’s got a bit of pop and speed and has shown the ability to take a walk. Finishing the year with 10 home runs and 10 stolen bases isn’t out of the question.

How many home runs will Chris Carter hit this season?

Carter’s owners can’t be thrilled with his numbers so far this season; 13 home runs, 37 RBI, .198 ISO with a .198 batting average. There’s a good chance you’re like me and sat him for a number of those home runs as well, but you can’t drop him with the chance that he goes off and finishes the season like he did last year, with 37 home runs, 88 RBI, .264 ISO and a .227 batting average. When he’s on like he was in the second half of last season, he can carry a team. I wouldn’t advise dropping Carter, but I wouldn’t mind benching him with the hopes his BABIP rises toward league average. Here are his first/second half splits from last year:

  • First Half: .205/.281/.465 19 HR, 40 RBI, 99/24 K/BB, .237 BABIP
  • Second Half: .252/.338/.521 18 HR, 48 RBI, 83/32 K/BB, .301 BABIP

That’s almost 50 points of batting average, and the run he went on to raise that batting average certainly helped fantasy owners. Here is one projection for Carter for the rest of the season from Fangraphs:

  • 2015 projected ROS: 15 home runs, 43 RBI, .227 ISO

That would put Carter at 28 home runs for the season, 9 less than last year. Still, 15 home runs from July till the end of the season is certainly worth owning, and if he can enjoy a BABIP rise like he did in the second half of last season he’ll definitely help your fantasy team. I still think he can hit more than 30 home runs, so I’ll take the over on his projection.

What are some current league average statistics?

I often like to look at players on my team and how they’re performing in relation to the league average. It can help you decide whether a player has a chance to bounce back, or if they just aren’t cutting it this year. Often, many players under- or over-performing will regress towards the league average, so here are some batting and pitching league averages so far this season, with 2014 league averages in parentheses. You’ll notice that there isn’t much variance between this year and last year, but I still find it interesting.

Through 6/29

Batting

  • BB%: 7.5% (7.6%) slightly down
  • K%: 20.1% (20.4%) slightly down
  • ISO: .143 (.135) slightly up
  • BABIP: .297 (.299) slightly down
  • AVG: .253 (.251) slightly up
  • OBP: .314 (.314) same
  • SLG: .396 (.386) slightly up
  • wOBA: .311 (.310) slightly up

Pitching

  • K%: 20.2% (20.4%) slightly down
  • BB%: 7.5% (7.6%) slightly down
  • K-BB%: 12.6% (12.7%) slightly down
  • WHIP: 1.28 (1.28) same
  • ERA: 3.84 (3.74) slightly up
  • LOB%: 73.1% (73.0%) slightly up
  • HR/FB: 10.7% (9.5%) slightly up
  • RS/9: 4.17 (4.08) slightly up

Is Adam Eaton worth a re-look in mixed leagues?

White Sox centerfielder and leadoff man Adam Eaton was a top 250 player in drafts this year with an ADP of 217. Eaton was viewed as an above-average table setter for a team many believed to be a wild card contender. Unfortunately the White Sox have scored 257 runs, third worst in MLB, and many fantasy players are moving on from Eaton and other borderline White Sox like Melky Cabrera.

So far this season, Eaton is slashing .252/.318/.388 with 40 runs scored, five home runs, 14 runs batted in and five steals. ESPN projections had him scoring 90 runs with 20 stolen bases and a .271/.345/.380 triple slash line. Eaton’s batting average, on-base percentage and steals are down from his projections this year, but it looks like he could still get to his projected 90 runs. The White Sox have scored 3.47 runs per game this season, 28th in the league. That’s down from their 4.07 mark in 2014. If the White Sox can move back towards that 2014 number, it should certainly help with Eaton’s fantasy production.

In his last 10 games, Eaton has hit safely in eight of them, with four multi-hit games. He’s hit two home runs, two triples (DFS players take note, the speed is still there) with five runs scored and a stolen base. I think Eaton is worth a look if you’re trying to replace an injured outfielder on your team and need some help with runs and steals. I don’t think he’ll get to 20 steals like he was projected, but 15 is still a possibility. Eaton is currently owned in 22.8% of ESPN leagues

Who are some deep-league prospects worth watching?

2015 is certainly the year of the rookie. A great deal of prospects have been called upon and have produced for their teams. Fantasy owners that were able to grab a Carlos Correa, Kris Bryant or Maikel Franco have certainly enjoyed their production to date. Feeling like you’ve missed out? Well here is a group of prospects that are still in the minors but could be up by the end of the season and could definitely help your fantasy team down the stretch. Each situation is different, and some prospects have clearer paths than others, but they’re all worth monitoring.

  • Corey Seager – SS – Dodgers
    Seager is currently blocked by Jimmy Rollins at shortstop, and I don’t see the Dodgers simply benching Rollins for Seager, but it could certainly happen if the Dodgers go through a prolonged offensive struggle. It’s worth noting that the Dodgers left Seager off the Future’s Game roster, which means he won’t be participating in All-Star game festivities. Could it mean that his call-up is closer than we think?
  • Aaron Judge – OF – Yankees
    Judge will probably see time in the Yankees’ outfield when rosters expand in September. He’s currently blocked by a productive (and paid) group of outfielders.
  • Hector Olivera – 1B/3B – Dodgers
    Olivera has had some injury concerns this season, but he’s an older Cuban player being paid major league money, so it’s safe to assume the Dodgers could find a spot for him down the stretch. Although with the way Justin Turner is playing, and Adrian Gonzalez’s track record, his path to playing in the majors isn’t as clear as you’d think.

Others worth watching

JP Gale is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from JP, check out his archive and follow him @gojpg.

More Articles

Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Grades & Start/Sit Advice: Week 1 (2024)

Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Grades & Start/Sit Advice: Week 1 (2024)

fp-headshot by FantasyPros Staff | 5 min read
Fantasy Baseball Trade Value Chart: Michael Harris II, Zach Eflin, Jazz Chisholm Jr. (2024)

Fantasy Baseball Trade Value Chart: Michael Harris II, Zach Eflin, Jazz Chisholm Jr. (2024)

fp-headshot by FantasyPros Staff | 10 min read
MLB DFS, PrizePicks & Underdog Player Props Picks: Thursday (3/28)

MLB DFS, PrizePicks & Underdog Player Props Picks: Thursday (3/28)

fp-headshot by Josh Shepardson | 1 min read
Fantasy Baseball Closer Report: Jordan Romano, Michael Kopech, Paul Sewald (2024)

Fantasy Baseball Closer Report: Jordan Romano, Michael Kopech, Paul Sewald (2024)

fp-headshot by Austin Lowell | 4 min read

About Author

Hide

Current Article

4 min read

Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Grades & Start/Sit Advice: Week 1 (2024)

Next Up - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Grades & Start/Sit Advice: Week 1 (2024)

Next Article