After three weeks of Major League Baseball, there is no shortage of exciting players to cover. Boston’s offense began the week by setting a historic pace but ran into a brick wall in the form of Sean Manaea. Meanwhile, the Astros have gone from lukewarm to scorching hot in the last week. They will carry a six-game win streak into week 4, and their rotation of aces will have the support of a red-hot lineup.
Let’s take a look at the risers and fallers entering Week 4.
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RISERS
Sean Manaea (OAK)
Not only did Manaea throw a no-hitter last week, but he did it against the best offense in baseball. This feat has not been accomplished since 2003. Manaea has been dominant through his first five starts with a 1.23 ERA and 0.60 WHIP. He has 30 Ks and only six walks through 36.2 IP. Many pitchers over history had fluke no-hitters, but Manaea’s was in direct correlation with the way he has performed.
Manny Machado (BAL)
The move to SS makes Machado even more valuable. With so much depth at 3B, it is no surprise why the Orioles moved him. His trade value for them is much higher, just as his value in fantasy is higher than ever. However, Machado’s performance lately has done more for his value than his position change. He is hitting .356 with a league-leading eight home runs. Most fantasy experts agreed he was a positive regression candidate going into the spring, and he is now backing that up.
Christian Villanueva (SD)
Fantasy leagues are often won and lost on the waiver wire. Villanueva is a perfect example of why this is the case. He started the season with a three-homer game in the first week and hasn’t looked back since. Now hitting cleanup for the Padres, he is hitting .355 with seven homers and 16 RBI. In his last seven games, he has hit .480 with three homers. His BABIP is extremely high, so there will probably be some regression, but Villanueva is the real deal.
Rick Porcello (BOS)
Porcello followed up his 2016 season with an extremely disappointing 2017 season. However, he has returned to his Cy Young form from two years ago. Porcello has a 4-0 record and 1.40 ERA through his first four games. The most promising sign is his lone walk through 25.2 IP. He also has the aid of pitching alongside the best offense in baseball, so the win totals should rack up this year.
Mitch Haniger (SEA)
Haniger’s breakout season last year has been overlooked. Even though he only played in 96 games, Haniger clubbed 16 HRs with a .282 AVG. His relatively high strikeout rate and small sample size was the likely cause of this oversight, but Haniger is establishing himself early on now. He now has seven homers and is hitting .312. He’s also not the type of player who only checks out well with traditional stats. Haniger’s career 125 OPS+ is a sign that Haniger’s performance will not drop off.
Javier Baez (CHC)
This is Baez’ second consecutive week on this list. He backed his hot start with an even better week. Baez is now hitting .394 with three home runs over his last seven games. He also has seven home runs this season, just one shy of the league lead. It is still early, but Baez has developed into one the best sources of power at 2B.
Matt Kemp (LAD)
Kemp’s weight loss has allowed him to show signs of his old form. The most promising sign is that he has actually recorded the highest sprint speeds of his career in the last week. Sprint speed has only been recorded since the introduction of Statcast, otherwise, Kemp’s highest sprint speeds would have likely been while he was a 40/40 candidate. Kemp won’t ever be a 40/40 candidate again, but his current pace makes him a legitimate 20/20 candidate.
Miguel Andujar (NYY)
Andujar had a brief slow start after being called up by the Yankees, but he is now heating up. He is one of the reasons the Yankees didn’t trade for Machado or sign Mike Moustakas during the offseason. In his last seven games, Andujar is hitting .464 with a pair of homers. He is still available in many leagues, and owners should add him before someone else does.
FALLERS
Matt Harvey (NYM)
Harvey’s time as the Dark Knight is nothing more than a faint memory now. After a below average start to the season, the Mets have announced Harvey will be moving to the bullpen. He looked great in his first start but has since been hittable. Harvey may still carry value in league formats that reward holds, but he should be dropped in the majority of leagues.
Sonny Gray (NYY)
The former Oakland ace has dealt with inconsistency throughout his career and is off to a rough start. Through 16.1 IP, Gray’s 11 walks have fueled an 8.27 ERA. It’s too early to drop him, as control problems tend to be easier to figure out than other bad signs for pitchers, such as arm fatigue.
Avisail Garcia (CHW)
Garcia was a reliable waiver addition for many fantasy teams last year, but he has gotten off to a slow start. His 2017 season was fueled by a high BABIP, and he is now returning to Earth with a .154 average in his last seven games.
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Stephen Coelho is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Stephen, check out his archive and follow him @stephenjcoelho.
