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10 Things to Know for Week 11 (Fantasy Baseball)

10 Things to Know for Week 11 (Fantasy Baseball)

In Week 10, Mike Trout was finally back to playing like Mike Trout and Francisco Lindor like Francisco Lindor. On the pitching side, Chris Sale had a monster week while Nick Pivetta gave fantasy owners another glimpse of hope. As we gear up for another week in fantasy baseball, I’ve got 10 things to keep in mind:

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#1 Scott Kingery is the pickup of the week
At just 18% ownership, you shouldn’t have trouble scooping up Kingery now before that rate triples in the next few weeks. He was terrible last year, without a doubt, but started the season playing like we all expected him to as a rookie and even after the IL stint, he hasn’t slowed down. The knock was that he wasn’t playing every day, but since Andrew McCutchen suffered a season-ending knee injury, Kingery has been in every single lineup. He has 20 homer, 20 steal upside and currently carries a .322 batting average. While that will come down, you can see how any fantasy team would be glad to have a player like him who contributes in all five categories and plays multiple positions.

#2 Jon Duplantier is the top two-start pickup of the week
You’ll notice I didn’t say streamer like usual. That is I’d be picking up Duplainter regardless of how many starts he had this week. Yes, he is a bit risky and if he gets blown up in Philly Tuesday, I’d hesitate to use him in Washington Friday, but if he reaches the end of the weak unscathed then I’m convinced he will cost a pretty penny in waiver pickups so you might as well do it now. The former top 100 prospect is polished and has plenty of strikeout stuff. Now that Arizona is stretching him out to 5+ innings each start, we may finally see him take off.

#3 You’ll want to stream Jackie Bradley Jr. and Mitch Moreland this week
Most of the Boston Red Sox hitters are owned in over 60% of leagues, but you can get Bradley at a discount because he’s been terrible thus far, and Moreland because he is just coming off the IL. Both are set to rake and pile up counting stats thanks to four juicy matchups versus the Rangers’ awful pitching staff then three games in Baltimore, which is not only a huge ballpark upgrade, but yet another trio of horrendous pitching opponents.

#4 Howie Kendrick should be an all-star
And, oh by the way, he is just 37% owned. Yes, Kendrick is nearly 36 years old and I am well aware that he hasn’t done much over the last….ever, but sometimes that is just the arc of a player’s career. The fact of the matter is that Kendrick is batting .320/.356/.585/.941 and the quality of contact xwOBA sits at .414, or better than Josh Bell, Austin Meadows and Alex Bregman. The Nationals utility man is playing incredible baseball and while he while he will slow down some and isn’t playing every day, I’m sure you’d take a .290 average with power, runs and RBIs 4 out of every 5 days, right?

#5 Fernando Tatis Jr. is a prime sell-high candidate
In fact, I don’t think his bat in MLB ready. How can I say that when a guy is batting ..304/.374/.549/.923, you might be wondering? Well, the underlying stats scream regression to the mean. He has been among the most lucky hitters in baseball, possessing the quality of contact that typically warrants a .231 BA with a .438 SLG, IE: closer to Nick Ahmed and Ian Desmond than Freddie Freeman and Javier Baez. Sure, you’ll still get speed and a few homers, but he could use further refinement in the minors. The Padres, of course, won’t do that, but you ought to sell before it comes crumbling down.

#6 On the flip side, can we all agree to put in an offer for Jose Ramirez this week?
Believe me when I say his owners are furious with him and would look for any excuse to flip him in a trade. I’ve received countless tweets suggesting exactly that and asking if they should take Hunter Pence or Tommy La Stella for him, I kid you not. Yes, I know Ramirez is batting .204 with 4 homers, but he is also on pace for 40 steals, and as we know, the power switch can flip on or off at any second. Ramirez was an MVP candidate last year despite two horrendous months sprinkled in much like we have seen to start the season. If you want a potential league-winner, you can get him for pennies on the dollar, and even if he never bounces back, you’ve got a safe bet for plenty of steals, which as you know, is tough to come by.

#7 Sonny Gray is well worth picking up if you need pitching
Summer is coming at the Great American Launchpad in Cincy and that may make you nervous considering Gray’s past, but few in baseball are pitching as well as he is. Not only does Gray have a 27% K-rate (Corey Kluber was at 26.4 last year!), but Sonny is inducing weak contact. He just so happens to have the third highest BABIP in baseball among pitchers with at least 2.00 GB/FB, plus his LOB% is quite low too. Batted ball data suggests his xwOBA allowed is better than Chris Paddack, Jake Odorizzi and Mike Soroka, good for 13th in baseball. No pitcher that high on the list, who also strikes out batters, should be unowned anywhere, let alone in two out of every three leagues.

#8 It took long enough, but Freddy Peralta is finally happening
After finishing in the top 10 in K/9 last season and top 5 in batting average against (only Blake Snell, Chris Sale and Max Scherzer also did both of those), Peralta stole my heart this preseason. Then he stomped on it with an 8.31 ERA in his first five starts. You may just be looking at the full season when you view your waiver wire so chances are, you missed the fact that since then, Peralta has rocked out with a 2.01 ERA in 22 innings with 27 Ks and just 3 BBs. Now that he is back in the rotation, he could terrorize your season or perhaps carry you to a league title. Are you willing to take the risk? I’m all in.

#9 It is now ok to cut some guys loose
I’ve been asking you all to hang onto your first 12 picks all Spring, but once we pass Memorial Day, we’ve officially seen a large enough sample size to take some action. In fact, since last All-Star break, Ozzie Albies is hitting just .244 with 11 homers and 9 steals. That’s #notgood. He is still owned in 97% of leagues, but it isn’t going to happen this year, folks. Likewise, Joey Votto has just 7 homers and is batting .258 in that time. It’s over, friends. Check the trade market first, but it’s time to love on.

#10 If you are saving up for one big GPP event…
Then you’ll want to target Wednesday evening when the Padres travel to San Francisco for a two-game series. The Giants are abysmal against left-handed pitchers, batting .220/.285/.336 against them with the 6th most strikeouts in baseball versus the split. Essentially, our pitcher, Joey Lucchesi, will be taking on a team of 9 Starlin Castros. Sign me up, especially considering the fact that he will be dirt cheap and that Lucchesi has been known to bust out some huge performances here and there like his 11 strikeout game in Toronto two weeks ago.


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