Fantasy Baseball Daily Opener: Sandy Alcantara, Andrew Heaney, Max Muncy (4/11)

Greetings, friends. Welcome back to those of you who followed along with the Daily Opener last season. For those of you who are new here, this is where we hang out and talk about what happened in baseball the night before.

Every morning, I’ll be with you to recap the previous day of baseball and talk about what stood out to me. We’ll find fun stats. We’ll discuss some top performances. We’ll lament some injuries. We’ll touch on any noteworthy news and updates. We’ll take a peek at the day ahead. We’ll start way too many consecutive sentences with the word “we’ll.” And we’ll have a few laughs along the way.

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Fantasy Baseball News and Notes

Three Up

Max Muncy went deep twice on Monday, going 3-for-3 with the double dong, seven RBI, and a walk. He’s off to a slow start, but he has been hitting the ball hard on a pretty consistent basis. He’s a potential buy-low candidate, but you may have to wait until the dust settles from this two-HR performance before making any offers.
Andrew Heaney went nuts on Monday, striking out approximately 37 batters in a row (slight exaggeration). He struck out NINE (not a typo) batters in a row at one point to tie an American League record. This was an impressive bounce-back performance after he allowed seven earned runs over just 2 2/3 innings in his first start. He’s currently scheduled to face the Astros in Houston in his next start, so you may not want to start him right away even if you do manage to get him on your roster.
Zac Gallen struck out 11 over seven shutout innings on Monday. Gallen had allowed 9 ER over his first two starts (10 2/3 IP), so it’s nice to see this kind of performance against a Brewers team that has gotten off to a strong start. Worth noting: Gallen has now faced the Dodgers, Padres and Brewers, so he hasn’t exactly been handed cupcake matchups out of the gate.

Three Down

Sandy Alcantara got LIT UP by the Phillies on Monday, allowing NINE earned runs on 10 hits, one walk, and four strikeouts over four innings of work. His ERA is now sitting at 5.79 on the year despite tossing a CG SO in his second start. In this two non-shutout starts, Alcantara has now allowed 12 ER on 13 hits and five walks while striking out just six over 9 2/3 IP.
Roansy Contreras‘s roster % jumped a little bit after his first start (6 2/3 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, but only 2 K vs. the Red Sox), but it’ll go back down after this one: 7 ER on 9 H, 4 BB, and 3 K over 3 1/3 IP in a loss to the Astros. He’s still young and has an intriguing profile, but these are the kinds of performances you’re likely to see as he continues to develop. He posted a 3.79 ERA over 95 IP last season, but all of his expected metrics had that number in the mid-4.00s. He’d be more attractive if he played for the Braves or Dodgers, but there probably isn’t enough upside to justify the risk with him pitching for the Pirates.
Christian Yelich went 0-for-4 with 3 Ks on Monday, which puts him at 16 Ks and a 34.8% strikeout rate through 10 games. He’s batting .231, and that number is actually being benefited by a .364 BABIP. Now, 10 games is an extremely small sample size. It is not time to panic. But the bounce-back season that many were hoping for from Yelich with the new rules is off to a slow start.

Fun!

You have to see this to believe it.

The @Mets roll two infield singles just inside the foul line to the same exact spot. ? pic.twitter.com/bEkzP4DYTp

— MLB (@MLB) April 11, 2023

Rub Some Dirt On It (Injuries)

Studs and Duds

Here are some of the best and worst performances from yesterday.

Studs (Pitchers)

MLB Pitcher Stats | Yesterday’s Stats | FantasyPros
VBR	PLAYER	IP	K	W	QS	ERA	WHIP	ER	H	BB	HR	G	GS	ROST%
1	Zac Gallen (ARI – SP)	7.0	11	1	1	0.00	0.57	0	3	1	0	1	1	97%
2	Andrew Heaney (TEX – SP)	5.0	10	1	0	0.00	0.80	0	2	2	0	1	1	44%
3	Julio Urias (LAD – SP)	6.0	8	1	1	1.50	1.00	1	4	2	1	1	1	99%
4	Max Scherzer (NYM – SP)	5.0	6	1	0	0.00	0.80	0	1	3	0	1	1	99%
5	Matt Strahm (PHI – RP)	5.0	6	1	0	0.00	1.00	0	4	1	0	1	1	3%

Studs (Hitters)

MLB Hitter Stats | Yesterday’s Stats | FantasyPros
VBR	PLAYER	AB	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	H	2B	BB	K	SLG	OPS	ROST%
1	Max Muncy (LAD – 2B,3B,DH)	3	2	2	7	0	1.000	1.000	3	0	1	0	3.000	4.000	84%
2	Alec Bohm (PHI – 1B,3B)	5	2	1	6	0	.600	.600	3	0	0	1	1.200	1.800	75%
3	Mookie Betts (LAD – 2B,RF)	5	3	1	2	0	.600	.600	3	0	0	1	1.200	1.800	99%
4	Trea Turner (PHI – SS)	4	3	0	1	1	.750	.750	3	0	0	0	.750	1.500	99%
5	Corey Seager (TEX – SS)	4	2	1	2	0	.750	.800	3	0	1	0	1.500	2.300	98%
6	Travis Jankowski (TEX – LF,CF,RF)	3	2	0	2	1	.667	.750	2	1	1	0	1.000	1.750	0%
7	Sean Murphy (ATL – C,DH)	5	1	1	3	0	.600	.600	3	2	0	2	1.600	2.200	77%
8	Brandon Marsh (PHI – LF,CF)	5	1	1	3	0	.600	.600	3	2	0	0	1.600	2.200	6%
9	Nick Castellanos (PHI – RF)	5	3	0	3	0	.600	.600	3	1	0	1	.800	1.400	85%
10	Hunter Renfroe (LAA – RF)	3	2	1	1	0	.667	.750	2	0	1	1	1.667	2.417	68%

Duds (Pitchers)

VBR	PLAYER	IP	K	ERA	WHIP	ER	H	BB	HR	G	GS	L	ROST%
108	Roansy Contreras (PIT – SP)	3.1	3	18.90	3.90	7	9	4	0	1	1	1	17%
107	Sandy Alcantara (MIA – SP)	4.0	4	20.25	2.75	9	10	1	1	1	1	1	99%
106	Devin Smeltzer (MIA – SP)	4.0	2	11.25	2.75	5	10	1	2	1	0	0	0%
105	Jose Suarez (LAA – SP)	4.0	2	9.00	2.75	4	10	1	0	1	1	0	3%

Duds (Hitters)

VBR	PLAYER	AB	AVG	OBP	K	SLG	OPS	ROST%
275	Kody Clemens (PHI – 1B,2B,3B,LF)	5	.000	.000	1	.000	.000	0%
274	Tyler Stephenson (CIN – C)	5	.000	.000	2	.000	.000	76%
273	Bryce Johnson (SF – CF)	4	.000	.000	3	.000	.000	0%
272	Bryan De La Cruz (MIA – LF,CF,RF)	4	.000	.000	1	.000	.000	6%
271	Gabriel Moreno (ARI – C)	4	.000	.000	1	.000	.000	20%
270	Kevin Smith (OAK – 3B,SS)	4	.000	.000	3	.000	.000	0%
269	Jake McCarthy (ARI – LF,CF,RF)	4	.000	.000	2	.000	.000	63%
268	Jake Cronenworth (SD – 1B,2B,SS)	4	.000	.000	2	.000	.000	93%

Dingers

Here is every player who hit a home run yesterday:

VBR	PLAYER	AB	R	HR	RBI	AVG	OBP	H	2B	BB	K	SLG	OPS	ROST%
1	Max Muncy (LAD – 2B,3B,DH)	3	2	2	7	1.000	1.000	3	0	1	0	3.000	4.000	84%
2	Alec Bohm (PHI – 1B,3B)	5	2	1	6	.600	.600	3	0	0	1	1.200	1.800	75%
3	Mookie Betts (LAD – 2B,RF)	5	3	1	2	.600	.600	3	0	0	1	1.200	1.800	99%
5	Corey Seager (TEX – SS)	4	2	1	2	.750	.800	3	0	1	0	1.500	2.300	98%
7	Sean Murphy (ATL – C,DH)	5	1	1	3	.600	.600	3	2	0	2	1.600	2.200	77%
8	Brandon Marsh (PHI – LF,CF)	5	1	1	3	.600	.600	3	2	0	0	1.600	2.200	6%
10	Hunter Renfroe (LAA – RF)	3	2	1	1	.667	.750	2	0	1	1	1.667	2.417	68%
11	Jonah Heim (TEX – C)	3	2	1	1	.667	.750	2	0	1	0	1.667	2.417	8%
12	Austin Hays (BAL – LF,RF)	4	2	1	1	.500	.500	2	1	0	0	1.500	2.000	27%
13	Adolis Garcia (TEX – CF,RF,DH)	5	1	1	4	.200	.200	1	0	0	2	.800	1.000	89%
14	Hanser Alberto (CWS – 2B,3B,RP)	4	1	1	3	.250	.250	1	0	0	0	1.000	1.250	0%
15	Yuli Gurriel (MIA – 1B)	4	1	1	1	.500	.500	2	0	0	0	1.250	1.750	3%
17	Christian Walker (ARI – 1B)	4	1	1	2	.250	.250	1	0	0	0	1.000	1.250	85%
18	Ryan Mountcastle (BAL – 1B,DH)	4	1	1	2	.250	.250	1	0	0	1	1.000	1.250	78%
19	Jake Cave (PHI – LF,RF)	5	1	1	1	.400	.400	2	1	0	0	1.200	1.600	0%
21	Jarred Kelenic (SEA – CF,LF,RF)	2	1	1	1	.500	.500	1	0	0	0	2.000	2.500	28%
23	Brandon Lowe (TB – 2B)	3	1	1	1	.333	.500	1	0	1	1	1.333	1.833	79%
27	Wilmer Flores (SF – 1B,2B,3B,DH)	4	1	1	1	.250	.250	1	0	0	2	1.000	1.250	17%
28	Hunter Dozier (KC – 1B,3B,LF,RF,DH)	4	1	1	1	.250	.250	1	0	0	1	1.000	1.250	2%
29	Ji Man Choi (PIT – 1B)	4	1	1	1	.250	.250	1	0	0	2	1.000	1.250	0%
30	Adley Rutschman (BAL – C,DH)	4	1	1	1	.250	.250	1	0	0	2	1.000	1.250	99%

Swipes

Here is every player who stole a base yesterday:

VBR	PLAYER	AB	R	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	H	2B	3B	BB	K	SLG	OPS	ROST%
4	Trea Turner (PHI – SS)	4	3	1	1	.750	.750	3	0	0	0	0	.750	1.500	99%
6	Travis Jankowski (TEX – LF,CF,RF)	3	2	2	1	.667	.750	2	1	0	1	0	1.000	1.750	0%
16	Nico Hoerner (CHC – 2B,SS)	5	0	1	1	.600	.600	3	0	0	0	1	.600	1.200	65%
20	Brandon Nimmo (NYM – CF)	4	2	0	1	.250	.250	1	0	0	0	0	.250	.500	86%
22	Victor Robles (WSH – CF)	3	0	1	1	.667	.667	2	0	0	0	0	.667	1.333	3%
31	Bryson Stott (PHI – 2B,SS)	6	1	0	1	.333	.333	2	0	0	0	1	.333	.667	33%
32	CJ Abrams (WSH – 2B,SS)	4	0	2	1	.250	.250	1	0	0	0	1	.250	.500	22%
33	Bobby Witt Jr. (KC – 3B,SS)	3	1	0	1	.333	.500	1	0	0	1	1	.333	.833	98%
34	James Outman (LAD – CF,LF)	3	1	0	1	.333	.500	1	0	1	1	1	1.000	1.500	56%
44	Ian Happ (CHC – LF)	3	1	0	1	.000	.250	0	0	0	1	1	.000	.250	77%
45	Cedric Mullins II (BAL – CF)	3	1	0	1	.000	.250	0	0	0	1	1	.000	.250	98%
46	Steven Kwan (CLE – LF,RF)	3	1	0	1	.000	.400	0	0	0	2	0	.000	.400	96%
48	Xander Bogaerts (SD – SS)	3	0	0	1	.333	.500	1	0	0	1	0	.333	.833	98%
49	Isiah Kiner-Falefa (NYY – SS)	3	0	0	1	.333	.333	1	0	0	0	0	.333	.667	1%
52	Andres Gimenez (CLE – 2B,SS)	4	1	0	1	.000	.000	0	0	0	0	2	.000	.000	93%
56	Randy Arozarena (TB – LF,RF,DH)	4	0	0	1	.250	.250	1	0	0	0	0	.250	.500	98%
62	Amed Rosario (CLE – SS,LF)	2	0	0	1	.000	.500	0	0	0	2	0	.000	.500	78%
63	David Villar (SF – 1B,3B)	2	0	0	1	.000	.500	0	0	0	1	1	.000	.500	3%
76	Jose Ramirez (CLE – 3B,DH)	4	0	0	1	.000	.000	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000	99%
	Nick Madrigal (CHC – 2B)	0	1	0	1	.000	.000	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000

Arm Barn Report

Pete Fairbanks finally gets on the board as the Rays manage to win a game by fewer than 5 runs!

Here is every player who recorded a save yesterday:

VBR	PLAYER	IP	K	SV	G	ROST%
14	Reynaldo Lopez (CWS – RP)	1.1	3	1	1	24%
16	Andrew Chafin (ARI – RP)	1.0	3	1	1	18%
17	Emmanuel Clase (CLE – RP)	1.0	2	1	1	99%
18	Pete Fairbanks (TB – RP)	1.0	1	1	1	58%
19	Kyle Finnegan (WSH – RP)	1.0	1	1	1	15%

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Mike Maher is an editor and content manager at FantasyPros and BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive, and follow him on Twitter @MikeMaher.