We have made it through another week of the MLB season and have some early results to overreact to. Based on their recent performances and a full-season outlook, I will break down some players to buy or sell in the coming weeks. Some are just hot streaks, and some are worth buying into, so we are here to help make the right decisions for your fantasy teams.
Let’s look at a handful of players you should buy high or sell low after Week 6.
Fantasy Baseball Players to Buy High & Sell Low
Buy High
Daulton Varsho (C, OF – TOR)
It took Daulton Varsho a bit to get going, but he appears to be back on track this past week. Varsho hit safely in six of seven games for a .393 batting average with a .348 BABIP. He collected three doubles to go with three home runs while striking out less than 10% of the time. Varsho’s quality of contact was outstanding, with an 11.5% barrel rate and 46.2% hard-hit rate. He has five home runs and six steals on the season, making him a great candidate for at least a 20/20 season, if not better. That’s valuable at the catcher position.
Masataka Yoshida (OF – BOS)
Since returning from an injury earlier in the season, Masataka Yoshida has been a hitting machine. Yoshida hit safely in all six games this past week, suitable for a .480 batting average. In addition, he collected two doubles and two home runs while striking out zero times. The zero strikeouts were already impressive, but his 16% barrel and 60% hard-hit rates may be just as good. Yoshida is now hitting .321 on the season with six home runs, two stolen bases and an 8.5% strikeout rate. Yoshida is the real deal, so trade for him now.
Jonathan India (2B – CIN)
Jonathan India has begun to heat up and resembles his Rookie of the Year form from 2021. This past week India hit .391 with two doubles and two home runs. He added two stolen bases while striking out 12.5% of the time. The power had been slow to develop this season, so hopefully, this past week is a gauge of India getting healthy and ready to slug. He has three home runs on the season with seven stolen bases while hitting .306.
Bryce Miller (SP – SEA)
Bryce Miller was called up to debut last week and made two impressive starts. He threw 12 innings while allowing one earned run and striking out 15. Miller had an outstanding 35% K-BB while forcing a 44.3% O-Swing. His fastball was electric, and his secondary pitches fed off of it. Miller should be locked into the Mariners’ rotation for a while, and he is worth a locked-in spot in your fantasy rotation.
Bailey Ober (SP – MIN)
Bailey Ober joined the Twins’ rotation a few weeks ago, and this past week he was filthy in seven shutout innings with six strikeouts. He has now thrown 18.1 innings in his three starts while allowing two earned runs and striking out 16. He pitched well in 11 starts for the Twins last year and dealt in Triple-A before he was called up, showing he’s ready for a big 2023.
Sell Low
Jose Miranda (1B,3B – MIN)
It appeared Jose Miranda was starting to heat up, but he took a significant step back this past week. Miranda collected two singles while striking out 28.5% of the time. Miranda did not have a barrel all week, with a 40% hard-hit rate. Miranda is now hitting .219 on the season with three home runs and a 4.7% barrel rate. Miranda looks different from the power bat he showcased in Triple-A a few years ago, making it hard to continue starting him weekly.
Joey Gallo (OF – MIN)
After giving us some hope for a Joey Gallo comeback season, he quickly returned to the offensively-challenged bat we have been accustomed to. This past week, Gallo went hitless with a 30% strikeout rate and zero barrels. Gallo is hitting .186 on the season with seven home runs and a 32.9% strikeout rate. Gallo is too much of a batting average hit to your team to wait around for his power surges, so get rid of him now.
Alek Thomas (OF – ARI)
With Jake McCarthy getting sent to Triple-A, it appeared it was Alek Thomas’s time to shine. In his first week without McCarthy, Thomas collected four hits for a .235 batting average with one stolen base. He did not walk and struck out 29.4% of the time. Unfortunately, he only started four of six games, which is also less than ideal. It’s time to revert Thomas to a streaming option and not much else.
Taijuan Walker (SP – PHI)
Taijun Walker made two starts last week, a tail of two starts. In his first start, he allowed eight runs over 3.1 innings versus the Dodgers and one run over six innings versus the Red Sox. Walker did strike out six in each game, but the four home runs accompanied by a 16% barrel rate and 56% hard-hit rate are less than desirable. Walker now has a 5.97 ERA and 4.12 xFIP over seven starts. I do not see signs of it getting much better for Walker.
Michael Kopech (SP – CWS)
Michael Kopech looked good in his first start last week, allowing one run over six innings while striking out seven versus the Twins. Then came his second start, where he allowed four runs on four solo home runs with two strikeouts over six innings versus the Reds. Kopech had a 3.75 ERA and 5.97 xFIP on the week, and I would try and sell immediately if anyone is buying into that start against the Twins.
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