I don’t really have too much of an intro for this week’s MLB Depth Chart Review. Over the past few weeks, we have dived into important topics as the playoffs approach including: the current scoring leaders across the sport, the updated MLB standings, and transactions that have been made in the recent timeframe. Numerous young prospects have been called up in the past month-plus, and we’ve also seen formerly injured veterans returning to action.
We are certainly getting down to it as the calendar flips over to September. There are just about 30 regular season games left in the 2023 Major League Baseball season.
Mitch Haniger (OF – SF)
With the San Francisco Giants still in the hunt for an NL Wild Card spot, they will be welcoming back their veteran outfielder Mitch Haniger from the 60-day injured list with open arms. The 32-year-old has not seen the field since mid-June, and his return will likely relegate one of the Giants’ young outfielders to a part-time role.
With Michael Conforto seemingly set in the lineup, either Austin Slater or top prospect Luis Matos will likely suffer at the hands of the aging ex-Mariner. Nevertheless, Haniger has pedigree to his name as one of the few starting Giants with playoff experience, and moderate pop in his bat. Haniger could be a useful fantasy option down the stretch for managers finding themselves extra thin at the corner outfield spots.
Lucas Giolito (SP – FA)
Lucas Giolito was comically waived by the Angels on Tuesday, a franchise that is doing everything they can to be up there with the Mets as the biggest jokes across the sport. The Angels traded away some developing prospects for a player they would end up cutting just one short month later, after their miserable franchise compiled a 7-18 record since the break.
Giolito has been flat out bad all season, but was even worse in Los Angeles, posting a 6.89 ERA across 32.3 innings pitched. That said, there could be some sneaky value in scooping him off fantasy league waivers, where he is likely close to 100% available. There is a good chance that a playoff-bound team picks up the veteran for the stretch run, in a move that could end up looking similar to what the Dodgers have done with also ex-White Sox pitcher Lance Lynn. It couldn’t hurt to take a flyer on Giolito and leave him on the bench to see what happens in the next week or so.
Davis Schneider (2B – TOR)
Toronto’s starting third baseman Matt Chapman went down with a finger injury that will force a stint on the IL, just one day after the team lost Bo Bichette to a quad issue. This has opened the door for rookie Davis Schneider to produce in the Blue Jays lineup, and he looks ready to take advantage.
Schneider has impressed early in his career, as he has posted a .425/.521/.875 slash line with five homers across just 40 at-bats to this point. In that span he has collected five multi-game hits, and he has also homered in three of his last four games played.
Over the last three games, Schneider has found himself batting fifth, fourth, and second respectively, signifying Toronto managements belief in his ability at the plate. It looks like he is going to have ample opportunity to continue producing in the heart of the Jays lineup for now.
Cole Ragans (SP – KC)
A young pitcher named Cole Ragans has come out of the blue as the top starter for Kansas City over the past month. Operating as a relief pitcher for the Rangers before being sent to the Royals at the deadline, the 25-year-old has actually looked like nothing short of an ace.
In five August starts, Ragans has a 2.12 ERA with a 44:8 K:BB ratio across 29 2/3 innings. He has reached at least six innings pitched in four of those starts, and has posted a 3-1 record in that timespan. To put it bluntly, he looks like the real deal on the mound, especially considering the bounce back he had to make following a rocky start to his career.
If for some reason Ragans is still available on fantasy waiver wires, he should be more than a serviceable streaming option for the pending playoff weeks. It is looking like the southpaw has found a true home with the Royals, and he may even be topping their rotation come 2024 at this rate.
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