We have made it to the fourth week of the MLB season. There were some awe-inspiring performances. As usual, there were some great and rough performances to dig into. This weekly column will help highlight hot and cold players/risers and fallers for fantasy purposes.
Some players are already rostered in many places so trades may be in order. Other players may be widely available, making a potential waiver wire claim in the cards. I will highlight some known and lesser-known players this week. So let’s see some of the risers and fallers for fantasy baseball Week 6 (4/22-4/28).
- Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Advice
- Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice
- Fantasy Baseball Start/Sit Lineup Advice
- MLB Prop Bet Cheat Sheet
Fantasy Baseball Risers & Fallers: Week 6
Risers
After a slow start to the season, Anthony Rizzo’s bat exploded this past week. He hit safely in five out of seven games for a .407 batting average with two doubles and four home runs. The power returning and the .519 ISO and 1.354 OPS were excellent. There were a few negative outliers, as Rizzo only had a 30% hard-hit rate and a .438 batting average on balls in play (BABIP), which is not sustainable. Rizzo was more aggressive out of the zone with a 42% O-Swing, but it worked out. Rizzo will be better than he was at the start of the season, but this past week may also be his best week.
Ryan Jeffers has been one of the best fantasy catchers not named William Contreras. This past week, Jeffers hit safely in all seven games, with a .440 batting average, two doubles and two home runs. He only barreled the ball 9.1% of the time with a 32% hard-hit rate, which could be better, but the results were still solid. Jeffers plays nearly every day at catcher or DH, which adds to his fantasy value.
Maikel Garcia was in the middle of a significant slump but he appears to be breaking out of it. Garcia hit safely in six out of seven games, with multiple hits in four. Garcia hit .385 with a home run and three steals while scoring five runs and driving in seven. He only barreled the ball 4.2% of the time, but a 46% hard-hit rate bodes well when Garcia is only striking out 6.9% of the time. Slumps will happen, but big weeks like this will happen often with Garcia’s plate discipline.
Jacob Young saw more playing time last week, and he flourished. Young hit safely in all five games he played for a .500 average and four steals. Young won’t provide as much power as his .111 ISO and zero barrels showed last week, but his 50% hard-hit rate will help him get the hits. Once on base, Young will run wild. He entered Monday with 10 steals in 20 games and collected two more on Monday.
Mike Tauchman has been in a platoon role, but with injuries to the Cubs’ outfield, he plays regularly. Last week, he played every day, hitting safely in five out of six games. Thanks to a 25% barrel rate, Tauchman hit three home runs. Even with the increased power, Tauchman continued to show strong plate skills by walking 24% of the time and striking out 24% of the time. Tauchman will eventually cool down and return to a platoon. For now, he’s worth riding till the wheels fall off.
Fallers
The Marlins offense has been in a bad way to start the season. Josh Bell has been a part of those struggles. Bell hit safely in one of his six games this past week for a .087 average. He collected two singles and zero barrels during his struggles. Bell only struck out 16.4% of the time, which is promising, but when he does not hit the ball hard, it does not matter. Bell is only worth rostering in deeper formats for the time being.
Jeimer Candelario (1B, 3B – CIN)
It has been a dreadful start to the season for Jeimer Candelario. This past week may have been rock bottom. Candelario did not collect a hit in six games while striking out 52.2% of the time. He did not barrel a ball while having a 28.6% hard-hit rate. Candelario injured his elbow early in the season and has struggled since then. I still believe in Candelario, especially hitting in that offense and playing his home games in Great American Ball Park. Still, I acknowledge it’s hard to trust Candelario for the foreseeable future.
After running red-hot a few weeks ago, Michael Busch has cooled off tremendously. Last week, Busch hit safely in two out of six games for a .182 average with a double. Busch did not collect a walk while striking out 44% of the time. He only barreled the ball 7.7% of the time with a 23.1% hard-hit rate, so the power will be hard to find with contact like that. Busch will be extremely streaky throughout the season. Right now, he’s streaking in the wrong direction.
Mitch Garver is struggling in a big way to start the season. This past week was no exception. Garver collected two hits, one of which was a home run, while hitting .100. He did not collect a barrel, making his home run even luckier, but he did have a 50% hard-hit rate. Garver has been battling a back injury for a few weeks, which may play into his early-season struggles.
Jorge Soler has started slowly in his first season with the Giants. He hit .143 last week with three hits, one of which was a home run. Soler barreled the ball 9.7% of the time, which is down for a player like Soler. His 27.3% hard-hit rate was very bad. Soler did walk 12.5% of the time, but he also struck out 42% of the time. Soler has five home runs on the season, but his overall production has struggled for his new team.
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