Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice: Kerry Carpenter, Starling Marte, Reynaldo Lopez

We have almost a month of baseball stats to digest. We have some stars that are putting up concerning numbers and some unknown players playing above their means. This week, I have a few players that you should look to trade now.

Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice (Week 5)

Sell High

Kerry Carpenter (OF – DET)

Kerry Carpenter has eight at-bats against left-handed pitching this year. He’s not always going to be in the lineup. In my opinion, you can’t rely on a player like that in any scoring league. He’s hitting .293 with three home runs and 7 extra-base hits. Outfield is still a position of need for owners, but I would be willing to move Carpenter now before his playing time concerns become more well-known and he turns into a streamer hitter in your league. You won’t get a big haul for him but something more reliable could be obtained.

Starling Marte (OF – NYM)

Starling Marte is hitting .298 with four home runs, six stolen bases and an OPS over .800. He looks like a completely different player than last year when he hit .248 on the year and had only five home runs. He only played in 86 games, but we were all expecting more.

I would look at moving Marte because I’m not sold on a mid-30s player turning things around after a disappointing season. I doubt he can keep this up all year. Marte’s name still has some carry and owners might be feeling good about a comeback story. Perhaps I’m wrong about Marte and he returns to his past, but remember the light always burns the brightest before it goes out.

Reynaldo Lopez (SP – ATL)

Reynaldo Lopez has gone six innings in his first three starts of the year. In those 18 innings, he has struck out 18 and given up just one earned run. He pitches for one of the best teams in the majors and his next two starts are against the Miami Marlins and Seattle Mariners. Lopez has been around for a while. He made his major league debut back in 2016. Since then, he has had some relative success.

Lopez has only pitched over 100 innings twice in his major league career. So, how long will the Braves let him remain in the rotation? In ESPN leagues, his roster percentage rose nearly 40% this past week. I wouldn’t blame you for holding onto him for these next two starts, but he won’t remain a starting pitcher all year. Get something now before he becomes a bullpen arm.