In-season fantasy baseball management — of both trades and waiver wire — separates great managers from good ones and turns contenders into champions. It’s a long fantasy baseball season and an important part is knowing whether a player will continue their current production. I take a deep dive into certain players who are worth the hype to trade for and others whom you should probably cut your losses with and trade away. Here are some players you should be looking to trade or move on from in my latest installment of fantasy baseball trade advice.
- Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Assistant
- Fantasy Baseball Trade Tools
- Weekly Fantasy Baseball Content
- MLB Prop Bet Cheat Sheet
Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice
Buy High: Riley Greene (OF – DET)
Riley Greene has been tearing the cover off the ball to start 2024. He has a triple slash of .269/.397/.538 with 26 runs scored, eight home runs and 16 RBI through 34 games. He showed flashes of his potential last season with an xwOBA, xBA and xSLG all in the 88th percentile or better in 416 plate appearances. His advanced stats look even better this year as he’s barreling the ball more than ever. He’s lowered his strikeout rate to around 25% and his walk rate has doubled from last season, sitting at 16.9%. Greene’s career walk rate of 9.7% suggests regression, but it’s a good indication he’s seeing the ball extremely well. Greene was a top-five prospect just two years ago and it might all be coming together for the 23-year-old.
Buy High: Mason Miller (RP – OAK)
Mason Miller has been lights out serving as the Oakland Athletics’ closer. In 14.1 innings pitched, he’s managed a 1.26 ERA, 0.77 WHIP, eight saves and 29 strikeouts. His Statcast page is almost exclusively deep red. His xERA, xBA, xSLG, wOBA, xwOBAcon, strikeout rate and hard-hit rate are the very best in the league. That’s to go with the fastest average fastball velo, best whiff rate and a chase rate in the 98th percentile. Miller has dealt with injuries — as recently as last season —while being stretched out as a starter. Hopefully, his new role can help lower his injury risk and keep him on the mound. Oakland was 28th in total saves last season, but his low ratios and ability to miss bats make him a top-10 option the rest of the way.
Sell Low: Yandy Diaz (1B, 3B – TB)
Yandy Diaz hit a career-high 22 home runs, 78 RBI and 95 runs scored last season, batting an American League-best .330. He’s always hit the ball hard with a career average exit velocity of 91.6 miles per hour (MPH), and this year is no different. The problem, as has always been Diaz’s problem, even last year, is his groundball rate. His career groundball rate is 53.3%. It’s up to 62.2% this year. He’s rarely getting barrels right now and is hitting the ball into the ground too often. There doesn’t appear to be any skill change for Diaz and last year’s 22 homers feel like a high point he’s unlikely to reach without a launch angle increase. His low strikeout rate and usually high walk rate should keep him valuable in points leagues, but he will underwhelm in category leagues.
Sell Low: Ke’Bryan Hayes (3B – PIT)
Ke’Bryan Hayes has started 2024 slowly, batting .254 with 14 runs scored, one home run, 11 RBI and zero steals in 32 games. His expected stats suggest he’s overachieving, which is not encouraging. A strikeout rate (17.5%) as low as and an average exit velocity (91.1 MPH career) as high as Hayes’ usually translates to success. However, his batted ball profile is holding him back. He had a measly career-high 15 homers when his groundball rate was cut to 42% last season because he didn’t pull the ball enough. On top of the poor batted ball data, he hasn’t attempted a stolen base yet. Two years ago, he had 20 steals; last year, 10 steals with six caught stealing. If he’s running less, or not at all, it’s hard for him to have any value in fantasy leagues.
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