We have made it through another week of the MLB season, and there were some awe-inspiring performances. As usual, there were some great showings and some rough ones to dig into. This weekly fantasy baseball column will help highlight some hot and cold players, risers, and fallers. Some players are already rostered in many places, so that trades may be in order. Other players may be widely available in fantasy baseball leagues, making a potential waiver wire claim in the cards.
This week I will highlight some known and lesser-known players. So let’s see some of the risers and fallers for fantasy baseball Week 11 (5/27-6/2).
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- MLB Prop Bet Cheat Sheet
Fantasy Baseball Risers & Fallers: Week 11
Fantasy Baseball Risers
David Fry has been the buzz of the fantasy community in recent weeks. Weeks like this past one is a good reason why. Fry hit safely in all five games with two home runs, eight RBI and a stolen base. Fry is now hitting .355 on the year with eight home runs and four stolen bases, which bodes well for a catcher-eligible player. Fry benefits fantasy managers even more as he primarily plays the outfield with some time at 1B, but he has that so-sweet catcher eligibility. Fry makes for a great C2 with some C1 upside with his current playing time and production.
Willy Adames has been heating up at the plate, and this past week was one of his best yet. He hit safely in six out of seven games for a .385 batting average with two home runs, seven runs scored and 10 RBI while hitting cleanup for the Brewers. Adames even showcased great plate discipline, walking 16% of the time with a 19% strikeout rate. He had a down year last year, but he’s showcasing that skill set we saw two years ago that made him a fantasy darling.
Matt Vierling was a major fantasy producer in May. He finished the month with a bang. Vierling hit safely in all six games this past week with three doubles and two home runs, good for a .346 ISO. Vierling barreled the ball 20% of the time with a 50% hard-hit rate. Vierling was locked in this past week. As long as he gets regular at-bats, he should be used in 12-team and deeper leagues.
Miguel Andujar joined the A’s a little over a week ago, and his production surprised many of us. Andujar hit safely in five of his six games this past week, along with three multi-hit games. He hit two home runs with 10 RBI and a stolen base. The most important aspect of Andujar’s performance was he only struck out 3.8% of the time, which is impressive compared to his 16.2% career strikeout rate. Maybe Andujar has figured things out, or maybe he’s in the middle of a hot streak; regardless, it’s been impressive and makes him a streamer in fantasy.
Jesus Sanchez has had some underlying stats that suggested power improvements; this past week, that power arrived. Sanchez ended the week on a four-game hitting streak to finish the week with a .333 batting average. He hit two home runs last week with a 26.7% barrel rate and 53.3% hard-hit rate. Sanchez was locked in last week. He should be a fantasy starter in weeks the Marlins face plenty of right-handed pitchers like this upcoming week.
Fantasy Baseball Fallers
After a monster first week with the Giants, during which Luis Matos drove in all of the runs, things have slowed down for him. This past week, he hit safely in two games with three singles and a .125 average. However, Matos only drove in one run while striking out 23.1% of the time. Matos did not barrel a ball all week and found himself on the bench in the first game when Michael Conforto was back with the team. It is likely time to move on from Matos, as he may return to Triple-A soon.
Jeremy Pena is having a nice bounceback season after a disappointing 2023, but this past week was a major setback in his recent success. Pena collected two singles last week for a .083 batting average while scoring a run and stealing a base. The worst part of the week was Pena striking out 45.8% of the time. Pena should be fine, but this is something to monitor if he struggles in the coming weeks.
Anthony Rizzo was a faller earlier this year, then made me look foolish as a riser the next week. Here we are again with Rizzo as a faller as that hot streak has ended. This past week, Rizzo hit .143 with two runs scored. He didn’t barrel the ball with a 29.4% hard-hit rate while having a 40% O-Swing rate and zero walks. Rizzo usually possesses good plate discipline, which aids his overall production, but he seems to be pressing badly right now.
Eugenio Suarez’s season continues to spiral out of control, and this past week was one of his worst. He collected one hit, albeit a home run, with three RBI and a stolen base. Suarez is known for his power, but a 6.7% barrel rate and 33.3% hard-hit rate will not cut it. It is hard to hit for power when Suarez struck out 23% of the time with a 12.5% SwStr. Jordan Lawlar may be back soon, which could spell the end of regular playing time for Suarez.
CJ Abrams has been in the middle of a major slump in May. Things got really bad this past week. Abrams hit .182 over five games with a home run, but he struck out 43.5% of the time. He’s been battling an illness and a shoulder injury, which could be a problem. Once healthy, hopefully, he will bounce back. Still, we must acknowledge that Abrams has been falling mightily for fantasy purposes.
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