It’s important to take some time during the All-Star break and evaluate your teams for the stretch run. Each week, I take a look at four players who you should buy high or sell low based on their current value. Here are some players I’m buying or selling for the second half.
- Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Advice
- Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice
- Fantasy Baseball Start/Sit Lineup Advice
- MLB Prop Bet Cheat Sheet
Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice (Week 17)
Buy High
Seiya Suzuki has had a solid first half as the number 31 outfielder according to FantasyPros player rater. He’s slashing .270/.334/.479 with 40 runs scored, 13 home runs, 45 RBI and nine stolen bases in 72 games. Suzuki continues to hit the ball hard with a 92.4 miles per hour (mph) average exit velocity. He is 40th out of 141 qualified hitters in wOBA and is consistently around .350 for his career.
The 29-year-old outfielder has already tied a career-high with nine stolen bases in the first half. His 83rd-percentile sprint speed, and the Cubs’ willingness to run since May, suggest we could see even more in the second half. Striking out 27.4% of the time is a concern but I would expect that to drop as the season continues. In his last 50 games last season, Suzuki slashed .349/.405/.667 with 36 runs scored, 12 home runs, and 39 RBI.
Cal Raleigh heads into the All-Star break as the number five catcher on the player rater. He is slashing .216/.299/.435 with 40 runs scored, 20 home runs, 61 RBI, and five steals in 92 games. He is going to be a drain on your batting average but he should be an elite source of power at the position, regardless. Among all catchers, Raleigh is fifth in runs scored, first in home runs, tied-for-first in RBI, and third in games played. Somehow, his 32nd-percentile sprint speed has led to a position-leading total of steals as well.
His strikeout rate (32.2%) is the worst at the position and his biggest issue. However, he overcomes it by hitting the ball extremely hard. His barrel and hard-hit rates are in the 96th percentile. His average and max exit velocities are also in the 94th and 92nd percentiles, respectively. What he lacks in batting average, he makes up for in power and everyday at-bats.
Sell Low
Sean Murphy has struggled when healthy this year. He’s slashing just .211/.277/.376 with eight runs scored, five home runs, and 12 RBI in 33 games played. He’s not seeing the ball well nor is he hitting it with any authority. His hard-hit rate, average exit velocity, xBA, xSLG, wOBA, and xwOBA are all career lows by a wide margin. However, that’s just part of the problem. Since the beginning of July, Murphy has started just seven of 13 games, splitting time with Travis d’Arnaud. Even last year when he was at his best, he was splitting time with d’Arnaud, capping his fantasy potential. To cap it off, his strikeout rate (25.2%) is the highest it’s been since 2021 and his walk rate (6.7%) is by far the worst of his career. Trade Murphy for a position of need and ride the hot hand on the waiver wire.
Alex Verdugo is slashing .235/.292/.378 with 42 runs scored, 10 home runs, 45 RBI, and one stolen base in his first season for the Yankees. Everything in his underlying numbers is sticking to the status quo with his career numbers, which is precisely the problem. Despite an impressively low strikeout rate, Verdugo has underwhelmed in fantasy all of his career. He makes a lot of contact but doesn’t hit the ball hard. His hard-hit rate and average exit velocity are in the 30th and 39th percentiles, respectively. His expected batting average isn’t horrible at .260, but it’s complemented with an xSLG of .400, six points below the league average.
He could have more appeal if he were to move into the leadoff spot but he hasn’t had much success in his limited chances there. The clean-up spot is where he’s spent most of his time which should lead to more RBI chances, albeit at the expense of runs scored. He’s currently on pace for a career-high in home runs and RBI but 17 homers and 75 RBI aren’t exactly league-winning.
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