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Fantasy Baseball Roundup: News, Injuries, Waiver Wire & Prospects (Week 18)

Fantasy Baseball Roundup: News, Injuries, Waiver Wire & Prospects (Week 18)

Welcome back to the best weekly column on the internet, as we wrap up week 18 of the fantasy baseball season.

The goal of this column for us to give you the most fantasy baseball-relevant information all in one place for a variety of league types to hopefully be your one stop shop, or at least the shop you have to hit on the way to all the other shops for fantasy baseball information from news, to lineup and roster notes, injury updates, waiver recommendations for different lead types, prospect rankings, moves we made and a weekly deep dive into something relevant.

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Fantasy Baseball Roundup

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Fantasy Baseball Lineup & Roster Notes

As of FRI 8/2

  • Baltimore Orioles:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • The Orioles traded for Trevor Rogers and stuck him in the rotation, a nice swap for Norby in an effort to fix the young starter (he’s still only 26 years old). They also added Zach Eflin to their rotation.
    • Pen Notes:
      • Nothing new.
  • Boston Red Sox:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • N/A
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Nothing new since last week with the roster.
    • Pen Notes:
      • No update.
  • Chicago White Sox:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Davis Martin replaced Fedde, but I expect Iriarte to be the guy by the end of the year.
    • Pen Notes:
      • Ignore.
  • Cleveland Guardians:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • I like the aggressiveness of the Guardians to add Lane Thomas, who is now hitting second between Kwan and J Ram.
    • Rotation Notes:
    • Pen Notes:
      • No update.
  • Detroit Tigers:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Dillon Dingler was called up after a huge week and is now starting at catcher for the Tigers.
    • Rotation Notes:
      • We are still waiting to find out who replaced Jack Flaherty in the rotation, post-trade.
    • Pen Notes:
      • Nothing new.
  • Houston Astros:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Interesting for the Astros to move on from Loperfido.
    • Rotation Notes:
    • Pen Notes:
      • No update.
  • Kansas City Royals:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Nothing new here.
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A.
    • Pen Notes:
      • It’s possible Lucas Erceg finally becomes a closer now.
  • Los Angeles Angels:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Pretty bad deadline here for the Angels to not move some of these guys, but they did cash on Estevez.
    • Rotation Notes:
    • Pen Notes:
  • Minnesota Twins:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Nothing new.
    • Rotation Notes:
    • Pen Notes:
      • Nothing new.
  • New York Yankees:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A.
    • Pen Notes:
      • No update.
  • Oakland Athletics:
  • Seattle Mariners:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Arozarena is hitting second with Justin Turner at DH and hitting fourth.
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A.
    • Pen Notes:
  • Tampa Bay Rays:
  • Texas Rangers:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • N/A.
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Who is the fifth starter going to be?
    • Pen Notes:
      • Nothing new.
  • Toronto Blue Jays:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Yariel Rodrigeuz and Bowden Francis are both in the rotation with Kikuchi gone.
    • Pen Notes:
      • Nothing new.
  • Arizona Diamondbacks:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A
    • Pen Notes:
      • AJ Puk is basically the lefty setup guy in the pen.
  • Atlanta Braves:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Orlando Arcia is hot right now and hitting fifth in the Braves lineup. Don’t be afraid to start pitchers against the Braves right now.
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Reliever Grant Holmes was moved into the rotation and has been pretty good so far with a 22.4 K-BB% on the season (starter and reliever) with a 2.93 SIERA.
    • Pen Notes:
      • No update.
  • Chicago Cubs:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A
    • Pen Notes:
      • Nothing new.
  • Cincinnati Reds:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Nothing new.
    • Pen Notes:
      • Nothing new.
  • Colorado Rockies:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • N/A
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Don’t look now, but the Rockies could actually trade away a starter. Cal Quantrill is still at best an innings eater though.
    • Pen Notes:
      • N/A
  • Los Angeles Dodgers:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Jack Flaherty took the number “0” with the Dodgers… weird.
      • It will be interesting to see if the Dodgers go back to six starters or if they stick at five when Yamamoto and Buehler return.
    • Pen Notes:
      • Bullpen by committee, for now.
  • Miami Marlins:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • The Marlins completely transformed their team, though a good portion of the players they added are in the minors still.
      • Kyle Stowers is the first in line, hitting fifth.
    • Rotation Notes:
      • New starter Vallente Bellozo only throws 90, I would stay away.
    • Pen Notes:
  • Milwaukee Brewers:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • N/A
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A
    • Pen Notes:
  • New York Mets:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • New acquisition Jesse Winker is hitting fifth and playing in LF.
    • Rotation Notes:
      • Paul Blackburn is eating innings. Not sure what this team would do in the playoffs without Senga, the rotation is pretty terrible.
    • Pen Notes:
      • N/A
  • Philadelphia Phillies:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A
    • Pen Notes:
      • N/A
  • Pittsburgh Pirates:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A
    • Pen Notes:
      • N/A
  • San Diego Padres:
  • San Francisco Giants:
  • St. Louis Cardinals:
    • Lineup Notes:
      • Tommy Pham has been starting every day since the Cardinals brought him in and Nolan Gorman has barely played all week against a bunch of lefty starters.
    • Rotation Notes:
    • Pen Notes:
      • N/A
  • Washington Nationals:
    • Lineup Notes:
    • Rotation Notes:
      • N/A
    • Pen Notes:
      • No update.

Fantasy Baseball Trade Finder

Fantasy Baseball Injury Notes

  • OF Mike Trout (Angels) – Looks like Ken Griffey Jr. all over again with Trout, as he’s out for the season again with another torn meniscus.
  • 2B/3B Jordan Westburg – Westburg was hit in the hand with a pitch and suffered a broken hand. He’s likely out somewhere between 4-8 weeks and is likely out for the rest of the fantasy baseball season.
  • OF Evan Carter (Rangers) – Carter has not recovered from his back issues and is likely out for the season.
  • 1B Christian Walker (Diamondbacks) – Walker hit the IL with a minor oblique strain and is only expected to miss about three weeks.

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Assistant Analyze Moves Who To Pick Up

Tim’s Top 5 Fantasy Baseball Waiver Adds (12 Team Leagues)

NOTE: Under 50% Owned (CBS)

  1. SP David Festa (Twins) 10% – Festa has been on this list for a while now and has a 20% K-BB rate, throwing over 95 MPH with a killer breaking pitch and excellent command so far in the majors to boot. He has a 3.60 SIERA against the 6.98 ERA.
  2. SP Hayden Birdsong (Giants) 49% – Birdsong has been on this list for a few consecutive weeks and it’s paying off now. He has a stellar 28.3% K rate and 30.2 CSW% to go along with a 14.1 SwStr% on the season and a 3.87 SIERA. He’s crushing it and re-joining the rotation on Tuesday.
  3. SP River Ryan (Dodgers) 45% – As I expected, Ryan got the nod to Knack and the other Dodgers back end guys with Kershaw re-joining the rotation. Ryan has a big 96-97 MPH fastball and a minor league record of some ridiculous stuff when healthy. He’s an older prospect and should get some good run here, there’s no reason to hold him back. He rocked a 23.8 K-BB rate in his second start with a 3.44 SIERA.
  4. SP JP Sears (Athletics) 34% – Sears has been on and off this list all season, but he’s on one right now. Over his last five starts, Sears has a 21.8 K-BB% and 3.30 SIERA.
  5. 2B Gavin Lux (Dodgers) 26% – Lux is hitting third for the Dodgers right now, which is good enough. Since July 11th, Lux has a .404/.473/.766 slash with 4 bombs.

Tim’s Top 10 Fantasy Baseball Redraft Prospects

Not promoted yet

1. 3B Junior Caminero (Rays)

2023 A+/AA: .324/.384/.591 | 56 XBH, 31 HR, 5 SB

2023 MLB: .235/.278/.353| 5.6 BB% / 22.2 K%| 2 XBH, 1 HR, 0 SB

2024 AAA: .265/.327/.492 | 7.5 BB% / 22.1 K%| 19 XBH, 11 HR, 1 SB

Age: 20

ETA: Late August

fScores: 97 fContact, 86 fDiscipline, 121 fPower, 78 fSpeed

Comp: Ronald Acuna w/o the wheels

Prime Skills: Probably the quickest bat speed in the minors with some big time power potential. He could be one of the best hitters in baseball sooner rather than later. The lack of a higher walk rate and being overly aggressive might ding him a bit in points leagues, but the power will be his carrying tool right out of the gate as he should at worst put up numbers similar to Willy Adames, but with a better batting average.

Ranking Explanation: Caminero is back in AAA, but if the Rays want to maintain rookie status they can’t call him up until the last week of August or so.

2. OF Jasson Dominguez (Yankees)

2023 AA/AAA: .265/.377/.425 | 40 XBH, 15 HR, 40 SB

2023 MLB: .258/.303/.677 | 6.1 BB%, 24.2 K% | 5 XBH, 4 HR, 1 SB

2024 AAA: .340/.389/.520 | 5.6 BB%, 16.7 K% | 5 XBH, 2 HR, 3 SB (13 games)

Age: 21
ETA: Early August

Pre-season fScores: 99 fContact, 103 fDiscipline, 136 fPower, 162 fSpeed

NOTE: The 2024 sample size is not large enough to run new fScores

Comp: Switch hitting Mookie Betts-light

Prime Skills: Dominguez has top notch plate skills, while also demonstrating he can be a game changer on the base paths. He smashes pitches high in the zone from both sides of the plate, but needs to work on lifting pitches low in the zone instead of smashing them into the ground. He was doing a good job of this before the injury at the major league level.

Ranking Explanation: Dominguez is on the way back and working his way into health again. The Yankees could use his bat in the lineup.

***Jordan Walker would be placed here.

3. 1B Deyvison De Los Santos (Marlins)

2023 AA: .254/.297/.431 | 38 XBH, 20 HR, 4 SB

2024 AA/AAA: .322/.377/.633 | 50 XBH, 30 HR, 0 SB

Age: 20

ETA: Late July

fScores: N/A

Comp: Cristian Encarnacion-Strand

Prime Skills: Big time power potential with an improved contact rate and decrease in strikeouts.

Ranking Explanation: De Los Santos was traded to the Marlins and could possibly debut as soon as he move into the new organization.

4. SP Jakob Misiorowski (Brewers)

2023 A/A+/AA: 71 1/3 IP | 110 Ks, 42 BBs | 3.41 ERA, 1.18 WHIP

2024 AA: 79 2/3 IP | 15.9 K-BB%, 13.9 SwStr%, 32.2 CSW% | 3.86 ERA, 1.28 WHIP

Age: 23

Comp: Tyler Glasnow

ETA: Early September

fScores: 114 fStuff, 86 fControl, 118 fERA

Prime Skills: Killer fastball, he throws it 101 and it’s at an odd arm angle, so it’s difficult to pick up. He’s had some control issues, especially in his short stint at AA, but if he can harness the control he could be an elite starter – otherwise he will be a back of the bullpen beast.

Ranking Explanation: The control is getting reigned in and Misiorowski could end up being the second starter for the Brewers if they can’t afford another pitching upgrade by the deadline.

5. 2B / 3B Jace Jung (Tigers)

2023 A+/AA: .253/.372/.502 | 57 XBH, 28 HR, 5 SB

2024 AAA: .266/.387/.470 | 15.8 BB%, 23.3 K% | 35 XBH, 14 HR, 1 SB

Age: 22

ETA: Early August

fScores: N/A

Comp: Nolan Gorman meets Josh Jung

Prime Skills: The pull power is legit. His swing reminds me a ton of Nolan Gorman and his approach is very similar to his brother Josh. All things look good for success, except that he will have to hit in Detroit.

Ranking Explanation: Jung has been out since 6/19 with right wrist soreness, but is already expected to come back in the next few days or so.

Honorable Mention: SP Caden Dana (Angels), SP Jairo Iriarte (White Sox), OF Colby Thomas (Athletics), OF Dylan Crews (Nationals), SP Cade Horton (Cubs), SP Zebby Matthews (Twins), OF Chase DeLauter (Guardians), SS Colson Montgomery (White Sox), OF Drew Gilbert (Mets), SP Ty Madden (Tigers), 3B Matt Shaw (Cubs), 2B Thomas Saggesse (Cardinals), SP Tink Hence (Cardinals), SS Carson Williams (Rays), 2B/OF Luisangel Acuna (Mets), SP Quinn Mathews, SP Mick Abel (Phillies), SP Will Warren (Yankees), OF Owen Caissie (Cubs), OF Caleb Durbin (Yankees), SP Gunnar Hoglund (Athletics), SP Mason Adams (White Sox), SP Logan Henderson (Brewers)

Fantasy Baseball Moves I Made This Week

    • CBS Memorial Magazine League (12 Team 5×5 Roto):
      • N/A
    • CBS NL Only Analyst League (12 Team 5×5 Roto):
    • TGFBI (15 Team 5×5 Roto):
    • Fantasy Aceball Invitational (16 Team Ottoneu H2H Points):
      • N/A
    • Ottoneu Podcaster’s League (12 Team Ottoneu 5×5 Roto):
      • N/A

Fantasy Baseball Trade & Waiver Wire Advice


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