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Our Ben Rosener takes a look at the fantasy baseball impact of Will Benson being traded to the Cincinnati Reds and Roberto Perez signing a minor league deal with the San Francisco Giants ahead of the upcoming 2023 season.
Even though the Winter Meetings are now behind us, there’s still plenty of offseason left when it comes to baseball news and rumors – especially with a number of the offseason’s top free agents still without a team. And that’s all without mentioning potential trades as there hasn’t been an overabundance of deals made so far. The reports and rumors of free agent interest and trade interest, combined with actual free agent signings and trades, will continue to have significant ramifications for fantasy managers ahead of drafts this Spring.
The aim of this column is to provide you with the latest fantasy analysis on both rumors and reports, as well as official signings and trades, and how it pertains to redraft fantasy baseball leagues this Spring. Moves, or rumors and reports, tabbed as “Buying” are obviously good moves or potentially good moves from a fantasy standpoint. Moves or potential moves and reported interest that are filed under “Selling?” Not so great.
So, without further ado, let’s dive into the news with a look at some news regarding a trade between the sport's two Ohio-based teams and a recent free agent signing.
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Buying For Fantasy Baseball
Will Benson Being Traded To The Reds
The Cleveland Guardians traded Benson, a first-round pick in 2016, to the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday in a deal for outfield prospect Justin Boyd, as well as a player to be named later or cash.
It marked the third time this offseason that Cleveland traded a position player who previously made their Major League debut for the club in 2022, following the deals to send Nolan Jones to Colorado and Owen Miller to Milwaukee.
Prior to the deal, Benson was staring at a crowded outfield picture in Cleveland that was likely to include some combination of Myles Straw, George Valera, Richie Palacios, Oscar Gonzalez, Will Brennan, and Josh Naylor alongside Steven Kwan.
Now with the Reds, the outfield picture in Cincinnati… isn’t quite the same. It’s still set to be relatively crowded in the outfield portion of the Reds’ depth chart, but at the moment, Wil Myers looks like the only sure thing where consistent playing time is concerned. And while players like Jake Fraley, Stuart Fairchild, TJ Friedl, and Nick Solak could factor into the discussion, Benson has a much better shot at stepping into a regular role.
Given the launchpad of a stadium that is Great American Ballpark and Benson's track record of collecting both home runs and stolen bases in the minors, the former first-round pick will have plenty of fantasy upside if he can play regularly.
Benson has logged double-digit home runs and stolen bases in each of his last four minor league seasons, with 94 home runs and 86 stolen bases in 2,278 total minor league plate appearances. Those numbers included 17 home runs and 16 stolen bases in 401 plate appearances for Cleveland’s Triple-A affiliate last season. With double-digit walk rates at each of his minor league stops as well, the outfielder could have even more upside in leagues where on-base percentage is part of the scoring.
He'll obviously need to claim a starting spot in the outfield grass at Great American Ballpark first, but he’s in a much more fantasy-friendly situation than he was in Cleveland.
(Potentially) Selling For Fantasy Baseball
Roberto Perez Signing With The Giants
Roberto Perez has a new team. The catcher joined the San Francisco Giants on a minor league deal and was invited to Major League Spring Training by the National League West franchise.
This is purely speculative, but Perez seems like a decent bet to make the Giants’ Opening Day roster. The veteran is more established than any of San Francisco’s other non-roster invitees at his position, and as it stands, Joey Bart and Rule 5 pick Blake Sabol (who can also play in the outfield) are the Giants’ only catching options on the team’s 40-man roster.
Perez, who hit .233 with a .333 on-base percentage and a pair of home runs in 69 plate appearances for the Pirates last season, has long been a player who brings more value with his glove than at the plate. That obviously translates better in real-life, actual baseball than in fantasy baseball and could help him carve out a role in San Francisco.
If that's the case and he plays enough that it significantly cuts into Bart's playing time, it’d be unideal for the fantasy upside of both players. That’s particularly the case with Bart, who logged a .296 on-base percentage, 11 home runs, and two stolen bases in 291 plate appearances last season. The backstop also struggled to make contact at times, with a .215 average and a 38.5% strikeout rate. If that trend continues, it could hamper both his overall production at the plate and his fantasy ceiling.
Still, given the depth of the catcher position in the Majors, Bart has some fantasy value in slightly deeper leagues. That being said, if Perez is playing anything more than a reserve role at the Major League level for San Francisco this season, it would further hurt the former second-overall pick's fantasy ceiling.
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