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Ben Rosener looks at the fantasy baseball impact of Yankees catcher Jose Trevino being placed on the injured list as well as Twins infielder and outfielder Nick Gordon on the IL.
The regular season is here, and with it comes the daily influx of baseball news that fantasy managers missed in the winter months. Lineup news, actual games happening, constant waiver wire moves, pitching assignments, and bullpen usage.
This column aims to cover any and all fantasy baseball news, big or small, and how it pertains to your fantasy team. Spring training or the regular season, it's covered here.
Has a player who's usually been hitting in the middle of a lineup suddenly batting eighth or ninth for an extended period? The fantasy implications will be covered here. The same goes for injuries and injured placements and whether or not you should consider picking up a player who was recently called up. Basically, any kernel of fantasy news and its relevance to fantasy managers could be covered here. Today, the news of the day is the fantasy impact of New York Yankees catcher Jose Trevino being placed on the injured list and Minnesota Twins infielder and outfielder Nick Gordon reportedly being placed on the injured list.
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Fantasy Baseball Impact Of Jose Trevino Being Placed On The Injured List
The New York Yankees placed starting catcher Jose Trevino on the 10-day injured list, per a tweet from the team’s official Twitter account on Thursday. Per the Yankees’ tweet, Trevino is headed to the injured list due to a left hamstring strain.
So far this season, the former Texas Ranger appeared in 30 games for the Yankees this season, batting .219 with a .265 on-base percentage and three home runs in 102 plate appearances, chipping in with a 5.9% walk rate and a 12.7% strikeout rate. Per the American League East club’s tweet, fellow catcher Ben Rortvedt is joining the team to take Trevino’s spot on the active roster.
Rortvedt, 25, has hit .327 with a .421 on-base percentage and three home runs in 57 plate appearances this year. He’ll join Kyle Higashioka as an option behind the plate for New York while Trevino is on the injured list.
Higashioka, meanwhile, has logged 62 plate appearances for the Yankees this season. He’s connected on three home runs in those 62 plate appearances while hitting .211 with a .274 on-base percentage. In the short term, the 33-year-old probably has the most fantasy upside of the two, but he’s more of an option in deeper leagues at the moment.
If this develops into a platoon in Trevino’s absence, it would likely become a situation to avoid for fantasy managers, even those in deeper leagues.
Fantasy Baseball Impact Of Nick Gordon Reportedly Being Placed On The Injured List
Minnesota Twins infielder and outfielder Nick Gordon is reportedly heading to the injured list due to a fractured shin, per a tweet from MLB.com’s Do-Hyoung Park on Wednesday.
Gordon hit .176 with a .185 on-base percentage and two home runs in 93 plate appearances this season, seeing playing time in center field, left field, and at both second base and shortstop. Though the majority of his appearances have come in the outfield.
Nick Gordon’s Games Played By Position In 2023
- Center Field: 20
- Left Field: 12
- Second Base: 11
- Shortstop: 2
With Gordon reportedly heading to the injured list, Michael A. Taylor and Willi Castro could be candidates to see additional playing time in the outfield.
Taylor has hit .231 with a .286 on-base percentage, five home runs, and six stolen bases in 113 plate appearances so far. Though admittedly, his strikeout rate is a rather unideal 31.9% as of the beginning of play on Thursday. Elsewhere, the 32-year-old has seen all of his playing time in center field.
Castro, on the other hand, is hitting .219 with a .296 on-base percentage in 71 plate appearances for the Twins. The 26-year-old has also added a home run and five stolen bases for the American League Central club while logging innings all over the diamond.
Willi Castro’s Games Played By Position In 2023:
- Left field: 12
- Third Base: 9
- Shortstop: 7
- Second Base: 3
- Center Field: 3
- Right Field: 2
Moving forward, of the two Taylor looks like the player to add in fantasy leagues, though more so in deeper leagues with 14 or more teams. While both have provided quality stolen base production so far, Taylor’s ability to also bring power production to the table makes him the Twins outfielder to roster here.
Not only does the veteran have five home runs to his name so far, but he’s also registered nine barrels on 69 batted balls as of the start of play on Thursday. That’s good for a 13.0% barrel rate, a metric that currently ranks in the 81st percentile in the league. He’s also sporting a .429 xSLG that ranks in the 61st percentile in the sport.
So while Taylor's strikeout rate is rather unideal, the outfielder’s ability to collect home runs looks decidedly sustainable moving forward.
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