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It's now Week 5 in the fantasy baseball season. We're starting to see who's real and who isn't so trends are easier to identify and take advantage of (or avoid if it's a negative trend). The sooner you can get in front of these opportunities, the more likely you are to pull out a victory.
In this article, we'll go over some of the trends we're seeing with platoon hitters, notable playing time changes, and batting order notes. We'll focus on a couple of players for each section and provide some added depth and insight to help you build your lineup.
If there are players that you'd like to see covered or discussed that fit any of the criteria below, feel free to hit me up! With six months of baseball ahead of us, there will be plenty of players to discuss. So, let's get at it!
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Platoon Player Updates for Fantasy Baseball
LaMonte Wade Jr. - 1B, San Francisco Giants
The lefty first baseman with the highest fWAR in the league resides in the NL West, but we're not talking about Freddie Freeman like you'd expect. Instead, it's LaMonte Wade Jr. who's hitting for a sizzling 177 wRC+ and is slashing .368/.471/.491 in 70 PA. Being stuck in a platoon situation vs. righties makes overlooking him easy to do, but he needs to be on your radar. He only has one homer on the year, but a 15.7% BB% has Wade Jr. getting on base often.
LaMonte Wade hits his first home run of the year! pic.twitter.com/9CNky7lT9s
— SF Giants Update (@Giants__Update) April 13, 2024
Now we should expect some negative regression as the lefty has an unsustainable .513 BABIP, but at the same time, the gap in his wOBA (.430) and xwOBA (.405) isn't terribly large. That signals that his results have been fairly true. So how hard will negative regression hit him? It's tough to tell. But with a walk rate above 15% it's sure to stave off some of the pains he'll feel when regressing to the mean. Wade Jr. should be available on your waiver wire and is worth stashing on your bench at the very least.
James Outman - OF, Los Angeles Dodgers
Outman had a fantastic rookie campaign in 2023 but is certainly feeling the pains of a sophomore slump this season. Outman is hitting just .188 against righties with only two HR on the year. His .258 wOBA certainly doesn't match up to the expectations he set for himself with his .344 wOBA from 2023. But he may be getting a touch unlucky.
James Outman gives the Dodgers the lead in the 8th! pic.twitter.com/mXydPseqnR
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) April 24, 2024
Outman's .258 wOBA is paired with a .301 xwOBA, pointing to a bit of bad luck. He also has a .229 BABIP which is uncharacteristically low for his batting profile where he typically has a BABIP around .340 or so. Some good luck should be on the way. But until then it may be best to avoid Outman until the pendulum starts to swing for him.
Other platoon names to keep an eye on:
Alex Kirilloff - 1B, Minnesota Twins
Randal Grichuk - OF, Arizona Diamondbacks
Playing Time Updates for Fantasy Baseball
Andy Pages - OF, Los Angeles Dodgers
The 23-year-old was thrust into action in LA due to a combination of injuries and ineffectiveness in the Dodgers' outfield and has performed pretty well in his first week. He's hitting for an .851 OPS with two HR and four RBI in 31 AB. Not too shabby for the righty!
The rookie is raking!
Andy Pages connects for his second career home run! 💥 pic.twitter.com/jvIHOMDAEN
— MLB (@MLB) April 25, 2024
Given how ineffective the Dodgers outfield has been (looking at you, Chris Taylor) we can expect Pages to continue to get a healthy amount of chances to prove himself. The next week or so may be tougher on Pages with some strong pitchers lined up to face the Dodgers (Yusei Kikuchi, Kevin Gausman, Jordan Montgomery, and Zac Gallen) but he may be worth stashing for some added depth.
Bobby Dalbec - 1B, Boston Red Sox
This section of the article is usually the easiest for me to write whenever big injuries happen. So with how 2024 has gone, I'm usually looking at the Boston Red Sox here with their CVS receipt-long injury report. And with Triston Casas going down with a left rib fracture, the beneficiary here is Bobby Dalbec. Unfortunately for Boston, that's only going to make Casas' absence look even more apparent as Dalbec's .246 OPS wouldn't even make that great of a batting average.
Dalbec is just 2-for-17 since Casas exited on Saturday. He'll likely continue to start at first base given how desperate Boston is for literally any healthy players, but Dalbec shouldn't be expected to make a real impact yet. If you're thinking of being opportunistic with the Casas injury then you're likely better off looking elsewhere for a first baseman on the waiver wire (maybe LaMonte Wade Jr. who we mentioned earlier!).
Other names to keep an eye on who are now receiving more playing time:
Sean Bouchard- OF, Colorado Rockies
Danny Mendick - 3B, Chicago White Sox
Batting Order Changes for Fantasy Baseball
Taylor Ward - OF, Los Angeles Angels
The Angels have been tinkering around with their lineup as of late, most notably putting Mike Trout into the leadoff spot. With that change, Taylor Ward also slid up from the cleanup spot to the three-hole. Ward's season has gone a bit under the radar but he's been very strong, hitting for an .840 OPS with seven HR.
Taylor Ward hits the Angels second homer of the inning! 💥
(via @BallySportWest)pic.twitter.com/x3c60oeoVo
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) April 24, 2024
The 30-year-old also may even be the victim of bad luck as the gap between his .365 wOBA and his .410 xwOBA tells us he may experience some positive regression in the near future. If your league is crazy enough to have him available on your waiver wire, snag him. Otherwise, he may be someone you want to target for a trade if your roster needs some outfield help.
Elly De La Cruz - SS, Cincinnati Reds
What a sophomore season the 22-year-old is having. The Reds are moving his 1.063 OPS into the two-hole, a move that started just a couple of games ago. But with the modern ideology of putting your best hitter second, it makes perfect sense. If De La Cruz keeps up his same production then this should be a huge boost to his overall stats with much more opportunities being available to him.
The Elly De La Cruz effect.
Elly single.
Elly stolen base.
Elly stolen base.
Elly run on sac fly. #Reds
— Chatterbox Sports (@CBoxSports) April 25, 2024
This should also give De La Cruz more chances to weaponize his speed on the basepaths and create more scoring opportunities for the Reds. With stronger hitters up top, it's more likely he's driven in compared to some of Cincinnati's weaker bats at the bottom of the lineup. If he's on your roster, get ready for more production, and be glad your drafted him.
Other players to keep an eye on for batting order changes:
Evan Carter - OF, Texas Rangers
Jordan Westburg - 2B, Baltimore Orioles
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