Fantasy Baseball Trade Targets: Under The Radar Hitters

Scott Engel provides a rundown of lesser-heralded and disregarded hitters that can elevate your fantasy baseball fortunes.

We all want to pull off the blockbuster trade in our fantasy baseball leagues. A premier deal can significantly alter our season outlook, and also provide the adrenaline rush that we play the game for. But there are other ways to improve our squads, especially when we are looking for upgrades or improvements in the hitting categories.

Minor deals can also elevate your team in the standings. Every single stat counts throughout the season and the best fantasy baseball players are always looking to swing lesser-heralded trades that will fill some gaps or provide a moderate boost in any category.

In real-life sports, role players and specialists are important parts of championship squads. In fantasy baseball, those types of performers are essential to success as well.

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Fantasy Baseball Trade Targets

There are several hitters in this article below who are not big names at all, and others who have lost their luster because they have not met overall expectations. We take a look at the non-marquee performers who can be key pieces to your championship puzzles if you can acquire them.

A few buy-low types are also included in our rundown of lower-level hitting trade targets who can propel your team to a higher spot in the standings by playing “best supporting hitter” roles the rest of the way. All stats are through games of May 30.

Overlooked And Undervalued Hitters

Tyrone Taylor: Over the past two weeks, Taylor is hitting .319 with five home runs and 15 RBIs. He has been playing regularly with Hunter Renfroe out, but he could keep his bat in the lineup often even when Renfroe returns. Taylor’s 45.5 Hard Hit Rate is the highest of his career so far. See if the fantasy player who rosters him now in an NL-only league is concerned about Taylor losing at-bats soon, and making a play to get him.

Jorge Soler: After hitting .171 with two homers in the first month of the season, Soler heated up nicely in May. He hit nine home runs in May while batting .300 over the past two weeks. Soler’s ISO of .252 is his highest since the 2019 season when it was at .304. Soler hit 48 home runs that year, and he should finish with well over 30 this season. Soler can be a drain on your BA but he is a good target if your team needs a spark in the power department.

Jorge Soler has two home runs today! pic.twitter.com/rPd43XDAoR

— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 29, 2022

Cedric Mullins: He has not been the all-around fantasy star he was last season, but Mullins is still operating as an asset to fantasy teams. He has 11 stolen bases, which is top-five in MLB. Mullins has a Sprint Speed of 48.6, which is not elite. He ranks just inside the top-50 in that category. That Sprint Speed number shows Mullins is just not about pure wheels. His savvy technique is a major factor in his stolen base success. He should continue to stack up the steals and is a quality trade target if you need a boost in that category. Mullins’ slippage in other regards makes him easier to acquire.

Ketel Marte: Marte started slowly, hitting .146 in April, and he has just two homers and two steals overall. Now is the time to buy low on him if you can. He was hitting .360 in May as the month came to a close. Marte’s SwStr% of 9.8 is the highest of his career so far, as is his K% of 20.1. But his Hard Hit Rate of 47.0 is the second-highest of his career and his Exit Velocity of 90.5 is closely in line with his career norms. Marte’s surface BA of .257 appears to be mediocre, but he has been hitting well lately and the counting numbers may improve soon.

Mike Yastrzemski: He was a late-round pick for power as a final outfielder in many mixed leagues, but Yastrzemski is also hitting for average and more homers could be on the way. Yastrzemski is hitting .298, yet his xBA of .297 indicates that the BA appears to be no fluke. His .535 xSLG also betters his SLG by nearly 60 points. The ISO of .177 is 60 points below his career and the HR/FB% of 10.3 is a career-low. Now is the time to trade for Yastrzemski, as the overall statistical profile can be more impressive than it is right now. Yastrzemski could be headed for the best season of his career in terms of combining a good BA with a healthy amount of homers.

Christian Walker: He appears to be a drag in the batting average category. But there is no doubting the power if your team needs an upgrade in that regard. Walker headed into the final game of May with eight homers for the month. And is he really a detriment to your team’s BA? There is a tremendous gap between his .195 BA and the .272 xBA. Walker’s ridiculous .176 BABIP will certainly correct itself and he should hit for a more respectable monthly BA the rest of the way. Plus, Walker has a decent shot of surpassing his career-high of 29 home runs that he finished with in 2019.

Jeff McNeil: He has gone back to the basics of the hitting approach from his first season in the Majors, and the results have been terrific for McNeil from real-life perspectives. Because he has only three homers with 24 RBIs and 24 runs scored, McNeil is not regarded as a major fantasy contributor. But the BA of .308 is backed by an xBA of .288, and McNeil has built half of his season RBI total over the past two weeks. He qualifies at middle infield and in the outfield. McNeil is versatile, and he is a “glue guy" in real life and in fantasy baseball. He is a quality supporting cast member around your top core players.

Keep shifting on Jeff McNeil.

I'm sure that strategy will work. (by the way, he's 3-for-3) pic.twitter.com/bzEe6wl88E

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 1, 2022

Nico Hoerner: Now that he is healthy again, Hoerner can chip in with some steals and a bit of pop. On Monday, he had three RBIs and two steals. He has three homers and five stolen bases in 115 at-bats. Hoerner is now playing regularly at shortstop for the Cubs and he has been hitting as high as fifth in the lineup recently. He also has a .296 BA that is backed up by a .319 xBA. Hoerner qualifies at both middle infield positions and can be a viable contributor across the board for the rest of the season.

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