Josh Smith - Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups (Week 8)

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues

ROSTERED IN: 47% of Leagues

ANALYSIS: Since Josh Jung went on the IL, Josh Smith has filled in admirably and made himself fantasy-relevant in the process. On the season, the 26-year-old is slashing .295/.402/.464 with two home runs, 17 RBI, 21 runs scored, and even picked up his first stolen base of the season on Wednesday. In games where he's been a starter, Smith has got on base via hit, walk, or HBP in 29 of 30 games. Also included in his 33 hits on the season are 11 doubles. Only five players have more than that.

The Rangers have had 11 plate appearances of 10-or-more pitches, MOST IN MLB.

Josh Smith leads the team and is T-2nd in MLB with three such plate appearances.

3-Smith
2-Lowe, Langford
1-Semien, Taveras, Jankowski, Duran

— Jared Sandler (@JaredSandler) May 9, 2024

So, is this sustainable? Well, there are certainly signs that point to yes, including the following stats that are all better than the league average:

• 20.5% K% (league avg. 22.4%)
• 10.6% BB% (league avg. 8.7%)
• 79.7% Contact% (league avg. 76.9%)
• 28.1% O-Swing% a.k.a. "chase rate" (league avg. 31.1.%)

One number to the contrary is his BABIP of .373. That is abnormally high and supports his xBA of .251 compared to his actual batting average of .295. The former second-round MLB draft pick may see a drop in BA over the coming weeks, but the stats don't support it falling dramatically. If he can continue to hit for extra bases, it may not matter all that much to fantasy managers anyway.

All Smith needs to do is hold down the fort while Josh Jung recovers. Jung is expected back around mid-season and Smith should continue to produce enough until then to make himself a rosterable fantasy asset in the meantime. This is especially so due to his multi-position eligibility in Yahoo leagues, where he can be slotted into 3B, SS, and OF. You can go grab him off the waiver wire in over 50% of Yahoo leagues.

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