RADIO
Now that summer is officially here, it’s the perfect time to take a hard look in the mirror. Are you a contender or a pretender? Are you close enough to be a buyer? Should you sell off assets and acquire young talent or draft picks in your dynasty league?
It’s still a little early to be definitive one way or the other, but it’s appropriate to begin the debate internally. Whether you’re going for it or not, you may need to dip into your watch list for players to fill out your roster.
On to this week’s list.
Players to watch in 10-team leagues
Tony Watson (RP, SF) - 23% owned
With Hunter Strickland’s injury, manager Bruce Bochy has assigned ninth inning duties to Sam Dyson. That didn’t work out so well Wednesday as the former Rangers stopper, who struggled in his debut as the Giants closer. Tony Watson and his sparkling 1.82 ERA and 40 strikeouts through 34.2 innings is waiting in the wings.
Kevin Kiermaier (OF, TB) - 22% owned
It’s been a slow start for Kiermaier, who returned from a broken thumb Tuesday. In two games, the Gold Glove outfielder has gone 0-for-9 with three strikeouts. The power-speed combo still exists though, so it’s worth monitoring his progress as he attempts to get back into game shape.
Freddy Peralta (SP, MIL) - 25% owned
Peralta is back with the big club and boy was he impressive on Tuesday. The electric righty scattered two hits over six shutout innings while striking out seven Pirates in Milwaukee’s 3-2 win. Peralta now has 25 K through 15.2 innings pitched with a tidy 2.30 ERA and 0.894 WHIP.
Ryan Tepera (RP, TOR) - 34% owned
With Roberto Osuna’s situation still up in the air and rumblings suggesting he’s pitched his last game as a Blue Jay, the closer job is Tepera’s. While he can’t be fully trusted - he has three blown saves this season including some trouble nailing down Wednesday’s win over Atlanta - the Blue Jays have no better option to close out games at the moment, which gives him value in almost all leagues.
Carlos Gonzalez (OF, COL) - 36% owned
The latest on Gonzo has him at a .988 OPS in the past week with an improved eye at the plate (3:3 walk-to-strikeout ratio). Over the last 30 days he’s been just as good, with 3 HR, 13 RBI and a .965 OPS. Based on his track record he could explode at any moment.
Jose Peraza (2B/SS, CIN) - 36% owned
Peraza’s hitting and speed still have the potential to be game-changing but he hasn’t been able to put it all together at the major league level. He’s done his best to change that over the past month, hitting .304 with 10 runs and a pair of steals (he was also caught twice). He’s far from trustworthy as a starter but his speed makes him an automatic watch.
Players to watch in 12-team leagues
Matt Duffy (2B/3B, TB) - 16% owned
Duffy’s ownership rate has doubled since we mentioned him here last week, as he’s continued to rake. Over the last seven days he’s hit .333 with a 1.040 OPS and remains a solid source of batting average going forward.
Randal Grichuk (OF, TOR) - 10% owned
Grichuk endured a horrid start to 2018 and followed that up with an extended absence on the disabled list but he’s been on fire so far in June, hitting .316/.371/1.090 in 62 plate appearances. Despite a lowly .203 average on the season he’s still slugging a respectable .455. Keep an eye on Grichuk if you’re in need of some cheap power.
Jose Iglesias (SS, DET) - 10% owned
A shortshop who steals bags? Sounds like someone worth watching. Iglesias has already set a career high with 12 swipes and has upped his average to .273. He’s in no real danger of losing any playing time and he’s turning into a decent option in standard or deeper leagues for managers in search of some steals.
Kendrys Morales (1B, TOR) - 11% owned
Don’t look now but Morales appears to be finding his groove at the plate with multi-hit efforts in his last three starts as well as home runs in two straight. For the season, his exit velocity and hard hit percentage are actually the highest they’ve been since the Statcast era began in 2015, which has lead to an xBA of .288 and an xSLG of .566 (he currently sits at .239 and .408, respectively).
Players to watch in deeper leagues (14-team or AL/NL only)
Pablo Sandoval (1B/3B, SF) - 5% owned
The Panda cracks the watch list this week after posting a strong line over the past seven days. Sandoval hit a pair of homers and drove in four while producing a 1.036 OPS during that span. With Evan Longoria out, Sandoval could be a worth a look for deep league managers seeking corner infield help.
Reyes Moronta (RP, SF) - 2% owned
We touched on the Giants closer situation above but the other player who could be interesting to watch is Moronta, who picked up the save Wednesday after Dyson failed to get the job done. It’s worth noting that Watson had already pitched in the game so he was unavailable to close, but that doesn’t change the fact that Moronta has been excellent. In 33 IP the right-hander has racked up 39 Ks to go along with a 1.91 ERA and 1.09 WHIP.
Jorge Bonifacio (OF, KC) - 0% owned
Bonifacio swatted 17 homers in a fairly impressive MLB debut last season but was suspended for testing positive for an illegal substance prior to the start of this season. He’s set to return June 27 and is worth keeping an eye on as he works his way back during his current rehab assignment. There may not be an everyday spot for him initially but an injury could bump him up the depth chart.
Danny Jansen (C, TOR) - 0% owned
With the trade deadline just over a month away it’s worth speculating on some promising prospects that could still be under the radar. One of them is Jansen, who has been incredible once again at Triple-A. He sports a .308/.417/.492 slash line and a 0.93 BB/K ratio. His ability to hit at the catcher position gives him immense value. With Russell Martin struggling, expect to see Jansen get a shot behind the dish at some point in 2018.
