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Joey discusses five well-known fantasy baseball hitters and pitchers who have not performed well heading into Week 4 of 2025. Is it time to drop, sell, or hold?
Welcome, RotoBallers, to our weekly article about well-known fantasy baseball players. Every week, we will go through several big-name players currently in a rough stretch at the plate or on the mound. Then, we'll determine if we should drop, hold, or trade them entering the next week.
All five players featured in this week's edition were drafted in almost every fantasy league in the spring. Nevertheless, none of these five players has necessarily been a strong fantasy option to start the 2025 season.
So, what should fantasy managers do with these five well-known fantasy players? Should we drop, hold, or sell them heading into Week 4 (April 21 - April 27)? Let's dive in and find out.
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Brandon Lowe, 2B, Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Brandon Lowe definitely got off to a nice start this season. He was hitting .289 with three home runs and eight RBI across his first 11 games. However, Lowe has struggled to put together strong at-bats over the past two weeks. The left-handed slugger has just four hits with five RBI over his last eight games.
Brandon Lowe shares the #Rays all-time homer list with some elite company pic.twitter.com/w2GyxzXs7P
— Rays The Roof (@RaysTheRoofTB) April 2, 2025
Although Lowe has dropped his overall batting average to just .233, the 30-year-old has gotten a bit unlucky in recent weeks. His expected batting average (.297) is 66 points higher than his actual batting average, and his xwOBA (.374) ranks in the 78th percentile to begin the season. So, we should expect better results from him offensively very soon.
But Lowe isn't necessarily a strong hold at this point in the season. He often sits against left-handed pitching, and his whiff rate (38.9 percent) is very concerning moving forward. Since he doesn't contribute much in batting average, RBI, or stolen bases, he is likely a drop in some roto formats.
If you are in need of some home runs, though, Lowe might be worth hanging on to. He has hit 21 home runs in back-to-back seasons and launched 39 home runs back during the 2021 campaign.
Jordan Westburg, 2B/3B, Baltimore Orioles
After hitting three home runs across the first three games of the season, Baltimore Orioles infielder Jordan Westburg looked like a steal at his preseason ADP. However, since that opening series, Westburg is hitting just .136 (8-for-59) with one home run, two RBI, and 14 strikeouts over his last 14 games.
It has been a brutal cold streak at the plate for the 26-year-old, which included a 0-for-30 stretch during this span. Despite that, fantasy managers should absolutely be holding Westburg in all fantasy leagues heading into Week 4.
Jordan Westburg ends his 0-for-30 streak with a solo home run.
Man, he needed that one. And so did the team. Orioles lead 7-4.
📽️: MASN pic.twitter.com/JObvHJm9Ba
— Jacob Calvin Meyer (@jcalvinmeyer) April 19, 2025
His expected slugging (.480), barrel rate (13.5 percent), and chase rate (22.3 percent) all rank solid in the early going, and it was just last season that the Orioles infielder made an All-Star appearance. His potential is too high to drop or sell him for cheap at this point in the year. Therefore, stick with him until his bat heats up.
It is a good sign that Westburg hit his fourth home run in Saturday's win.
Riley Greene, OF, Detroit Tigers
Following a breakout campaign, Detroit Tigers outfielder Riley Greene was set to build off that season in 2025. He hit .262 with 24 home runs, 27 doubles, 74 RBI, and four stolen bases in 137 games last year. Nonetheless, Greene has not been the same All-Star player to begin the new season. The lefty is hitting a mere .226 with three home runs, eight RBI, and only five walks in his first 21 games.
It has been hard for fantasy managers to trust Greene in the early going, and there aren't many positives to take away from his slow start. He ranks in the 20th percentile or worse in several categories, including xwOBA (.255), xBA (.204), squared-up rate (16.7 percent), and whiff rate (30.9 percent).
Given that Greene also leads the American League in strikeouts (31), the former 2024 All-Star might be a sell candidate right now in fantasy. His metrics are all down across the board through the first month, and strikeouts remain a massive problem for him. Although he overcame his 26.7 percent strikeout rate last year, this season might be a different story for him.
As a result, fantasy managers should see what they can get for him via the trade market. Packaging him with another player to upgrade an area of need could be a big boost for your fantasy team. Even with the slow start, there should be some interest for the 24-year-old outfielder in your league. Just make sure not to sell him for too cheap because he still has potential this year.
Alec Bohm, 3B, Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm has been one of the more consistent fantasy options in recent years. From 2022 to 2024, he averaged a .278 batting average with 16 home runs, 33 doubles, 89 RBI, and four stolen bases per season. That consistency, though, hasn't been there for Bohm to open the season.
He will enter Week 4 with just a .193 AVG, four doubles, six RBI, and one stolen base across 21 games. It really hasn't been a strong start to the year for the former All-Star, but there are signs of him slowly picking things up offensively. The 28-year-old has a hit in seven straight games and is currently batting .286 during that stretch.
Therefore, Bohm should be held onto in most formats. He is showing signs of life at the plate, and his hard-hit rate (49.3 percent) and squared-up rate (33.3 percent) both rank in the upper half of the league.
Although Bohm has never been known as a power hitter, his ability to contribute in many categories makes him worth keeping. He has hit at least 15 home runs and driven in over 95 runs in consecutive seasons while finishing above a .273 AVG in both years.
Gavin Williams, SP, Cleveland Guardians
Many fantasy managers were high on Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Gavin Williams in drafts after he was untouchable during his five starts in the spring. However, he hasn't been that same pitcher across his first four regular-season starts. Williams currently owns a 4.58 ERA with 18 strikeouts in those four outings.
Given how much Williams was talked about this offseason, it has been a disappointing start to his 2025 campaign. He has issued at least three walks in two of his past three outings and has really only had one excellent start this year. He allowed one run on three hits with two walks and seven strikeouts across five innings against the White Sox back on April 10.
Therefore, the right-hander is a fine drop in most leagues.
Gavin Williams Today:
5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 94 Pitches
16 Whiffs
37% Whiff%
31% CSW%He effectively limited hard contact (81.4 MPH) and did it primarily with his sweeper! A 74.6 MPH EV and 38% Whiff% (6/16) is impressive!pic.twitter.com/eMa8Og6ECj
— Running From The OPS (@OPS_BASEBALL) April 10, 2025
He continues to struggle with command, and his 12 percent walk rate ranks in the 26th percentile so far. With a matchup on deck against the New York Yankees on Monday, Williams will be hard to trust in all formats. It's pretty obvious that he isn't the same pitcher he was during the spring.
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