Fantasy owners are undoubtedly wondering who’s worth grabbing. Let’s take a look at the top pickups and see if we can spot anyone else worth adding to your fantasy lineup.
MORE: Top 50 prospects | RP depth chart
Mallex Smith scouting report
Smith is like a middle-class man’s Billy Hamilton on the basepaths (57 SBs in the minors last year), but Billy Hamilton is a homeless man’s Mallex Smith when it comes to getting on base. The Braves’ 22-year-old speedster was called up when Ender Inciarte (hamstring) was placed on the DL Sunday, and there’s a chance he could get everyday playing time in center while Inciarte is out. At the very least, Smith will likely form a lefty/righty platoon with Drew Stubbs.
Smith has posted a .295/.380/.387 line in the minors, so he can obviously hit – just not that hard. He’s your classic three-category fantasy player (average, runs, steals) in the mold of Ben Revere, but his top skill is so valuable that he immediately becomes an intriguing fantasy prospect. As we said, it’s unclear just how much playing time Smith will get, and we don’t know how long Inciarte will be out. If it’s just a two-week thing, Smith will probably get sent back to the minors, as it’s unlikely the Braves will keep him in their lineup over Inciarte or Hector Olivera, but for now, Smith should be picked up in all leagues.
Nomar Mazara worth a pickup
Our prospects guru Frank Neville already provided a scouting report for Mazara, and the recommendation is to grab him if you can. Consistency and batting average are potential issues, but as long as Shin-Soo Choo (calf) is out, Mazara should get regular at-bats – and regular opportunities to show off his impressive power. That’s a four-to-six-week audition that could lead to a full-time job for the 20-year-old masher.
Is Eugenio Suarez for real?
Suarez started pounding the ball last season after the Reds called him up (13 HRs in 97 games), and he just hasn’t stopped, starting this year with four homers in the opening week. Perhaps most interesting is that he’s only struck out once. Obviously, the numbers will start to even out, but Suarez is looking like he can have fantasy staying power, especially when you factor in his dual-eligibility.
Tyler White continues raking
White was a classic preseason sleeper thanks to his plum spot in a great lineup, and he hasn’t disappointed, starting the season with a .556/.591/1.167 line. His three homers are the real surprise, as he wasn’t a huge power guy in the minors. It’s tough to imagine White, 25, keeps hitting homers at anywhere close to this rate, but he’s worth owning right now. Clearly, he has big-time RBI upside even if he’s just hitting doubles.
Jeanmar Gomez taking over as Phillies’ closer
Phillies manager Pete Mackanin won’t come out and officially name Jeanmar Gomez the team’s closer, but after locking down the team’s last two save chances, it’s pretty clear Gomez is the preferred option.
Gomez served as Philadelphia’s primary setup man last year after Jonathan Papelbon was traded, and he posted decent stats (3.01/1.33, 6.03 K/9 ratio). Obviously, those numbers aren’t going to blow you away, but as long as he’s getting saves, fantasy owners can live with the lack of Ks and relatively high WHIP.
David Hernandez and Dalier Hinojosa have already bombed their auditions for the ninth-inning job, so the only threat to Gomez (aside from himself) is if the Phillies decide to play matchups in the ninth inning and put in a lefty for a one-out save.
Who is the A’s closer?
Sean Doolittle entered the season as Oakland’s clear ninth-inning man – or so we thought. Ryan Madson has earned saves in two of Oakland’s past three save chances. Manager Bob Melvin has said he will play matchups in the eighth and ninth inning, which likely means he’ll go to Doolittle if a couple lefties are due up in the eighth. It makes sense, but it doesn’t do any favors for fantasy owners.
Both Doolittle and Madson need to be owned in Roto leagues, but if you’re in an H2H league (especially a weekly H2H league) and can’t afford a reliever who might not get a save, then it’s not crazy for both to be on the waiver wire.
More fantasy baseball pickups
Jeremy Hazelbaker, OF, Cardinals. Prior to last year, Hazelbaker was a fairly non-descript prospect, and prior to this season, it didn’t look like he’d have anywhere to play in the Cardinals’ outfield. But Randal Grichuk’s slow start and the relative blahness of Brandon Moss and Matt Adams have opened the door for Hazelbaker – and he’s making the most of it.
Hazelbaker doesn’t have one standout skill, but when he’s playing well, he can hit some homers, steal some bases, and provide a good average. He doesn’t seem like a good bet to keep up his hot start, though. Even with a .400/.444/.867 line, he’s striking out 27.8 percent of the time – a problem that’s plagued him throughout the minors. Given the Cardinals’ plethora of OF and 1B options, Hazelbaker seems like a nice early-season story and nothing more, but by all means, get some stats out of him while you can.
Vincent Velasquez, SP, Phillies. Velasquez mowed down the Mets in his first start, striking out nine over six scoreless innings. Of course, he also walked three, and for Velasquez to really be anything more than a streaming option, he’s going to need to cut back that number. The strikeout upside is legit, but wins will likely be tough to come by, so Velasquez is still a question mark for long-term fantasy success.
Ross Stripling, SP, Dodgers. Stripling is the only SP who hasn’t allowed a hit this year – kind of cool, right? The Dodgers’ rookie tossed 7.1 no-hit innings in his major league debut, but with a pitch count at 100, he was pulled from the game. Stripling struck out four while walking four, so it wasn’t exactly a traditional “dominating” performance, but obviously he’s on fantasy owners’ radars. If the Dodgers’ rotation holds, he has a nice string of starts through April (vs. ARI, @ATL, vs. MIA, vs. SD), so he’s not a bad investment as a “long-term” streamer with upside for more.
Javier Baez, 2B/SS/3B, Cubs and Jorge Soler, OF, Cubs. Someone has to fill in for Kyle Schwarber (knee), and while Soler is the most obvious choice, don’t be surprised if Baez benefits from Schwarber’s injury, too. The Cubs could easily move Ben Zobrist to the outfield and start Baez at second base once the latter is over his thumb and head injuries. Both Soler and Baez should be owned in all leagues until we see how this situation plays out.
