Fantasy 5 Up 5 Down: Don’t Fear The Trade

After a few frenzied weeks punctuated by dazzling major league debuts, dramatic late-inning heroics and dominant pitching performances, the past week has been a rather welcome calm after the storm. The magic performances from Harvey and Wheeler during Tuesday’s double-header were an exciting glimpse of the future for Mets fans and fantasy players, whilst Puig’s ridiculous start has continued to defy logic. It can be hard to sell a player who’s hitting or pitching so well, but fantasy players always need to be open to trades.

1. Jay Bruce

If you looked up ‘streaky’ in the dictionary, you would probably be greeted by a picture of Jay Bruce. Overused clichés aside, Bruce is on an absolute tear this month, hitting six homers in his last eight games, and making anyone that dealt for him after his April woes look like a genius. During the power surge, he hasn’t been getting that many hits, but everything he does put in play is flying over the fence, and the .277 average is actually pretty good. Of course, for every hot streak is a maddening cold slump, and whilst Bruce should be a good bet for RBI’s with Choo and Votto getting on base ahead of him, the average could plummet at any moment. If you get a big trade offer from a power-starved owner, don’t be afraid to pull the trigger.

2. Anthony Rendon

After looking out of his depth in his first taste of big league experience in late April, Rendon has been much more productive in his second stint, and has a robust .333 average to go with a homer, a steal and some runs/RBI. Playing him at second base is risky for the Nationals given his ankle issues, but is a dream for fantasy owners who now have eligibility at a scarce position. I think Rendon could put up an average around .280, and maybe have enough power to lift 5-10 homers, but we won’t see his true upside for a few seasons yet, so don’t get him confused with more major-league ready prospects.

3. José Fernandez

If he were on any team other than the Marlins, you have to think he’d be generating a lot more buzz. His 3.05 ERA and 1.10 WHIP are elite numbers for any pitcher, but considering he is just 20 years old, those numbers look even more incredible. Fernandez works mostly with two pitches – his fastball which can rise up to 99mph, and his breaking ball, nick-named ‘the defector’ which has a slurvy action with tons of break. He is likely to meet an innings cap at some point, but has a lot of value until then, especially in keeper leagues, and may be in with an outside chance at the rookie of the year award if the Marlins can start scoring some runs.

4. Max Scherzer

Scherzer was dazzling at times last season, but struggled sometimes with walks and home runs, making him a bit unreliable. This season, he has taken the next step, becoming the Tigers ace and putting forward his claim to be a top 5 fantasy pitcher. His 10-0 record is perfect, and the 3.08 ERA and 0.91 WHIP are hallmarks of a dominant starter. He strikes out a ton of hitters, and has found a way to combat some control issues. If you have him on your team, you have to love this start to the season, and I see no reason why he can’t keep it up.

5. Koji Uehara

With Bailey demoted from the closer’s role after giving up a walk-off home run to Jhonny Peralta on Thursday, Uehara appears to be the first in line for a shot at the 9th inning role. Pitching in the eighth inning this season, Uehara has been superb, with a 2.10 ERA and 0.87 WHIP as well as his fair share of punchouts. He should be an effective closer, but before you go all out to pick him up, bear in mind that the Red Sox have plenty of other candidates like Junichi Tazawa or Andrew Miller that could pounce if Uehara slips up.

1. Kelly Johnson

It looks like Johnson will be the main person to lose out from Wil Myers promotion, as there is no longer a spot for him in the outfield. He’ll likely get a few starts each week thanks to his versatility, but in most leagues he’s not worth owning any more. If Matt Joyce struggles he may get more at-bats, and he has been a nice power/speed performer so far this season, but unless Maddon commits to him as the full-time DH, it’s unlikely he’ll be on the field enough.

2. Adrian Gonzalez

The Dodgers first baseman has a good .299 clip with 45 RBI, but the eight home runs are disappointing and he has shown signs of a slump in recent weeks. He had a nice performance in the double-header against the Yanks, but other than that has been unable to put together many multi-hit games. He doesn’t strike out much and is a nice option for average and counting stats, but he’s yet to get his power stroke going.

3. R.A. Dickey

Dickey continues to struggle in Toronto, with a 5.15 ERA and 1.39 WHIP. Whilst it’s still possible he could turn these woes around, it’s hard to see cause for optimism, particularly when the Blue Jays aren’t scoring enough runs to give him wins. He’s certainly still a decent streaming option, but playing in the AL East doesn’t give him many attractive match-ups. Owners likely have to hold on to him and hope he turns it around, but if there are better options out there you can drop the reigning AL Cy Young winner.

4. Jered Weaver

I’ve never been a big fan of Jered Weaver, as his lack of strikeouts prevent him from being an elite fantasy option. So far, since his comeback he has struggled, and is yet to go more than 6 innings this season. He’s not really faced tough match-ups either, and though he should turn around this rough patch, I don’t think you can rely on him to be the ace of your staff this year. He is a decent buy-low option, but I’d put him in the same category as guys like Matt Moore or Zack Greinke, rather than Cliff Lee or Justin Verlander.

5. Tom Wilhelmsen

Wilhelmsen suffered an implosion against the Houston earlier in the month, and from there he has struggled further, pitching himself out of the 9th inning job, probably for the rest of the season. There are no obvious successors in Seattle, so if he can turn his fortunes around quickly he may earn another shot, but for now he should be dropped in almost all formats – although the 16 saves he’s banked already are a nice bonus for fantasy owners.

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