The Yankees and Red Sox will play a two-game series in England this weekend. This is being done to try and grow the game internationally and also because it will make money. Fantasy owners should be wary however as none of us knows how the players will react to playing games that count in a stadium that they have never played in before. Players do seem to be creatures of habit after all. Rick Porcello and Eduardo Rodriguez are scheduled to start for Boston. Masahiro Tanaka will start Saturday for the Yankees, but they are undecided as to who will start Sunday. The rotation spot belongs to J.A. Happ, but as we will discuss below, he has been awful so it just may go to CC Sabathia, but he has struggled against Boston in the past. Either way, with centerfield being only 385 feet from home plate, you may want to avoid all of the starting pitchers and concentrate on the hitters. One good news for the pitchers, however, is the amount of foul territory at the stadium. It is immense, think Oakland and there is a 16-foot wall in CF where normally it would be about eight feet. I’m still banking on the offense this weekend.
Risers
Ian Desmond, Colorado Rockies: Wasn’t it only like a month ago that we were all hating on Desmond because he was hitting about a buck eighty with minimal power? Well, that changed quickly as Desmond is now batting .281 with double-digit bombs and 40 RBIs. Those are the numbers we were hoping for when we drafted him as an OF 4 in March. Now, he’s not perfect by any means. We were also hoping for about 20 SBs and right now he has one more than you or I, one. Desmond also doesn’t play every day as the Rockies have more players than they have positions available to play. Desmond has missed the past two games with a lower-body injury but is expected to play Tuesday in San Francisco.
Ramon Laureano, Oakland Athletics: Laureano may actually give us what Desmond won’t, a 20/20 season. Laureano gets quite a bit of publicity for his defensive highlights, especially that bazooka of an arm he possesses, but he’s also likely to hit 20+ HRs and approach 20 SBs. We all want bags as the stolen base really is an endangered species outside of a couple of speedsters. The fact Laureano can give you 20 with pop and with an AVG that won’t hurt you is just a bonus we weren’t expecting.
Marcus Stroman, Toronto Blue Jays: Stroman has had a solid season with a 3.04 ERA and 1.25 WHIP, but he couldn’t have picked a better time to throw a gem of a game versus the Red Sox on Sunday. Stroman is going to be dealt by the deadline. The Yankees are very interested and pitching a gem, versus their arch-rival, in Fenway, only increased his value. The Blue Jays can now demand more from the Yankees in a trade. Stroman knows the AL East and is from New York. This makes to much sense not to happen. The general manager of the Yankees, Brian Cashman, has stated that he will only trade Clint Frazier if he can acquire a pitcher the team can control for more than just this season. Well, Stroman is also signed through next year.
Mallex Smith, Seattle Mariners: Smith was terrible earlier this season. So terrible that the Mariners shipped him back to Triple-A. Since being recalled, however, he looks like a new player He’s hitting for power, speed, and AVG. Can he keep it up? Maybe yes, maybe no, but the speed isn’t going anywhere. Smith may actually still be available on your waiver wire and if he is, if you’re like my fantasy teams, he’s a must get as you probably need SBs.
Scott Kingery, Philadelphia Phillies: Due to injuries to other Phillies, poor play by Maikel Franco, and his own hot play, Kingery is now a full-time player for Philadelphia. Much was expected of Kingery last season as he signed a long-term contract before the season started, but perhaps too much was expected to soon. This season Kingery has seemed to figure it out. He’s not going to bat .333 all season, but .300 seems to be within his reach along with 20 HRs and double-digit steals. Sign me up for that. His multi-position eligibility doesn’t hurt either.
Fallers
Mike Foltynewicz, Atlanta Braves: What happened to Foltynewicz? Yes, he began the season on the disabled list with an elbow injury, but that doesn’t excuse just how awful he has pitched in 11 starts this season. Folty is 2-5, 6.37 ERA, and a 1.42 WHIP in those starts. After giving up eight runs in his last start, the Braves sent him down to Triple-A to figure things out. Folty may not be able to help you or the Braves this season.
Mitch Garver, Minnesota Twins: I can’t stand the catching position in fantasy baseball. It’s a necessary evil but such a hard position to fill, especially if you’re league requires you to start two of them. Garver was a godsend earlier this season as he was extremely productive and no one saw that coming, but a series of injuries have limited that effectiveness of late. Right now, his current malady is in his heel and that’s keeping him out of the lineup. You will likely have to be patient here as there can’t be much left at catcher on your WW.
Frankie Montas, Oakland Athletics: The Athletics and fantasy owners were dealt an extreme blow when Montas was suspended 80 games for violating the PED policy. This means he isn’t likely to return in a starting role for Oakland this season and even if he does, it would only be for a start or two in September. What a shame as Montas was in the running for fantasy MVP as he was either drafted late or taken off the WW and was extremely productive for his owners.
J.A. Happ, New York Yankees: What can we say about Happ? He’s been terrible this season. After getting lit up by the Astros on Sunday to the tune of eight runs in four innings his ERA ballooned to 5.23 and his WHIP is now 1.28. Throw in that he’s serving up HRs like he’s a softball pitcher and you see the problem. The Yankees are skipping his return in the rotation this week as they are afraid that if he pitches versus Boston on Sunday in England, those fans will be turned off towards the Yankees forever. I joke, but he’s been that awful. I’d hate to release a Yankee starter, but unless wins are the only thing you need, I can’t see how you can continue to start him.
