Kansas City Royals outfielder Dairon Blanco got a rare start on Saturday and made the most of it, homering twice and driving in seven runs during a 3-for-5 day at the plate in a 13-1 romp over the Reds. Blanco typically appears as a pinch-runner, and although he did not record a steal in Saturday's game, the speedster has 21 stolen bases on the season despite having just 111 plate appearances. If this performance somehow earns Blanco more playing time, he would quickly become an intriguing fantasy asset, as he easily has the highest stolen-bases-per-plate-appearances ratio of any player with at least 25 plate appearances using his 97th-percentile sprint speed.
Kansas City Royals outfielder Dairon Blanco showed up big on Thursday, leading his team to a 10-4 win over the Los Angeles Angels. Blanco went 3-for-3 with four runs scored, two RBI, a homer, and two stolen bases. It was a full stat line for Blanco, but unfortunately the 31-year-old hasn't done much to warrant being rostered in fantasy outside of this game. He will steal the occasional base, with 10 on the season, but he hardly starts games and is usually used as a late-game pinch-runner. He might see more at-bats now, but he shouldn't be rostered unless steals are at a premium.
The Kansas City Royals selected outfielder Dairon Blanco's contract from Triple-A Omaha on Monday and designated outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. for assignment in a corresponding move. Blanco will be making his return to the big leagues after going 2-for-7 with two RBI and a stolen base in five games in his major-league debut in 2022. The 30-year-old has earned another opportunity for KC by hitting an impressive .347/.444/.451 with an .895 OPS, seven doubles, a triple, three home runs, 19 RBI, 47 stolen bases and 37 runs scored in 49 games for Omaha. Because Blanco is unlikely to see a starting role for the Royals, he'll only be worthy of a waiver-wire pickup in deeper leagues for fantasy managers in need of steals. Bradley gets the boot after hitting .133 (14-for-105) with a homer and six RBI in 43 games.
