Some might look back at the critical changes ESPN Fantasy made with its baseball game entering this season and presume smaller rosters means less individual strategy, more coasting with your preseason, drafted rosters, but that should not be the case. For example, I gleefully added Toronto Blue Jays 2B Davis Schneider in a league today, dumping Texas Rangers star 3B Josh Jung. Next to go is Cleveland Guardians 2B Andres Gimenez and St. Louis Cardinals OF Jordan Walker. That is just silly, right? I mean, who is Davis Schneider?
Well, good question! I admit I did not know of Mr. Schneider prior to the weekend, but then he delivered nine hits - including a pair of home runs - in 13 at-bats at Fenway Park this weekend, while Jung fractured his left thumb Sunday afternoon and Gimenez and Walker continue to struggle and, all of a sudden, someone named Davis Schneider is worth a roster spot over the potential AL Rookie of the Year and others who are a bit too beloved.
Typically, it would be a tough sell to recommend someone named Davis Schneider off one magical weekend against a fading team in strife, but why not take the chance in a shallow fantasy league, go and chase that streak? See what happens. What's the real risk? Schneider, 24, is no top prospect, but I am not so sure that means much once a player makes the major leagues. Schneider hit .275 with a .969 OPS over 87 games at Triple-A Buffalo, with 21 home runs and nine stolen bases. He walked 72 times. Sure seems intriguing!
This is not really about Davis Schneider, though. It is about taking chances and feeling confident about them. A 10-team ESPN standard league has room for only nine active hitters, and I use my bench on starting pitchers not starting that day. Those still trusting preseason rankings or big-name loyalty are going to be left behind. We are in August and what we thought back in March and saw in the statistics in April and May matters little. Trust recent trends. Perhaps not so recent as one weekend at Fenway, but streaming is the key word. Take chances because there are so many good players on free agency, you can always find one.
The now-injured Jung is the No. 8 third baseman on the full-season Player Rater, but I don't know when he is going to hit again and, well, it is August. I need help this week. Jung is not going to provide it. Gimenez has been a below-average fantasy option all season. Walker is doing little. What are we waiting for?
I look at the ESPN most dropped list and agree with the cuts. Everyone loved Cincinnati Reds rookie 3B Christian Encarnacion-Strand two weeks ago. Now they don't. Farewell, overachieving Los Angeles Angels OF Mickey Moniak and young Pittsburgh Pirates C/OF Henry Davis. What is relevant is whether you are hitting today, not a month ago. Minnesota Twins OF Byron Buxton is on the injured list again? OMG, enough already. Hello, Davis Schneider, at least this week.
I spent several text messages this weekend convincing a friend to trade Boston Red Sox OF prospect Ceddanne Rafaela in one keeper league for immediate help. He did. Win now. Always win now. I moved new Guardians 1B prospect Kyle Manzardo in a dynasty league for immediate help. Immediate help, fantasy managers! Maybe Manzardo is the next Matt Olson, I don't know, but I can justify this if need be - and why must I justify anything to anyone? - because I went for it now. Maybe he is Vinnie Pasquantino, which is still nice. Or perhaps he is Alex Kiriloff. Or Matt Mervis? Do you know? Does anyone?
Look closer at your teams and see who deserves a roster spot and who does not. It always depends on what else is available, of course, but be aggressive in moving on from the strugglers. It doesn't mean they can't turn things around, but luck doesn't always even out. Look at what Houston Astros SS Jeremy Pena has done over the past 30 days (1.3 fantasy points per game). Yuck. Colorado Rockies All-Star C Elias Diaz has been worse. Move on! Think Seattle Mariners 1B Ty France is helping your team? Think again! There is an easy solution here. Find other players.
Go Davis Schneider, go. This cannot last because nobody hits .692 for long, not even Luis Arraez. Schneider probably won't hit .292 for long, but in his third big-league game and with pretty much no prospect pedigree whatsoever, he batted third for a current playoff team Sunday. He homered among four hits, knocked in four and I bet he plays a lot against Guardians and Cubs pitching this week. If Schneider doesn't hit, well, there will be someone just like him next week. Add that guy, next. See what sticks. Keep seeing. This is supposed to be fun. I doubt relying on Mickey Moniak was going to be much fun.
Other weekend thoughts
I may be proven wrong about this one any minute, but I keep Guardians 3B Mike Tyson - I mean, Jose Ramirez - active for this week. Suspension is surely forthcoming after he and perplexing Chicago White Sox SS Tim Anderson squared off in an actual fight this weekend, with Anderson playing the role of beleaguered Michael Spinks (look it up, kids), but players tend to, um, fight suspensions. It could be delayed. Could be reduced. Ramirez is the No. 15 hitter on the Rater this season.
Nobody should have been relying on Anderson in fantasy anymore. He is last among 144 batting title qualifiers with a .292 slugging percentage. He just hit his first home run last week. Anderson managed to hit .300 for years despite truly awful plate discipline and, as with Detroit Tigers SS Javier Baez and other over-aggressive hackers, this strategy eventually becomes a big problem. Baez is slugging .325. I liked Arizona Diamondbacks OF Jake McCarthy entering the season. He is fast. He is slugging .346. It's not going to happen for Jake McCarthy.
Fantasy managers may rush to get Rangers IF Ezequiel Duran, since he is the natural Jung replacement in real life, but you should take a look at his recent numbers: Duran is hitting .161 with a .540 OPS since the All-Star break. A .206 BABIP plays a role, and for all we know Duran suddenly gets hot and we are all adding him next week. I just don't think I would add him this week. I hope Jung and Rangers C Jonah Heim are back on the field soon, but these are hand injuries, too.
Batting average is not a category in points leagues. There is only one category, and hits contribute to it, but so do walks and runs. Philadelphia Phillies OF Kyle Schwarber entered Sunday with five hits in his past 55 at-bats (.091 batting average), but with 21 walks in that span. Then he homered Sunday. Schwarber is hitting .182 and there are no signs that number is a fluke, but he has more walks than hits. He's averaging 2.2 fantasy points per game over the past month, which is fine. In roto, we keep him for the home runs. Only six players have more.
New York Yankees LHP Carlos Rodon has a 7.33 ERA after six starts and probably hits the injured list again today with a hamstring pull. Move on, fantasy managers. It's just not gonna happen this season. Rodon was among the best pitchers in the sport the past two seasons and today, something is wrong. He's not the same. Hasn't gone six innings in any outing. You're going to remember his awful season next March and pass on him and you know he is going to bounce back and have a monster season. That's how this works, sometimes.