DFS PLAYBOOK PRO – An exciting offering from the Alarm is the DFS Playbook Pro. I will be doing a daily breakdown of the hitters – Hitting Coach – while Howard Bender looks into the Pitchers (Pitching Coach). You can find the link to the Hitting and Pitching articles under the DFS Playbook pro tab at the top right of the screen.
OTHER LINKS TO BOOKMARK
My thoughts on the September 1st callus can be found in the August 31st Daily Trends piece.
CUBS ADD JACKSON
Austin Jackson has been dealt by the Mariners to the Cubs for a PTBNL and the number four international signing bonus next year. In a corresponding move the Cubs designated Mike Olt for assignment to open a roster spot for AJax. "I've seen him for a long time in the American League," said Cubs manager Joe Maddon. "He's a really good player. When he starts swinging the bat really well he's very productive. He's a fine outfielder, good base runner.”
Seems like Austin will see a good deal of work in the outfield since Jorge Soler is likely out until late September with an oblique injury. But, what role will Jackson be asked to fill? With Javier Baez recalled one would think that Chris Coghlan moves back to the outfield pretty much full-time. Every day he’s healthy we know that Dexter Fowler will be out there. Kris Bryant sees time in the outfield every once in a while, and don’t forget that Kyle Schwarber is out there a lot as well.
Jackson is hot too with 16 hits over his last nine games and he’s batting .314 in August, but is there enough playing time for him to be a mixed league option? Schwarber has appeared in more outfield games (23) than as a catcher (19). Fowler has a .353 OBP, 15 homers and 17 steals, and he’s also scored the quietest 85 runs in the league. Coghlan ain’t great but he does have 15 homers, 11 steals and a solid .825 OPS against righties. Add that all up and Jackson certainly isn’t someone to target off waivers in mixed leagues unless you’re in a 15-team league.
The deal leaves an opening in centerfield in Seattle and it sounds like Brad Miller, the shortstop, will get a lot of rope in centerfield as the Mariners want to see if he can handle that spot. Miller has hit a mere .246 this season with nine homers and 12 steals over 419 plate appearances. His walk rate is up to 10.0 percent, a career best, and his line drive rate (21.4 percent) and BABIP (.297) are right in line with expectations as well. Unfortunately his 48 percent ground ball rate hurts his ability to drive the ball deep, his 10.0 HR/F rate for his career is dead on league average (10.5 percent), and his .458 OPS against lefties is dreadful. Added positional flexibility will be nice for Miller no doubt, but until he learns to hit lefties better (career: .220/.265/.296), a daily spot in the lineup is always a risk and his upside will be limited in mixed leagues.
GIANTS ADD DE AZA
The Giants are trying to make the playoffs and they are currently without Hunter Pence, their leader on and off the field (Pence is working
through a strained left oblique that isn’t healing as quickly as hoped). From the sound of things, Pence will be unable to be healthy enough to go on a rehab assignment before the minor league season ends next week (ugh). The Giants are making due, in no small part to a wonderfully performing Gregor Blanco (.281/.373 with 19 runs and six steals in August) and an out of control Marlon Byrd (in 10 games with the Giants he’s hit .286 with three homers, 17 RBIs and a .991 OPS). When Pence returns the outfield will be in good shape but until then having another option around wouldn’t hurt. In comes Alejandro De Aza to do be just that, another option for Bruce Bochy. De Aza is also a nice piece given that he’s likely to become the Giants best option off the bench as a lefty swinger (pretty sure Ehire Adrianza isn’t going to hold him off for that title). De Aza has had an up and down 2015 as he joins his third club, but he’s done one thing well and that is hit righties. In just about 250 plate appearances against righties De Aza has hit .282/.337/.442, slash numbers that the Giants will certainly look to take advantage of. De Aza is a moderate NL-only addition.
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DODGERS ADD RUGGIANO / HEISEY
Who haven’t the Dodgers added?
Justin Ruggiano, a 33 year old outfielder, was designated for assignment back on June 4th after hitting .214 with three RBIs in 36 games for the Mariners. He cleared waivers and was sent to the minors where he found his game hitting .296 with 10 homers and 29 RBIs over 49 games. His reward? He was dealt to the Dodgers in exchange for cold, hard cash. Ruggiano produced a solid .823 OPS against lefties this season, and that’s something he’s always done – hit lefties. Over the course of about 500 plate appearances against lefties he’s hit .266/.331/.505. He’s useful in that role.
Chris Heisey is a Dodgers after he was dealt to the Jays for a PTBNL or cash. If that sounds familiar… the Dodgers released Heisey on August 7th and brought the outfielder back into the fold. Whereas Ruggiano hits lefties, Heisey hits righties passably. Per 500 at-bats Heisey has hit .258-19-55. Passable.
Where does this leave the Dodgers? Something like this.
Yasiel Puig is out with a hamstring injury (DL).
Kike Hernandez is out with a hamstring injury (DL).
Jos Pederson has hit .158 with a .277 SLG in the second half.
Carl Crawford has a mere .663 OPS in the second half.
Scott Van Slyke can’t hit righties (.633 OPS).
At least they have Andre Ethier (.889 second half OPS).
The Dodgers outfield is a mess. Ruggiano and Heisey aren’t the answers. They are nothing other than NL-only adds. Their additions are solid for the Dodgers, but don’t mean much in fantasy.
ROYALS ADD GOMES
Jonny Gomes knows how to fight, as in punch people in the face.
He’s also a good clubhouse guy who can rock lefties. The 34 year old outfielder takes his game to Kansas City as he was dealt to the Royals as the Braves received minor league shortstop Luis Valenzuela. "He's a proven winner," GM Dayton Moore said. "He will give [manager] Ned [Yost] more options. And it adds to our depth as we move forward."
It’s unclear what role Gomes will have, especially since Alex Gordon is returning to the outfielder, so Gomes might just be a clubhouse guy who pinch hits against lefties since he crushes them (a .453 SLG this year and the number is .483 for his career). Gomes is a moderate AL-only add at best.
Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday at 8 PM EDT on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 9 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).
Player News
Tanner Gordon will start the second game of Thursday’s doubleheader against the Tigers.
Gordon will take the ball for Thursday’s nightcap at Coors Field and is not a recommended streaming option for fantasy purposes. The 27-year-old righty finished last year with a calamitous 8.65 ERA across eight starts for the Rockies.
Zach Eflin (lat) will return this weekend to start against the Angels.
Eflin got through Wednesday’s bullpen session without any issues and has been cleared to take the ball this weekend against the Angels. The 31-year-old righty has been out since early April recovering from a low-grade lat strain. He’s worthy of a roster spot in deeper mixed leagues, even if he doesn’t offer astronomical strikeout upside.
Wilmer Flores went 3-for-4 and knocked in his 33rd run of the season in the Giants’ 3-1 defeat of the Cubs on Wednesday.
The early home barrage is long over, but Flores is still fourth in the league in RBI, even as his .737 OPS puts him 200-500 points behind the three guys above him (Pete Alonso, Teoscar Hernández and Aaron Judge). After 37 games this season, he’s almost halfway to his career high of 71 RBI, which he achieved in 151 games in 2022.
Robbie Ray pitched six innings of one-run ball Wednesday to beat the Cubs and move to 5-0.
He fanned five and walked two. Ray’s strikeout, walk and exit velocity numbers this season are all worse than his career marks, yet here he is 5-0 with a 2.84 ERA. He’s definitely a sell-high candidate, but it is entirely possible his peripherals will improve and that he’ll remain a fine starter going forward. Pitching in San Francisco definitely helps with the home run ball, which is one big thing working in his favor. He’s set to face the Diamondbacks next time out.
Ryan Walker rebounded from Tuesday’s poor showing to pitch a scoreless ninth with a two-run lead Wednesday versus the Cubs.
Walker didn’t blow a save last night, but he might as well have in giving up two runs in the ninth (Erik Miller replaced him and got the blown save for allowing one of Walker’s runners to score). Despite that, the Giants went with their typical arrangement today, and Camilo Doval, Tyler Rogers and Walker turned in scoreless seventh, eighth and ninth innings respectively. Walker’s perfect frame came without a strikeout. His K rate currently stands at 25%, well down from last year’s mark of 32%.
Ben Brown fanned nine but took his third loss after allowing three runs in five innings Wednesday against the Giants.
Brown issued two walks. Those led off the first and fourth innings, and the Giants went to score all three of their runs in those innings. Brown wasn’t hit hard, and the nine strikeouts were great. He just put himself into bad spots with those walks, and now he’ll take a 3-3 record and a 4.95 ERA into his next start, a favorable home matchup against the Marlins. He’ll be a streaming option in that one.