From today until the end of the Major League Baseball season, Saturday is for looking at the various streaks and trends across the MLB, as well as those fantasy baseball players with rising or falling stock. Who should be your priority waiver wire pickups? Who deserves some of your precious FAAB? Are there any potential fantasy baseball buy low trade candidates? As always, we’ll start by talking about some fantasy baseball risers and fallers, highlighted by Michael King and Evan Carter of the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers respectively. On the other hand, managers in the fantasy baseball playoffs may want to be careful moving forward with Nathan Eovaldi and Michael Lorenzen. Let’s take a look at some of the notable hit streaks and current trends across Major League Baseball, as well as fantasy baseball risers and fallers.

 
AVGOBPSLG
1Luis Arraez.3491Ronald Acuna Jr..4181Corey Seager.663
2Corey Seager.3442Freddie Freeman.4132Shohei Ohtani.654
3Ronald Acuna Jr..3373Shohei Ohtani.4123Matt Olson.612
4Freddie Freeman.336T3Mookie Betts.4124Mookie Betts.604
5Yandy Diaz.3225Corey Seager.4065Ronald Acuna Jr..586
xBAxwOBAHard Hit%
1Ronald Acuna Jr..3561Ronald Acuna Jr..4641Aaron Judge63.7%
2Corey Seager.3262Aaron Judge.4532Matt Olson57.3%
3Freddie Freeman.3213Yordan Alvarez.4363Matt Chapman56.7%
4Luis Arraez.3194Corey Seager.4344Juan Soto55.1%
5Bo Bichette.3115Shohei Ohtani.4285Ronald Acuna Jr.54.9%
Hit Streaks
StreakPlayerABRHitsHRRBIBBKAVG/OBP/SLG
14Luis Rengifo5692551458.446/.476/.804
10Nico Hoerner437160005.372/.386/.395
9Jarred Kelenic323110627.344/.382/.438
8Elehuris Montero285121417.429/.469/.643
8Oswald Peraza343121406.353/.353/.529
8Danny Jansen27692444.333/.455/.667
7Wander Franco297153733.517/.562/.897
7Julio Rodriguez309143613.467/.484/.833
7Brandon Nimmo294101328.345/.406/.621
7Ildemaro Vargas223100443.455/.556/.545
7Mauricio Dubon285102422.357/.400/.643
7Max Muncy2710838410.296/.382/.741
7Ryan Noda265815312.308/.400/.500

Fantasy Baseball Risers

Michael King, New York Yankees

The Yankees may have found something in King, the starter. Since moving him to a starter full time and building up his stamina, he’s been great, despite never pitching more than five innings. Over his last five starts, he has a 1.27 ERA, 1.10 FIP and a 29:4 K/BB ratio across 21.1 IP, good for a 12.23 K/9 and 1.69 BB/9. His sweeper and changeup both have 40+ percent whiff rates on the year, while his four-seamer has generated a .221 batting average against and .275 wOBA. The Yankees will continue to use him as a starter, and while nothing past five innings is guaranteed, he has the potential to be dominant over those five innings, making him worthy of a roster spot.

Evan Carter, Texas Rangers

I’d venture to say that Carter has been “as advertised” thus far in his big league career. He’s slashing .300/.423/.500 with one home run and two stolen bases. Now, there are some things that stand out, notably that massive 38.5 percent strikeout rate when he was never a big time strikeout guy in the minor league ranks. The team is protecting him against lefties a bit, which is to be expected with a young prospect, but the talent has been on display, and despite a high strikeout rate, he’s been great at staying inside the strike zone (14.9% O-Swing%). They should see quite a few righties in the coming days, which bodes well for Carter’s playing time.

Honorable Mention: Willi Castro, Tarik Skubal, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Heston Kjerstad, Reid Detmers, Robbie Grossman, Jorge Polanco

 

Fantasy Baseball Fallers

Michael Lorenzen, Philadelphia Phillies

Lorenzen could see his role change, as he could be the man that is sent to the pen. After his no hitter against the Nationals back on August 9, it’s been a far fall from grace for him. His last five starts have seen him post a 7.96 ERA, 7.45 FIP, 4.85 K/9 and a whopping 37 hits across 26 innings of work. Sure, he’s had to face Atlanta and San Diego in there, but he also had starts against the Nats, Giants, and Angels, so he had his chances. He’s a guy I’m comfortable dropping at this point, especially if it is determined that he’s the one going to the bullpen.

Nathan Eovaldi, Texas Rangers

Ah, a second Ranger makes the list, but this one isn’t for positive reasons. After missing about a month and a half due to injury, he’s been ineffective upon his return, recording more than nine outs in just one appearance. They are being mindful of his pitch count, but he’s also not really giving them a reason to leave him in the game. He has a 7.71 ERA, 9.40 FIP, 3.86 HR/9 and 7:6 K/BB ratio over his last seven innings of work. In the most important stretch of the fantasy baseball season, fantasy managers can’t trust Eovaldi, and at this point, he’s not even going to give you enough innings to warrant taking on the risk. He should face Boston in his next start, and those Boston left-handed bats will have a hefty advantage against the Texas right-hander.

Honorable Mention: Adam Duvall, Ha-Seong Kim, Andrew Abbott, Elly De La Cruz, James Outman

Statistical Credits:
baseballsavant.mlb.com
fangraphs.com
baseballmusings.com

 

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