I don’t want to open this week up on a negative note, but I have to say that I think this is the first time in years I’ve actually kind of been looking forward to the All Star Break. I’ve overextended myself in terms of how many teams I have this year (no surprise to anyone who’s met me), and an early wave of brutal pitching injuries to guys I had multiple shares of, both predictable and not-so-predictable, crushed my spirit early. I still have a handful of teams in the thick of a fantasy pennant race, but interesting waiver wire options (for my leagues that even have one) have continued to be sparse to non-existent in my deeper leagues. This is no time to stop plugging away, though, so even if you too are experiencing similar frustrations, let’s press on and take a look-see at some players who may be available in NL-only, AL-only, or other deep leagues.
NL
Jacob Young. Young is not a new or fresh name for those of us in the deep league fantasy world, but he’s had an uptick in ownership of late after basically being MIA all year. A combination of poor play, including some base running mistakes and a shoulder injury, had him off even deeper fantasy radars, but he’s back to getting regular playing time in the Nationals outfield. He also has 4 steals in his last 6 games, so while his speed-without-power profile can be ignored in most standard leagues, he should be owned in deeper formats for those looking for some steals and a few counting stats with an average and OBP that won’t hurt you.
Daylen Lile. We’ll stay right in the nation’s capital to look in on Lile, who has been another beneficiary of playing time since Dylan Crews has been down with a bad oblique. He’s a lefty, so if there is a platoon situation going on with Alex Call, Lile would be on the strong side of it. He hasn’t shown much power yet in his career, though he does already have his first major league homer this year, and he’s another guy who can run some (12 steals in the minors). The hit tool was looking pretty good in triple A with an impressive .328 average this year, so it’ll be interesting to see if he can stay afloat at the big league level. He’s hitting just .235 (.290 OBP) so far, but he had 7 strikeouts in his first 7 games, followed by just a single K in his next 6 games, so he’s been trending in the right direction. He’s also only 22, so perhaps there could be future value here as well.
Justin Wrobleski. Don’t know if any of us could have predicted going into the season that in the first week of July, Wrobleski would be the pitcher we’re talking about who’s earned 3 wins for the Los Angeles Dodgers over the last couple of weeks. His numbers are fine if not spectacular (4.08 ERA/1.12 WHIP), and there may be some regression ahead on that front, but he does also have a nice 9/34 BB/K rate in his 35 innings pitched. The bulk reliever gig seems to be suiting him well, so he may be worth a monitor if not a pick up even in slightly shallower leagues as we see how his usage continues to play out.
Anthony Seigler. Seigler isn’t crazy young and doesn’t have a fancy prospect pedigree these days; he’s 26 and joined the Brewers as a non roster invitee this past winter. That was after the Yankees let him go after 7 years in their organization (though he was a first round pick back in the day). He has an ‘organizational depth’ vibe about him, but is up with the big club for now after making his major league debut this week. We’ll see how long he stays up, but he does have an air of versatility to him as he can play second, third, and catch, and is also a switch hitter. He was having a solid minor league season (.277 average with a .416 OBP, and I do love me a player who can draw a walk!) A player who had 20 steals in triple A when he was promoted and qualifies as catcher in some leagues may at least be worth a very deep league glance.
AL
Marcus Stroman. I was a little surprised to see that Stro’s ownership has increased by 33% over the last week and is up to 12% in CBS leagues, given that he was sporting an 11.57 ERA after a horrendous three starts to open the season, followed by a long stint on the IL with a bad knee. Actually, I was surprised to see that he’s healthy and pitching at all these days, but turns out that he’s back and looked pretty good in picking up a win against the A’s earlier this week. One will obviously want to proceed with extreme caution here, but given how banged up the average real-life and fantasy rotation is right now, if feels like just about everyone who’s getting starts may have to be on the table in some deeper formats.
Seranthony Dominguez. The flip side of picking up a questionable starter like Stroman would be going for a middle reliever like Dominguez. Granted, I feel like I’ve gotten burned way too often by picking up relievers with pristine numbers this year only to have them collapse the minute they are in my lineup, but it’s still a course I like to take, even in shallower leagues, depending on the format. Of course, your place in the standings and where you do and don’t need help in terms of fantasy categories play into it as well. Thankfully, I at least got Dominguez in my lineup at the right time about a month ago, as I will risk the jinx by typing that he hasn’t given up an earned run since May 24th. His K rate (45 in 34 innings this year) is sneaky valuable in an RCL-type league, and he may even vulture an occasional win or save as an added bonus.
Curtis Mead. Yes, Mead was just demoted, so obviously this isn’t a guy who will help you right away. He’s proven to be of little use in most leagues, but if you have room for a stash, it might not be the wildest idea to grab him in AL-only or similarly deep leagues. Feels like a guy who could get sent down, put things back together in the minors, and come up after the trade deadline or at the end of the year to go on a mini tear that helps both the Rays and fantasy teams, but maybe that’s just wishful thinking.
Lenyn Sosa. Sosa has played first, second, and third for the White Sox this year, and qualifies at some combination of those positions in most leagues. No, he’s not exactly a fantasy stud, but he should probably be owned in more than 5% of CBS leagues. He’s back to playing pretty much every day after returning from a hip injury, and he’s been consistent all year with a plus batting average that currently stands at .273 (though you may not want to touch him if your league uses OBP). He’ll occasionally flash some pop as he did in a 2-homer game a week or two ago, and there should be at least a steady trickle of counting stats.
Hope everyone finds time for some fun, rest, and relaxation this holiday weekend; thanks for reading and best of luck to your teams as we head into the dog days of summer!
