Fantasy Baseball Weekend Preview: Prepare for a party at Coors Field!
With one week of the regular season in the books, fantasy managers are starting to get a feel for the new MLB landscape. We witnessed many starters getting rocked in their initial starts, with both aces and rotation-fillers among the group of pitchers with bloated ERAs. And the offensive uptick has included not only plenty of long balls but also a surplus of steals that had not been seen in more than a decade.
We are still in the early stages of determining which teams will be better or worse than we expected heading into the season. For now, wise managers will mostly stick with their preseason expectations for players. There are a few players, such as Graham Ashcraft, who needed just a brief time to show that they were undervalued in March. But the majority of players who are off to hot starts will slowly creep back to expected levels. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some weekend series that should be targeted or avoided.
Matchups to target
Braves vs. Padres
The left-handed hitters on the Braves should fare well against a trio of right-handed Padres starters that doesn’t include an ace in the bunch. Nearly every Atlanta regular is already a lineup lock in mixed leagues, but those who need one more outfielder this weekend could go with Eddie Rosario (career .794 OPS vs. RHP).
Rockies vs. Nationals
Neither the Rockies nor the Nats have a starting pitcher who strikes fear in the hearts of opposing batters, which creates the perfect recipe for a four-game slugfest that gets underway Thursday. This is a great time to grab or activate Charlie Blackmon (64% rostered), Ezequiel Tovar (60%) and Yonathan Daza (1%). However, I’m reluctant to recommend Jurickson Profar until he gets a few more games under his belt.
On the other side, nearly every Washington hitter is sitting on waivers in standard Yahoo leagues. My order of preference for Nats bats this weekend goes like this: Joey Meneses, Lane Thomas, Jeimer Candelario, Luis Garcia, Dominic Smith. Finally, Keibert Ruiz is a good weekend option for those who stream catchers.
Giants vs. Royals
Although Oracle Park isn’t a hitter-friendly venue, the Giants were a league-average team at home last season. Their lineup should fare well against a trio of mediocre Kansas City starters (Brad Keller, Brady Singer, Kris Bubic) and a lackluster relief corps. In daily leagues, I would try to start the left-handed Giants — Michael Conforto, Mike Yastrzemski, LaMonte Wade Jr. and Joc Pederson — on Friday and Saturday before pivoting to righty sluggers David Villar and Wilmer Flores against the southpaw Bubic on Sunday.
Rays vs. A’s
The A’s are starting Ken Waldichuk, Shintaro Fujinami and James Kaprielian in a three-game weekend series in Tampa, which is pretty much everything fantasy managers need to know when deciding to start as many Rays as possible. Yandy Diaz (46% rostered) and Brandon Lowe (86%) should be active in shallow leagues, while José Siri (11%) deserves a spot this weekend in 12-team leagues.
Matchups to avoid
Red Sox @ Tigers
This isn’t a good weekend to start Boston or Detroit hitters, as the teams have Friday off. The Tigers are throwing left-handed starters in both weekend games, which should cause fantasy managers to glue Tristan Casas to the bench. I would also bench a pair of lefty-swinging outfielders, Alex Verdugo and Masataka Yoshida, in three-outfielder leagues. For the Tigers, Riley Greene and Javier Baez are the only two players who should receive any mixed-league consideration, but I would lean toward benching them in 12-team leagues.
Phillies vs. Reds
Like the Tigers and Red Sox, the Phillies and Reds play just two games this weekend. And tough matchups against Nick Lodolo and Graham Ashcraft make the Phillies hitters poor options. Nick Castellanos, Alec Bohm and Bryson Stott should all be benched wherever possible. Regarding the Reds, Jonathan India is the only member of the team who should be started in the majority of Yahoo leagues.
Blue Jays @ Angels
Managers will have an easy decision to bench or cut nearly all of Toronto’s left-handed hitters for the club’s trio of games against southpaw Angels starters this weekend. Daulton Varsho should stay active at the catcher position in every league, but Brandon Belt can head to waivers in all mixed formats. On a positive note, this is a great time to activate Whit Merrifield in shallow leagues.
Cardinals @ Brewers
The Cardinals have a great lineup, but they might not put their best foot forward when they face the Brewers this weekend. I’m especially hesitant with left-handed St. Louis hitters, as the club faces one southpaw (Eric Lauer) and a pair of tough righties (Brandon Woodruff, Freddy Peralta). Cardinals who fit this description include Brendan Donovan, Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman.
Streaming starters
In order, here are my favorite streamers from Friday to Sunday, with their start dates and Yahoo roster rates.
Zach Eflin vs. OAK (Friday, 45%)
Alex Cobb vs. KC (Friday, 57%)
Ross Stripling vs. KC (Saturday, 53%)
Nathan Eovaldi @ CHC (Friday, 59%)
Justin Steele vs. TEX (Saturday, 52%)
Mike Clevinger @ PIT (Saturday, 52%)
Tyler Mahle vs. HOU (Sunday, 33%)
Aaron Civale vs. SEA (Friday, 29%)
Noah Syndergaard @ ARI (Saturday, 58%)
Jameson Taillon vs. TEX (Sunday, 63%)
Martin Perez @ CHC (Saturday, 53%)
Anthony DeSclafani vs. KC (Sunday, 6%)
Clarke Schmidt @ BAL (Friday, 44%)
Eric Lauer vs. STL (Saturday, 26%)
Tanner Houck @ DET (Saturday, 10%)
Michael Grove @ ARI (Sunday, 4%)
Domingo German @ BAL (Sunday, 8%)
Dylan Dodd vs. SD (Sunday, 15%)
Bailey Falter vs. CIN (Saturday, 10%)
Drew Smyly vs. TEX (Sunday, 2%)
Michael Kopech @ PIT (Sunday, 28%)
Yusei Kikuchi @LAA (Sunday, 27%)
Cal Quantrill vs. SEA (Saturday, 48%)
