Pickups of the Day: Rafaela Ready To Rake
Witt Jr. No. 4 overall pick for D.J. Short
D.J. Short and Eric Samulski discuss Kansas City Royals infielder Bobby Witt Jr.'s fantasy value and why Short selected the 23-year-old with his No. 4 overall selection in the 2024 mock draft.
Rotoworld's Pickups of the Day column is designed to help fantasy managers uncover a handful of widely-available targets over the course of the season. It could be a breakout candidate, a prospect stash, an injury replacement, a pitcher with a favorable matchup or week, a player who is due some better luck, or any other number of scenarios. If there's value to be found on the waiver wire, we will find it and bring it your way. Today's edition features a power/speed combo rookie getting an opportunity in Boston and a rookie starter poised to make an impact for Los Angeles.
Ceddanne Rafaela, OF, Red Sox
Available in 95 percent of Yahoo leagues
Contrary to popular belief, Rafaela is not the title of a brand-new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles spinoff. The 22-year-old top prospect posted a stellar .869 OPS with 20 homers and 36 stolen bases across 108 games this season between Triple-A Worcester and Double-A Portland to earn a promotion to the majors earlier this month and has experienced immediate success, batting .467 (7-for-15) with one RBI in eight games at the big league level. It's obviously an extremely small sample size, and his minor league track record suggests that there will be some turbulence as he adjusts to everyday life in the majors. However, Boston's lineup has gone into a bit of a slump recently and Rafaela could find himself getting additional opportunities at the top of the order moving forward. He's an elite defender, capable of handling multiple spots, and is looking like he deserves a longer look over the final few weeks of the regular season. There will be some variance in the batting average department, but Rafaela offers enough over-the-fence pop and stolen base potential to merit consideration for a roster spot in deeper mixed leagues, especially five-outfielder formats.
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Emmet Sheehan, SP, Dodgers
Available in 93 percent of Yahoo leagues
With ace Walker Buehler (elbow) still a few weeks away, and Julio Urías (administrative leave) having likely thrown his final pitch in a Dodgers uniform, Sheehan figures to slot into Los Angeles’ starting rotation until further notice. The 23-year-old rookie right-hander, who struck out six and allowed just one run over four innings last Saturday in a spot start against the Braves, is in line for a tasty matchup on Friday night against the last-place Nationals, who rank 21st in runs scored this season. He’s unlikely to work deep into Friday’s extremely favorable outing, but there’s plenty of strikeout upside, which makes Sheehan a viable streaming option for fantasy managers, especially in deeper mixed leagues.
