Fantasy Baseball Thoughts: Takeaways from Week 15

Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

The break is upon us. There are some of you that will use the break to drown your sorrows and reflect on where you went wrong. Maybe some of you will drown your sorrows because you have lost your best pitcher to injury, yet again. For those of you not in tears, here are some fantasy baseball thoughts to keep in mind coming off the break.

Batters:

• First off, thoughts and prayers go out to Jean Segura and his family. As a father I cannot imagine the pain they are dealing with. Make sure you keep fantasy in proper perspective.
• Jimmy Rollins does not care how old he is, and neither should you. He has a lousy AVG but the double digit HRs and SBs at such a thin position is tasty. Hold him and pray because he can stay healthy because he is as reliable as any at that position right now.
• Kyle Seager gets to go to the All-Star game and he deserves it.
• Anthony Rizzo, ditto.
• Billy Hamilton still getting on base enough to steal bases and produce runs at a glorious clip. He gave his owners a scare by tweaking his hamstring this week, but he returned and was able to steal a base on Saturday to ease concerns.
• Jose Abreu, strong like bull.
• Mark Teixiera is pretty strong himself, but I still have a hard time buying into him.
• Manny Machado is trending in the right direction for his owners. He is hitting over .400 so far this month with a pair of HRs.
• Jayson Werth has five HRs this month so far. Make sure he is in your lineup when play resumes and hope he remains in the zone.
• Charlie Blackmon finished his first half the way he started it. 30/30 might be a stretch but 25/25 ain’t too shabby.
• Kolten Wong, the new flyin’ Hawaiian. I honestly think comparing Wong to Shane Victorino is fair at this point. Except Wong plays 2B so putting up Victorino like numbers there would be stellar for your fantasy team. Do not wait too long to jump on board.
• I feel like a broken record lately, but Curtis Granderson people, a leadoff hitter with pop and some speed, what is not to like…well don’t answer that, but come on, pop, speed, leading off, that’s enough for me.
• Chris Carter, slugging his way back into fantasy consideration. But that .200 AVG; that would make another Chris Carter scream out, “c’mon man!”
• If Arismendy Alcantara finds permanent playing time this year, keep him in mind.

Pitchers:

• Masahiro Tanaka has a slight tear in his UCL. They say he is going to rehab before going under the knife. If I am Brain Cashman, I want Tanaka under Dr. James Andrews’ knife today. They are not built to win this year, and next year is not looking good either. The only way this team could make a serious playoff push is if they traded for both Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels…which is could happen, I guess, they are the Yankees.
• Speaking of the Yankees, Shane Greene was dealing yesterday. Greene probably stays in the rotation until Lee and Hamels find lofts in Manhattan, but he is a streamer option as best.
• Speaking of streamers, Odrisamer Despaigne threw a gem against the Dodgers, but I still do no trust a guy that has a current K/BB of 1.5.
• Tim Lincecum is still in a zone. He has had some nice matchups during his recent hot stretch, but he has a lot of those same matchups in September. Think about that before selling high.
• Speaking of selling high, Jesse Chavez had a final xFIP of 4.25 in the month of June. He did just fine this past week, but the 1.80 WHIP he currently has the month of July is a tad worrisome. Oh yeah, he is about two or three starts away from surpassing his career high in innings pitched during a season.
• Trevor Bauer had a strong finish to the first half, his K/9 is now at 8.67. He will still have his bumps along the way, but if you needs Ks, give the kid a look.
• Tyson Ross is awesome people. His team is far from, but please do not let that prevent you from owning Ross.
• Speaking of the Friars, Ian Kennedy finished strong going into the break. If or when he gets traded, his value automatically will rise in formats that score wins.
• Jimmy Nelson got the call, and Marco Estrada was bumped to the bullpen. Despite getting tore apart, I like Nelson as a streamer in most formats and would add in NL-only formats.
• I worry a lot about owning young arms in the second half of fantasy seasons, and Danny Duffy is no different. His 4.36 xFIP is a neon light that is flashing “Sell Now!”
• Dillion Gee is healthy and deserves your time and consideration.
• Jordan Zimmermann, might not be healthy, his MRI was promising, but…keep an eye him.
• Hisashi Iwakuma was brilliant this week.
• As was Jacob deGrom. The Mets could have a nice little rotation next year if Matt Harvey can come back and dominate.
• Did you give up on R.A. Dickey? I know he is an absolute pain to own in fantasy, but you could do a lot worse.