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Fantasy Baseball Advice: Relax, It’s Only April

By Bill Pivetz

Mar 30, 2016; Port St. Lucie, FL, USA; New York Mets right fielder Curtis Granderson (3) takes the field before a spring training game against the Washington Nationals at Tradition Field. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 30, 2016; Port St. Lucie, FL, USA; New York Mets right fielder Curtis Granderson (3) takes the field before a spring training game against the Washington Nationals at Tradition Field. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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The fantasy baseball season is well underway. Fantasy owners are making room on their rosters by dropping a struggling superstar. My advice? Relax.

It’s only the second week of the 2016 baseball season, but there have already been a lot of surprise stories. No one expected the outburst from Trevor Story or the myriad of pitching performances. As a result, fantasy owners are rushing to the waiver wire to pick up these hot names. On the other side, those same owners are overreacting and dropping players they drafted just because they are struggling. Dropping someone like Curtis Granderson because of a slow start is insane.

If you are one of these owners, I have one word for you. Relax.

The numbers I will be referencing are based on the ownership percentages and ADP in ESPN.com leagues. I cannot speak to the numbers on the other websites, so reference your site’s most add/drop list if necessary.

Not counting the injured players, Brad Miller is the most dropped player over the last seven days. His ownership percentage went from 58.8 to 37.4 percent. The reason? He is batting 0.077. He went 1-for-17 in the first five games of the season. He was the No. 13 shortstop drafted, and in standard leagues he is a starting middle infielder.

There is a big reason not to drop him, though. He received a vote of confidence from Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash. “I really like the way he’s handled the shortstop position. He hit the ball really well in spring training, a lot of hard contact. That’s going to come,” he said.

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Miller will continue to play shortstop and the bat will come around. You don’t want to regret dropping Miller when he hits 10 home runs and .260 while stealing 12 bases this season.

One pitcher that is being widely dropped for no reason is Toronto Blue Jays set-up man Drew Storen. Now, I understand some of you drafted him assuming he was the closer. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case as Roberto Osuna is the man.Storen is still valuable, though.

Despite the 8.10 ERA and 1.80 WHIP, he has four holds in four appearances. He will still have save opportunities when Osuna isn’t available. His ownership percentage is down to 39.2 percent. It’s easy to find saves on the waiver wire, but it shouldn’t be this easy. Pick up Storen if you need saves or play in a saves/holds league.

Some of the other big-name players being dropped are Khris Davis (18.5), Byung Ho Park (15.8), Byron Buxton (dropped in 14.3 percent) and Randal Grichuk (11.4 percent) among many others. These players have the potential to be top-100 hitters, and the fact that they’re on the waiver wire in a lot of leagues is puzzling.

Next: Joe Ross Waiver Wire Add

My advice is to give yourself another month before making an drastic moves. If a certain player on your team continues to struggle by June 1, then I give you permission to drop them. The fact that some players have been dropped in over 15 percent of leagues after just the second week of the season is crazy. However, if someone dropped a player mentioned above or another high-profile player, then pick them up.

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