10-team leagues

TeOscar Hernandez , TOR OF (35% ownership), FAAB Bid - $13-15 - After struggling in May, Hernandez has picked up the pace drastically hitting .310 in June thus far. He has a .992 OPS, .357 ISO and .413 wOBA in June and already has seven extra-base hits (2 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR) in 10 games. Hernandez continues to hit in the heart of the Jays order and will have all the run producing opportunities in the world. He’s a must own in redraft leagues in the event he’s not already owned for some reason.

Ketel Marte , ARI 2B, SS (17% ownership), FAAB Bid - $13 - Very quietly, Ketel Marte has been one of the best hitters in the National League since the calendar turned to June. In 11 June games, Marte is slashing .400/.436/.971 with a .556 wOBA. He has five doubles, three triples, three home runs, has scored 13 runs while driving in 12 more and has even swiped a bag. We’ve never seen him produce like this offensively so it’s highly unlikely that it’s sustainable, but in the event that it is, you’re getting a player at a position that lacks a lot of production. Marte could be exactly what the doctor ordered.

Scott Schebler , CIN OF (22% ownership), FAAB Bid - $12-13 - Since the move to the leadoff spot, Schebler has been great at the dish. It’s only a six game sample, but he’s slashing .387/.406/.613. He’s hit in 10 of his last 11 games and is actually batting a robust .407 over the past two weeks. He has the great privilege of playing at Great American Ballpark which gives him a slight bump across the board in terms of fantasy value and production. Schebler’s run scoring should skyrocket the remainder of the year with guys like Joey Votto and Scooter Gennett hitting behind him.

 

12-team leagues

Héctor Rondón , HOU RP (44% ownership), FAAB Bid - $10-12 - The Astros have turned the ball over two times in a row to Rondon in the ninth and he’s converted both. As a matter of fact, his last three appearances have been for save opportunities and he’s gone 3-for-3. Rondon has saved games in the past posting three seasons with 18 or more saves with the Cubs. He’s been dominant this season posting a 1.50 ERA and has a career best 10.88 K/9 rating. He hasn’t officially been deemed the closer but the Astros are going with the hot hand approach, and right now that hot hand is Rondon.

Anthony Swarzak , NYM (20% ownership), FAAB Bid - $10-11 - I would prefer to own Héctor Rondón , but if Rondon is gone Swarzak will do. Obviously the Mets are a bad team and the chances will be limited, but we saw him pick up his first save of the season this past weekend mowing down the heart of the Yankees lineup. Swarzak’s 33.3-percent K-rate this season is a career best mark and it’s pretty elite compared to the rest of the league. He’s the front-runner for the ninth right now over Robert Gsellman so as long as he continues to pitch well and close out games, he’ll keep the position all to himself.

Júnior Guerra , MIL SP (44% ownership), FAAB Bid - $10-12 - Guerra continues to impress each time out and is having a season similar to his breakout rookie campaign two years ago. He only has three wins, but has a 2.70 ERA and a career-high 22.2-percent K-rate. The strikeouts are nice to see and could be because of his increased velocity from a year ago. His average fastball in 2017 sat at 92.4 MPH but this year, he’s jumped up to 93.6. If he can continue this success, and the Brewers continuing winning games, Guerra’s low win total will balance out and it will just be another category he contributes in.
 

15-team leagues

Clayton Richard , SDP SP (27% ownership), FAAB Bid - $6-7 - Since May 8, a span of seven starts and 50.1 innings, Richard has been extremely solid. Six of the seven games are qualified as quality starts and he’s posted a 3.04 ERA with a .193 BAA. What’s been critical over this recent stretch is his ELITE 64.5-percent ground ball rate. He has four wins over that span too, so even the Padres offense has decided to give him some run support. I think I’d be willing to scoop him up in 12-team league formats as well depending on the player pool availability.

Randal Grichuk , TOR OF (6% ownership), FAAB Bid - $4-5 - Is Randal Grichuk finally starting to turn a corner? In 10 June games, he’s already hit more home runs, driven in more RBI and scored more runs than he did in March and April combined. He’s hitting .333 thus far as well, so he’s not only hitting for power. He does have an OPS of 1.035 this month, however, but we’ve seen him got hot before so tempering our expectations to anything more than 15-team league formats would be crazy. But he’s worth a flier in deeper formats for sure.

Ehire Adrianza , MIN 3B, SS, OF (1% ownership), FAAB Bid - $1 - This is really an AL-only pickup, but Adrianza has been really under-the-radar good this season. He’s been on fire lately hitting .500 over the last seven days with two homers, seven RBI and a stolen base. His multi-position eligibility gives him even more flexibility than if he were only eligible for one or two infield positions. He’s played six of the Twins last seven games so it looks as if he’s settled into essentially an every day role.

*ownership percentages courtesy of Yahoo

** FAAB bids based on $100 budget