Javier Báez : There is a reason he is on as many of my team as possible. Through Saturday, Javy is hitting .293 with 19 dingers, 18 steals, 60 runs, 71 RBI and an OPS approaching .900. Surprise? No.  Predictable? Yes.  This is a guy who coming into the season has been playoff tested, had accumulated over 1,200 regular season plate appearance at age 25, and had posted 37 dingers and 22 steals over his previous 900 MLB AB.  That people expected this from Javy at 22 years old and had to wait until 25 says nothing about Baez’s skills, it speaks to the impatience that creates buying opportunities.  Given that his contact rate, hard hit rate, line drive rate and oppo rate are all up while his K rate is down, there is little reason to expect regression.  Indeed all that improvement together with eye-popping eye test talent says pay full freight for this first half fantasy stud.

Gleyber Torres: Torres is a Yankee in part thanks to the presence of Baez in Chicago.  The Cubs got their ring and the Yankees got their stud.  At 21, Torres has exceeded even the lofty expectations placed upon him.  In just 218 big league at-bats, Torres has 15 dingers and a .900+ OPS.  No, he will not hit 45 dingers but that is the pace he is on.  Oh, and he is not selling out for power.  Torres is hitting a sweet .294 with an equally sweet .350 OBP.  Digging deeper, he is hitting the ball very hard (over 40%), rarely makes soft contact (approx. only 15%), doesn’t chase out of the zone very much and has a lofty line drive rate.  Yes, he is only 21 but the skills are real, the intangibles are there (just watch him play), his team is prolific and that home park doesn’t hurt.  Torres will be on many fantasy title winning teams.   

Ross Stripling : I know I write about this guy all the time but is there anyone who has returned a higher ROI than Ross (ok maybe teammate Max Muncy but I digress).  Stripling has been awesome:  2.08 ERA; 1.08 WHIP; 108K in 95 IP; and a K/BB rate approaching 8:1.  Say it again, awesome.  Is there any sign he has been lucky or will deteriorate?  The advanced metrics show no such signal with a swinging strike rate close to 11; a first pitch strike rate close to 70 and a groundball rate close to 50.  Moreover, the FIP and xFIP are both below 3.00 so a big ERA rise is not in the cards.  Finally, the .329 BABIP actually says he has been a tad unlucky.  Yes, unlucky.  I am buying in anticipation of a strong second half to follow up on the first.

Kyle Gibson : Yes, I know, many (yours truly included) have been fooled before.  However, I am buying into a guy who has returned a huge profit in the first half.  So far, Gibson has a solid 3.42 ERA and 1.23 WHIP with 116 K in 115 IP.  Hard to find that number of K’s for the low price you paid.  Can this success continue into August and September?  I believe.  The velo is up a tick over last year, the swinging strike rate is up almost two ticks (to 12%) and the groundball rate is still very solid.  Moreover, he is throwing his slider an curveball more which has been effective for him.  Bottom line – Gibson will face the White Sox, Royals and Tigers a bunch and that should only help him continue to way outperform his draft day cost.  

Marco Gonzales : The unheralded, late round/1$ starter is paying huge dividends for the Mariners and his fantasy owners.  Marco has a solid 3.41 ERA to go with a strong 1.16 WHIP.  Add in the fact that he has 98 K (against only 22 BB) in 113 IP and you have some strong numbers.  Is there luck involved?  I do not see it.  The BABIP and strand rate are right where they should be.  Do the advanced metrics support the breakout and thus justify investing for the second half?  The high groundball and first pitch strike rate say yes though the swinging strike rate is lacking a tad (that said, he is inducing a lot more batters to chase).  All in all, the Mariners are good, the home park is good and the success should continue.  I am buying in for the second half too. 

And now, the moment you have been waiting for -- Schultz says: “I am traveling for the mid-summer classic though not actually to see the game or study baseball.  I miss you all and will see you here in this very spot next week.” 

Response:  Actually, Schultz did not say that but he is on vacation from the Week That Was this week so I used a little poetic license.