Sports Info Solutions: July's Unexpected Fantasy All-Stars and Flops
It would be easy to say Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez is a fantasy All-Star (July wOBA .446), but based on the exorbitant price you usually have to pay to put the Indians’ slugger in your lineup (around 12-14% of your FanDuel budget), he’s simply only doing his job.
It’s much more fun, and profitable, to dig up hidden gems. Below you will find a true fantasy All-Star value lineup for July. (Each of these players had at least 50 plate appearance this month.)
C/1B – Mitch Garver, Minnesota – The 27-year old produced a .412 wOBA and 13 RBI over 16 games this month. Only Yasmani Grandal was better (.534 wOBA), but Garver comes at a minimal cost.
2B – Lourdes Gurriel Jr. – Oh my, how the young Blue Jays’ rookie is coming into his own. With another multiple-hit game Saturday night, he’s set a Toronto franchise record of 10 consecutive games. He’s posted a .460 wOBA in July.
3B – David Freese, Pittsburgh – I thought his career was over about five years ago. He’s raking this month, producing a .455 wOBA this month which only the high-priced Matt Carpenter has bettered.
SS – Yairo Munoz, St. Louis – You could opt for expensive Trevor Story and Manny Machado, or surprise with Munoz, who has produced a .417 wOBA this month.
OF – Avisail Garcia, Chicago White Sox – In between his injuries, Garcia has managed to smash seven home runs and 15 RBI in 16 games to produce a .465 wOBA.
Utility – Kole Calhoun, Los Angeles Angels – You can laugh at his “just-over-the-Mendoza Line” batting average, but take notice, he’s cracked nine home runs with 19 runs, 22 RBI and a .446 wOBA in July.
Now the flops…
C/1B – Buster Posey, San Francisco – Big name, small production, high price, Posey has managed just a .284 wOBA without a home run in 19 games.
2B – Jose Altuve, Houston – Even before his knee injury, you weren’t getting the value out of him that you expected. He was batting .270 this month with just a .300 wOBA. Over April, May and June he managed wOBAs of – .371, .367, and .422, respectively.
3B – Jake Lamb, Arizona – The Diamondbacks 3B has been a 30-HR guy for the past two seasons, but has lost his power stroke. So far in July, he has managed to go 17 games without a long ball and an ugly .216 wOBA.
SS – Brandon Crawford, San Francisco – The Giants’ 3B has tanked this month, batting .177 with a .218 wOBA and no home runs in 22 games. He posted a .448 wOBA in May and a .417 in June before falling off the cliff.
OF – Marcell Ozuna, St. Louis – Ozuna finally launched a home run Saturday, his first in 23 games this month, but it still doesn’t move the needle very far as he’s managed a .227 wOBA this month.
Utility – Eric Hosmer, San Diego – The baseball must look like a tiny BB to Hosmer. He’s batting .152 with a .166 wOBA this month. Considering how consistent a performer Hosmer was all those seasons in Kansas City, I’d like to blame this one on Petco Park, but I can’t, as he’s hit better at home than on the road this season.
Sports Info Solutions has been at the forefront of in-depth analysis of baseball statistics for nearly two decades. The unequivocal amount of data along with their advanced analytics has made SIS a trusted brand in baseball. SIS works with 25 MLB teams to deliver resources that are used in decision-making both on and off the field. SIS Model 3 uses an expansive amount of data, combining metrics ranging from player age and career performance to game temperature and park factors, which has translated to a proven ROI and helped raised the game of DFS players at all skill levels.
- Author: Steve Schwarz
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