Though normally in Fantasy Baseball, you'd start your best players every week regardless of matchups, in those weeks when you do need a fill-in, whether because of injuries or the total collapse of a trusted starter, Scott White is here to help.
At each position, he'll list the players who are "too obvious" for the upcoming week, meaning the ones you wouldn't consider sitting for anyone off the list, and then suggest a start and a sit based on a variety of short-term factors.
All stats are updated through Thursday, May 15.
A bunch of those players you've had stashed in your DL slots the last few weeks are set to return in the days ahead. Devin Mesoraco (hamstring) was back in the lineup Friday, putting him immediately in the "too obvious" category at catcher. Wilin Rosario (illness) still needs a rehab assignment but, but assuming it goes as planned, is high-end enough to start this week in anticipation of a Tuesday return.
In the outfield, Michael Cuddyer, who has been out since mid-April with a hamstring injury, is on about the same timetable as Rosario, but Adam Eaton (hamstring), who has been out with a hamstring injury of his own, could return as soon as Sunday. Kole Calhoun (ankle) is expected back Tuesday, but he's returning from a more serious injury and wasn't as established as Cuddyer or Eaton at the time he went down. In standard leagues, you might want to give him a week to shake off the rust.
Starling Marte's back injury is more of the day-to-day variety, but because he has yet to start a game in Fantasy Week 7 (May 12-18), he's hardly automatic heading into this week. In five-outfielder leagues, you should probably give him the benefit of the doubt (unless he winds up on the DL, of course), but if you have any concerns about his playing time in a three-outfielder league, you don't risk losing all that much by benching him, given his performance to date.
And with that, on to the position-by-position breakdown ...
Catcher
Too obvious: Buster Posey, Yadier Molina, Joe Mauer, Jonathan Lucroy, Carlos Santana, Brian McCann, Miguel Montero, Salvador Perez, Devin Mesoraco, Evan Gattis
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Player | Own/Start % | |
1. | Yangervis Solarte, 2B/3B/SS/OF, NYY | 84/72 |
2. | Seth Smith, OF, SD | 37/31 |
3. | Brett Gardner, OF, NYY | 70/58 |
4. | Yan Gomes, C, CLE | 71/59 |
5. | Torii Hunter, OF, DET | 84/69 |
6. | Pablo Sandoval, 3B, SF | 72/44 |
7. | Asdrubal Cabrera, SS, CLE | 68/52 |
8. | Chase Headley, 3B, SD | 68/42 |
9. | Dustin Ackley, 2B/OF, SEA | 49/34 |
10. | Everth Cabrera, SS, SD | 76/52 |
Start: Yan Gomes, Indians
Gomes
has had his ups and downs this season, but so far in May, he's batting
.308 (12 for 39) with three homers in 10 games, looking more like the
player who broke out with a .294 batting average and 11 home runs in
only 293 at-bats last year. While he faces the Tigers rotation at the
beginning of this week, he should do enough damage against the Orioles'
projected foursome of Chris Tillman, Bud Norris, Ubaldo Jimenez and Wei-Yin Chen to remain the hot-hand play.
Instead of: Jason Castro, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Carlos Ruiz
Sit: Josmil Pinto, Twins
Pinto's
ownership rate peaked at only 38 percent, but for a few weeks there, he
was performing like a high-end catcher, reaching base nearly 40 percent
of the time with plus power. But alas, that ride appears to be over. The
Twins have started him in just two of six games since bringing Chris Parmelee back to the majors, adding to their options at DH. And
they won't even have the DH spot available to do them this week with all
five of their games (yes, only five games) in NL parks.
Instead
of: Mike Zunino, Yasmani Grandal, John Jaso
First base
Too obvious: Miguel Cabrera, Paul Goldschmidt, Edwin Encarnacion, Albert Pujols, Freddie Freeman, Chris Davis, Prince Fielder, Adrian Gonzalez, Buster Posey, Anthony Rizzo, Victor Martinez, Justin Morneau, Eric Hosmer, Brandon Moss, Joe Mauer, Mike Napoli
Start: Mark Teixeira, Yankees
Teixeira's
power surge in his return from the DL probably isn't lost on anyone, but
what may be is how often he's getting on base. He's back to walking at
the rate he did in his first few years with the Yankees, which helped
keep him an elite Fantasy option even as his batting average tanked. If
it continues, he's not necessarily just a hot-hand play, but of course,
he's hot now and should be able to keep it going against Jake Arrieta, Jason Hammel, Hector Noesi, John Danks, Scott Carroll and Andre Rienzo.
Instead
of: Matt Adams, Ryan Howard, James Loney
Sit: Juan Francisco, Blue Jays
Excited
to take advantage of all the home runs Francisco's been hitting in May?
Pardon me while I dampen your enthusiasm. Francisco sat against a
left-hander Monday and will likely continue to do so with Adam Lind and Brett Lawrie back
from injuries. The Blue Jays face four lefties this week, including
high-end types like Jon Lester, Scott Kazmir and Drew Pomeranz.
Striking out more than every third at-bat, Francisco is due for a
downturn anyway.
Instead of: Loney, Corey Hart, Garrett Jones
Second base
Too obvious: Robinson Cano, Dustin Pedroia, Matt Carpenter, Ian Kinsler, Brian Dozier, Anthony Rendon, Jose Altuve, Dee Gordon, Chase Utley, Daniel Murphy, Howie Kendrick
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Team | Schedule | |
1. | Yankees | @CHC2, @CHW4 |
2. | Giants | @COL3, MIN3 |
3. | Mariners | @TEX2, HOU4 |
4. | Padres | MIN2, CHC4 |
5. | Tigers | @CLE3, TEX4 |
Start: Yangervis Solarte, Yankees
He's
listed here at second base, but in standard CBSSports.com leagues, you
can start Solarte at third base, shortstop or even the outfield.
Wherever he best meets your needs, you want him active this week and
potentially long after that. He's shown excellent bat control and plate
discipline in first big-league season, boasting a 1-to-1
strikeout-to-walk ratio that makes his high batting average not so
far-fetched. He'll get to beat up on the Cubs and White Sox rotations
this week and is plenty hot to begin with, batting .429 (15 for 39) with
three home runs in his last 10 games.
Instead of: Martin Prado, Neil Walker, Jedd Gyorko
Sit: Brandon Phillips, Reds
A
non-factor for much of the season, Phillips has actually been swinging a
hot bat in May, batting .349 (15 for 43) with two home runs in 11 games,
but because of his putrid plate discipline and lackluster supporting
cast, he's been only the 13th-best second baseman in Head-to-Head point
leagues during that stretch. That's more disappointing than bad, but
against Stephen Strasburg, Doug Fister, Tanner Roark and Adam Wainwright this week, he figures to take a step back from there.
Instead
of: Solarte, Walker, Dustin Ackley
Third base
Too obvious: Miguel Cabrera, David Wright, Evan Longoria, Josh Donaldson, Adrian Beltre, Matt Carpenter, Anthony Rendon, Pedro Alvarez, Nolan Arenado, Todd Frazier, Carlos Santana, Kyle Seager
Start: Pablo Sandoval, Giants
Though
still not hitting for his usual power, Sandoval has piled up singles in
his last five games, batting .400 (8 for 20) with only two strikeouts.
If it's a sign of him breaking out of his early-season funk, he's picked
the right week. The Giants are in Colorado for three games and then host
Minnesota for three, making Ricky Nolasco
the best pitcher they'll face all week. He's not as promising as
Solarte, of course, but at a thin position, he's usable.
Instead
of: Brett Lawrie, Trevor Plouffe, Casey McGehee
Sit: Martin Prado, Diamondbacks
Though
he's been getting more hits in recent days, Prado still hasn't made much
of an impact this season, and while his track record says it's only a
matter of time (it certainly was last year, when he hit .324 in the
second half), his matchups this week won't help his cause. He's facing
six righties, including Adam Wainwright, Michael Wacha, Lance Lynn, and Rafael Montero, and what little he's done this year has come against
lefties, against whom he's 10 for 30.
Instead of: Solarte,
Sandoval, Chase Headley
Shortstop
Too obvious: Troy Tulowitzki, Hanley Ramirez, Ian Desmond, Jose Reyes, Elvis Andrus, Dee Gordon, Alexei Ramirez, Starlin Castro, Jed Lowrie, Jean Segura
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Team | Schedule | |
1. | Rangers | SEA2, @DET4 |
2. | Pirates | BAL2, WAS4 |
3. | Blue Jays | @BOS3, OAK3 |
4. | Reds | @WAS3, STL3 |
5. | Twins | @SD2, @SF3 |
Start: Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians
A
forgotten man this season after a disappointing 2013 campaign, Cabrera
has started to perform more like the player who made the All-Star team
in 2011 and 2012, batting .471 (16 for 34) with two homers, five doubles
and a steal in his last eight games. Granted, he had his share of hot
streaks last year as well, but once you get past the "too obvious"
options at a weak position, you'll cling to whatever you can. His
matchups against Chris Tillman, Bud Norris, Ubaldo Jimenez and Wei-Yin Chen should at least give him a chance to keep it going.
Instead
of: Andrelton Simmons, J.J. Hardy, Xander Bogaerts
Sit: Jonathan Villar, Astros
Fittingly,
as soon as I got on the Villar bandwagon, making him my "start" at this
position last week, he began doing what he probably should have been
doing all along: making out after out after out. He's 3 for 30 over his
last nine games, his batting average falling to where you'd expect it to
be for a player who strikes out every third at-bat. Expect no letup
against Garrett Richards, Tyler Skaggs, Jered Weaver, Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma
this week.
Instead of: Asdrubal Cabrera,
Everth Cabrera, Alcides Escobar
Outfield
Too obvious: Mike Trout, Andrew McCutchen, Jose Bautista, Giancarlo Stanton, Carlos Gonzalez, Jacoby Ellsbury, Carlos Gomez, Yasiel Puig, Shin-Soo Choo, Ryan Braun, Adam Jones, Justin Upton, Matt Holliday, Hunter Pence, Alex Rios, Jayson Werth, Melky Cabrera, Nelson Cruz, Charlie Blackmon, Yoenis Cespedes, Matt Kemp, Michael Brantley, Brandon Moss, Wil Myers, Desmond Jennings, Michael Morse, Austin Jackson, Jason Heyward
Start: Seth Smith, Padres
Particularly
with Carlos Quentin back, Smith probably
isn't the safest long-term bet in Fantasy. A big reason why he's on
everyone's radar now is because the Padres have faced only two
left-handed pitchers in their last 14 games. He sat against both and
figures to continue sitting against lefties going forward, but once
again, the Padres face only one this week. With a .513 batting average
and 1.526 OPS over his last 11 games, Smith is as hot as it gets right
now and could keep it going against pitchers like Kevin Correia, Phil Hughes, Edwin Jackson and Jake Arrieta.
Instead
of: George Springer, Nick Markakis, Marcell Ozuna
Sit: Chris Colabello, Twins
You
know how Chris Parmelee's promotion has
impacted Josmil Pinto's playing time?
With the DH unavailable to the Twins for their five games in NL parks
this week, it could impact Colabello's as well. Clearly encouraged by
his .305 batting average and .920 OPS at Triple-Rochester, the Twins
have started Parmelee against both lefties and righties so far, and he's
justified it with his performance. Colabello, meanwhile, is 0 for 18 in
his last six games and 8 for 69 (.116) in his last 18, so sending him to
the bench isn't much of a stretch. Even if he plays, he'll face Ian Kennedy, Tyson Ross and Madison Bumgarner in three of those five games.
Instead of:
Smith, Brett Gardner, Torii Hunter
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