Turns out I spoke too soon heading into the weekend. One team, the Cardinals, still is presently dealing with an outbreak. They had a couple more positive tests turn up, which has already led to the cancellation of at least the first half of their Week 4 (Aug. 10-16). At most, then, they'll be playing five games while the Pirates will be playing only four.
Of course, it's also possible that the Cardinals' doubleheader at the Tigers Thursday is also canceled. And then there's the three-game series at the White Sox to close Week 4. For now, I'm anticipating those games will be played, but you need to factor in the chance they won't.
If you need a sleeper hitter to account for the cancellations, you've come to the right place. Here are my 10 favorites rostered in less than 80 percent of CBS Sports leagues.
He recently returned from a five-day absence with four hits and a homer, reminding us just how easy this hitting comes to him. The matchups this week are certainly in his favor.
The Nationals miss Jacob deGrom in the Mets series, and of course have it easy in the Orioles series. Expect their No. 2 hitter to pile up hits and runs.
He appears to have settled in as the Rockies' everyday DH over the past week, and hitting a couple of big flies already this year shows he still has the skills to make the most of his home environment.
He also gets to pay a visit to Coors Field this week and has been hitting in the two-hole lately, putting him in a better spot to make an impact. There's also only one lefty on the schedule.
The Astros have a week of favorable matchups against mostly left-handed pitchers, but Tucker hit lefties as well as righties in the minors last year and has gotten to start against the last three, even homering once.
He's quietly off to a good start as the Rangers' everyday first baseman, keeping the strikeouts low and line drives high like last year, and is widely available for a week that includes a visit to Coors Field.
