If you need a fill-in for an injury or are simply looking for a short-term spark, Scott White has you covered with 10 sleeper hitters for the upcoming scoring period, all rostered in less than 80 percent of CBS Sports leagues. They're not must-starts by any estimation, but they're the best you'll find off the waiver wire.
- Week 5: Sleeper pitchers | Two-start pitchers
All information is up to date as of Sunday evening.
Sleeper hitters for Week 5 (April 24-30)
Joey Gallo picked up right where he left off after missing time with an intercostal strain, homering in his first game back Wednesday and then again over the weekend. The Twins have the second-best hitter matchups this week, with only one lefty on the schedule, which gives Gallo a chance to pound on pitchers like Jhony Brito, Jordan Lyles, Brad Keller and Brady Singer.
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The Cubs' matchups are merely middle-of-the-road this week, but with the way Patrick Wisdom has hit lately, homering six times in 10 games, you have to let him see this hot streak through. It'll probably end at some point, but there were never doubts about his power.
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As Josh Lowe has broken through with big numbers and a greatly reduced strikeout rate, the one hesitation has been that he never plays against lefties. Well, the Rays aren't expected to face any in their seven games this week. They have some tough pitchers on the schedule, going against the Astros and White Sox, but if you won't use Lowe now, when will you?
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The entire Pirates lineup is still has inflated numbers from a lucrative series at Coors Field, but Andrew McCutchen is one of their few hitters with actual staying power. And the good matchups continue for them this week as they get the back end of the Dodgers rotation before traveling to Washington.
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Ke'Bryan Hayes, like the rest of the Pirates lineup, caught fire over the past week, but the difference for him is that the data suggested it was a long time coming. He's hitting the ball as hard as ever and elevating unlike ever before, and if it continues this week against pitchers like Noah Syndergaard, Chad Kuhl, Patrick Crobin, Josiah Gray, he may never look back.
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J.D. Davis has been swinging the bat like it's 2019, and even on the distractible Giants, it's led to a full-time role. Their matchups this week are whatever -- Jordan Montgomery, Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish and a bunch of hittables -- but sometimes the best sleeper hitters are the ones who are simply under-rostered to begin with.
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Myles Straw's recent skid was inevitable given how long he maintained a batting average in the mid-.300s, but his matchups this week against pitchers like Austin Gomber, Ryan Feltner, Noah Davis, Nick Pivetta and Brayan Bello should allow him to resume his assault on the base paths, where he's 7 for 8 so far.
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The playing time remains inconsistent and the supporting cast anemic, but Kerry Carpenter has shown good power between the majors and minors so far. The Tigers have six righties on the schedule, including some questionable types for the Orioles, which should help with the inconsistent playing time, at least.
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Connor Joe has made much harder contact than he did a year ago and has continued the hot hitting even after the Pirates returned home from Colorado, entering Monday's game batting .357 with a 1.089 OPS. If you have to dig deep, the matchups are good enough this week to give him a look.
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Jarren Duran's latest opportunity to secure the starting center field job for the Red Sox has been his most successful so far, seeing him carry a .391 batting average into Week 5. He's still likely to sit against left-handed pitchers, but the Red Sox are facing nothing but righties this week, including some sketchy types in the Orioles and Guardians rotations.
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Best hitter matchups for Week 5
1. Diamondbacks KC3, @COL3
2. Twins NYY3, KC4
3. Angels OAK4, @MIL3
4. Guardians COL3, @BOS3
5. Orioles BOS3, @DET4
Worst hitter matchups for Week 5
1. Phillies SEA3, @HOU3
2. Astros @TB3, PHI3
3. Padres @CHC3, SF2
4. Royals @ARI3, @MIN4
5. White Sox @TOR3, TB4
