| | | | Tuesday, May 2, 2023 | | Happy Tuesday, everyone! It was a great Monday for any Fantasy Baseball manager who made the decision to invest in Phillies OF Bryce Harper this draft season, and quite frankly anyone who invested in any batter in that Phillies lineup right now. Why? Well, we got the confirmation that Bryce Harper will indeed be making his 2023 season debut today after early speculation had him out until the All Star break. | | It was truly an incredible recovery for Harper who will play just 159 days following Tommy John surgery. Of course, it's important to keep expectations in check with Harper. He may need some time to shake off the rust. With that said, this seems to be an excellent opportunity to buy low on other Phillies pieces in that offense. Two prime buy low candidates are Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber , both of whom have gotten off to rather underwhelming starts. | | However, Chris Towers brought up the most interesting trade scenario from the news -- what about selling high on Harper himself given the name brand value that he brings. This is a more aggressive route to take but it has some legs itself. On the Fantasy Baseball Today podcast, we got a trade question from a listener named Rob: "I am in a 12 team 6X6 categories league, extra categories are QS and OBP. I am the Bryce Harper manager and I was just offered Will Smith (the catcher) and Andres Gimenez. I will share that I am currently in last place. My current catcher is Elias Diaz and my current 2B is Vaughn Grissom." | | In that scenario, it might make sense for Rob to sell high on Harper and recoup value at positions where he desperately needs categories help. Of course, if you drafted Harper, you more than likely want the big payoff. But you're also probably playing from behind in Roto formats because you drafted him. It's Fantasy Baseball's version of a Catch 22. | | | | Baty gets rolling | | Mets 3B Brett Baty is really starting to hit the ball and he's batting well over .300 with a .400 OBP after going 3 for 9 across the doubleheader on Monday night. He also hit his second homer of the season, and the big news is that this one came off a left-handed pitcher. This should give the Mets more confidence to play him against left-handers moving forward. | | Another pitching prospect on the way | | Bryce Miller will make his MLB debut for the Mariners on Tuesday. Apparently, he'll make multiple starts, too. The team wants to see what he has to offer. Miller hasn't had the best start to his minor-league season with a 6.41 ERA and 1.32 WHIP, but he has struck out 18 over 19 2/3 innings. Last season he was also very good across three minor league levels. Miller is a big fastball and slider combo pitcher and he's worth stashing. He's 10% rostered in CBS leagues. | | | | Waiver wire options | | Scott White's recent waiver wire article broke down more than a few options worth considering if you need em: | | Gavin Stone, P, Dodgers: "Though it's certainly possible Gavin Stone's impending debut Wednesday is simply to build in some extra rest for the Dodgers rotation ( Dustin May in particular), it doesn't necessarily mean he'll be sent back down afterward. The Dodgers haven't been shy about using the IL in strategic ways. What seems like a small opening could become a bigger one, and the right-hander, whose changeup is a true work of art, is equipped to take advantage. His 1.48 ERA in the minors last year was as good as you'll ever see, and it was accompanied by 12.4 K/9 and an 18 percent swinging-strike rate. He's turned things around in his last two starts at Triple-A, too, allowing one earned run in 9 2/3 innings while striking out 15." | | Brent Rooker, DH, Athletics: "The longer this hot streak goes on for Brent Rooker, the harder it is to dismiss as just a hot streak. Two more home runs this weekend give him five in his past seven games, during which he's batting .417 (10 for 24). The power has always been part of his profile -- last year, he homered 28 times in just 81 games between the Padres' and Royals ' Triple-A affiliates -- but what makes this run stand out is how little he's striking out. It's less than 20 percent of the time, giving him nearly as many walks as strikeouts, and at that rate, it's hard to detect any flaws in his hitting. Skepticism is warranted for anyone whose first extended look comes for a rebuilding team at age 28, but I'm out of excuses to bypass Rooker." | | Jack Suwinski, OF, Pirates : "Jack Suwinski's early-season success is like a microcosm for the Pirates as a whole. Few gave him even a passing glance coming into the year, but now he's excelling in all facets of the game. The latest example came in Game 2 of a doubleheader Saturday, in which he went 3 for 6 with a home run and five RBI. His average and max exit velocity both rank in the top 10 percent of the league, and his xSLG and xwOBA rank in the 99th and 98th percentile, respectively. Meanwhile, he's putting his 89th percentile sprint speed to good use with five stolen bases already, and he's walking at a rate that puts his on-base percentage over the last two weeks up near .500. Even the platoon risk is lessening with the way he's performing now." | | | | News & notes | | Justin Verlander is lined up to make his Mets debut Thursday against the Tigers. Corbin Carroll underwent an MRI on his knee Monday but no news yet on the results.Both Mike Yastrzemski and Brandon Crawford were placed on IL. Yaz was placed on the IL with a Grade 1 hamstring strain, Crawford with a Grade 1 calf strain. Luis Severino will likely rejoin the Yankees rotation within 2-3 weeks. He'll begin a rehab assignment either Wednesday or Thursday. Raisel Iglesias is likely to rejoin Atlanta's bullpen later this week.Bad news for the Astros as they placed Jose Urquidy on the IL. Kenley Jansen was available to pitch Monday after dealing with back tightness over the weekend.Mookie Betts started at shortstop again, his fourth start and sixth appearance, which means he now has OF/2B/SS eligibility. Carlos Carrasco is making progress and could rejoin the Mets' rotation next week. He's been on the IL with a small bone chip in his right elbow. Harrison Bader may be activated before Friday. That's been the target date for a few weeks now, but Bader seems to be ready. He's 57% rostered. Frankie Montas may be ready to begin a throwing program soon. He underwent arthroscopic surgery on his labrum in late February. He's 16% rostered.James Paxton will make another rehab start at Triple-A before the Red Sox make a decision on him.Lenyn Sosa was optioned back to the minors with Tim Anderson set to return Tuesday. | | | | | | | | Golazo Network | | We Need To Talk | CBS Sports Golazo Network, the first-of-its-kind, free, 24/7 channel dedicated exclusively to global soccer coverage is NOW STREAMING on the CBS Sports App, Pluto TV and Paramount+!
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