Fantasy waiver wire: Finding fill-ins for Freddie Freeman
The most desperate fantasy owners right now are the ones who need someone to take Freddie Freeman's place for the next 10 weeks or so. In most leagues, it's possible to move a corner infielder into Freeman's first base slot, which helps widen the scope of roster replacements to include third basemen. (Hence, we have a new category of pickups this week.)
Meanwhile, there are a few players we discussed last week who should get much greater consideration this week if they're still available. Phillies first baseman Tommy Joseph is probably the best option to replace Freeman after hitting .417 over the past week with three homers, five RBI and seven runs scored. Also, Cubs second baseman Ian Happ has become significantly more valuable since he was called up, hitting anywhere from leadoff to cleanup and posting a .353 average, .500 OBP and .824 slugging percentage.
DOUBLE CHECK: Last week's waiver wire recommendations
Suggested bid values based on $100 FAAB (free agent acquisition budget). Feel free to exceed the recommendation if league dynamics or team needs warrant. (All stats through Thursday's games.)
FREEMAN FILL-INS
1B Justin Smoak, Toronto Blue Jays
($12 Mixed)
No one on the waiver wire can replace Freeman's combination of power and batting average, but Smoak could help keep fantasy teams competitive in the home run department. He has nine this season to go with 27 RBI and an unusually high (for him) .280 average. Perhaps it's because he's improved his contact rate from 63% a year ago to 79%.
NEW: 1B Matt Adams, Atlanta Braves
($10 Mixed)
The Braves needed some left-handed power in the lineup with Freeman out, so they traded a prospect in the low minors to the St. Louis Cardinals to get Adams -- who has played more in left field this season for the Cardinals than he has his natural position. Though he's posting career-high numbers in batting average (.292) and on-base percentage (.340), Adams has only one home run and 48 at-bats. With regular playing time, he could be much more valuable, especially in what seems to be a very good home park for lefty power.
1B Justin Bour, Miami Marlins
($9 Mixed)
We noticed Bour starting to heat up a couple weeks ago, but he has found his power stroke over the past week with four homers and a .476 average. If only the Marlins could give him a little help -- those are his only runs scored and only RBI over that span.
1B/2B T.J. Rivera, New York Mets
($8 NL, $4 Mixed)
Rivera's versatility may have gotten him picked up a week or two earlier when he started playing regularly at third base. (A start there on Friday will give him 10 appearances this season and additional eligibility in many leagues.) He has a solid .268/.341/.415 line with 13 runs scored in 26 games.
3B Trevor Plouffe, Oakland A's
($4 AL, $3 Mixed)
Plouffe is a so-so player in a poor hitter's park, but at least he's a full-time starter. In deep mixed leagues, he may be Freeman owners' best option to fill a corner infield spot. He has six homers and 13 RBI in 127 at-bats.
1B Jesus Aguilar, Milwaukee Brewers
($7 NL, $2 Mixed)
Getting an opportunity to start with Ryan Braun on the disabled list and Eric Thames battling strep throat, the spring training sensation has three multihit games over the past week. He hasn't quite shown the power he did in the Cactus League (when he led everyone with a .452 average and hit seven homers), but the potential is there.
BEST BETS
OF Bradley Zimmer, Cleveland Indians
($30 AL, $18 Mixed)
The 24-year-old's time may have come and he'll have plenty of time to show he can stick while Abraham Almonte is on the disabled list. He hit his first home run on Wednesday, but as we noted when he was promoted, Zimmer's greatest fantasy contributions will come in the stolen base department -- an area that's especially thin in the American League.
MORE:
SP Luis Perdomo, San Diego Padres
($15 NL, $8 Mixed)
One of the surprising things that came out of a recent discussion I had with FNTSY's Garion Thorne was how solid Perdomo has been this season, despite his unremarkable 4.19 ERA. (Perdomo's ERA, not Garion's.) He's striking out 8.9 batters per nine innings, induced five times more ground balls than fly balls and has pitched to an FIP of 3.11. Plus, he's held right-handed batters to a .208 average. At age 24, he can be an excellent buy-low opportunity.
OF Jared Hoying, Texas Rangers
($14 AL, $6 Mixed)
Once you get past the fact that Hoying is 28 and just made his MLB debut last season, there's a lot to like. He hit 16 homers and stole 18 bases last year at Class AAA -- and he already had seven homers and three steals when he was promoted to fill the vacancy in center field with Carlos Gomez on the disabled list. He went 4-for-4 with his first big-league homer on Wednesday and should be playing everyday in center for the next 4-to-6 weeks.
REPLACEMENTS
OF Leury Garcia, Chicago White Sox
($9 AL, $5 Mixed)
A utility guy for practically his entire five-year MLB career, Garcia is finally getting a chance to play regularly. That's partly because he's hitting for a decent average for the first time in those five years. He has a .298/.347/.465 slash line out of primarily the leadoff spot with four homers, four steals and 17 runs scored.
C Alex Avila, Detroit Tigers
($7 AL, $3 Mixed)
Miguel Cabrera isn't supposed to miss much time with an oblique injury, but those do have a tendency to linger. With their internal options limited, the Tigers have given Avila playing time at first when he's not behind the plate. No one can argue with the results. In 61 at-bats, he's hitting .377 with four homers and 15 RBI. A .500 average on balls in play says Avila's early success can't continue, but you can do a lot worse for your second catcher -- and he's getting close to adding eligibility first base.
SP Zack Godley, Arizona Diamondbacks
($6 NL, $2 Mixed)
Yes, three starts make up a very small sample, but the numbers can't be ignored. Since being called up from Class AAA Reno, Godley has a 1.93 ERA and 0.96 WHIP with 19 strikeouts in 18 2/3 innings. And get this, all three starts were at home in hitter-friendly Chase Field. He'll get his first road start Sunday at San Diego, which will likely impact how much FAAB you'll have to spend for him.
RP Alex Wilson, Detroit Tigers
($5 AL, $1 Mixed)
While everyone is scrambling to find saves in the Seattle Mariners bullpen following Edwin Diaz's demotion, a better investment can be made in Detroit -- where Justin Wilson (1.50 ERA, three saves) is getting most of the attention, but Alex Wilson is also putting up solid numbers. Alex has a sparkling 1.56 ERA and he picked up his first save on Thursday, even though he was pitching for the third day in a row. In 17 1/3 innings, right-handed batters are hitting .118 against him.
SPECULATIVE PICKUP
OF Anthony Alford, Toronto Blue Jays
The 22-year-old was saw his star fade a bit last season when he repeated High-A and hit .236. However, Kevin Pillar's suspension and Darrell Ciciliani's shoulder injury opened up a spot for him to be promoted from Class AA New Hampshire -- where he was hitting .325/.411/.455 with three home runs and nine stolen bases. Alford probably isn't ready for the majors, but is well-regarded enough that he could be worth stashing if you have roster space, especially in keeper leagues.
1B James Loney, Atlanta Braves
The Braves mercifully ended the Ryan Howard experiment, giving him his unconditional release on May 8. However, desperate times call for desperate measures. Once Freeman went down, the Braves signed Loney to a minor-league deal and assigned him to Class AAA Gwinnett to get him into game shape. For the time being, Jace Peterson is playing first base and prospect Rio Ruiz is up from Class AAA to start at third. Loney looked like a pretty good bet to be starting soon -- until the Braves swung the deal for Adams.