The MLB trade deadline is rapidly approaching, and there are a number of real-life general managers who are feeling the pressure. Fortunately for fantasy baseball GMs, their trade deadline is still a few weeks away, affording time to figure out whose change of address may yield a positive change.
Though Manny Machado may be the only marquee player to find himself in a new uniform, there are still some who may be able to offer fantasy upside in their new homes.
The Yankees’ acquisition of J.A. Happ might not give them the frontline starter the fan base truly coveted, but he easily is getting a boost in fantasy value with the move. As a southpaw who has limited lefty hitters to a .184/.239/.282 slash line this season, Happ gets a positive shift in park factors even with Yankee Stadium’s dreaded short-porch in right field. He also stays in a division in which he has found tremendous success — posting a combined 1.37 ERA over seven starts against the Red Sox, Orioles and Rays this year. The Yankees have a total of 26 games remaining against those teams, so if Happ simply maintains his current level of performance, he should come out on top.
The Red Sox also made a move that should have fantasy owners interested, picking up Nathan Eovaldi to bolster the back end of their rotation. The 28-year old right-hander has worked himself back from injury this year and has now posted four quality starts over his past five outings with a 32:5 K:BB over 27 ²/₃ innings. His splitter has looked fierce in recent outings and in a competitive environment with plenty of run support, fantasy owners should see an increase in both wins and strikeouts along with an improvement in their ratios.
Unfortunately, not every move has yielded improvement for fantasy owners and action must be taken to avoid a drop-off in production. With the trades of Jeurys Familia to Oakland, Joakim Soria to the Brewers and Zach Britton to the Yankees, the world of fantasy closers saw a massive shift. Three full-time closers were demoted to set-up duty while waiver-wire hounds raced to acquire the likes of Robert Gsellman, Jace Fry and Brad Brach to fill the impending saves void. Though the moves in reality seemed minor, the ripple effect they had in fantasy has become a disaster.
With just two months remaining in the MLB regular season, it is extremely important for fantasy owners to stay alert to both the trades and the rumor mill. Not everything that helps in reality does the same for fantasy, and deciphering which ones will help can be tough work. Stay vigilant. Study the numbers, be proactive and everything should fall into place.
Howard Bender is the VP of operations and head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on Twitter @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the award winning “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 4-6 p.m. Go to FantasyAlarm.com for all your fantasy sports advice, MLB lineups and and DFS weather updates.
