Few fantasy analysts can take the heat – and deliver it – like Dalton Del Don. He’ll bring his incredible fantasy baseball takes here every week to help you keep the fire burning in your leagues.
• Anthony Volpe hit just .209 as a 22-year-old rookie, but he also went 20/20. He’s off to an incredible start in 2024, posting a 198 wRC+ while racking up runs, home runs and steals. While Volpe’s .426 BABIP will certainly regress, his much-improved plate discipline suggests he will quickly become a fantasy star this season. Volpe has the third best improvement in K% so far this year, a statistic that stabilizes quickly. He ranks in the top 10 in Contact% and boasts a 1:5 K:BB ratio with three steals in five games since moving into the starting role. Volpe has the green light to run, plays in one of the most HR-friendly baseball parks and can sweepso he should be considered a top five fantasy SS in the future.
• Julio Rodríguez has yet to hit a home run and is off to a terrible start at the plate (42 wRC+) in the first 10% of the season. It’s not ideal for a top-five player in fantasy drafts, and Rodríguez’s Hard Hit, K, and BB rates are easily the worst of his career. However, it is still a small sample size (which would otherwise go unnoticed in the middle of the summer), and he has played 65% of his games at home – the most radical pitcher’s park in the league and where Rodríguez saw his OPS drop 64 points last year. Additionally, Rodríguez was hitting .204 with a .656 OPS in his first 200 appearances last season before hitting .302 with 25 home runs and 29 steals after May 21. possible Rodríguez is just a slow start. Your maximum exit speed remains at Top 2% in the league, and this is a player who just posted a 156 wRC+ after the All-Star break last season at age 22. Rodríguez should still be treated as a top-five fantasy player.
• Ronald Acuña Jr. has seven steals, but his start at the plate is somewhat concerning. He only recorded one barrel this season after suffering a knee injury in the spring that required an MRI (he led the league in barrels last year). Of course, the knee didn’t stop him from stealing, and this is a small sample that includes playing in cold weather. Acuña will start hitting soon and will almost certainly remain one of the best fantasy players, but it’s possible it regresses a little more than expected in 2024 and doesn’t finish at the top of the rankings again. Last season’s 11.4 K% is increasingly looking like an outlier, given that it was 23+% during the other six seasons of his career, and pitchers adjusted pitching for him in 2024. Acuña already had about trends regarding your swing path, so a jump in K% is important. In fact, Acuña changed his average swing path angles more than any hitter in baseball this season (in addition to Michael A. Taylor), which may help explain his slow start at the plate.
• The A’s quickly abandoned any plans to move Mason Miller into the closer role, and he has become unmissable when he is on the mountain. He averaged 160.6 mph in the MLB with his fastball while striking out 103.7, resulting in a silly 45.5 K%. Miller is in the top five among relievers in CSW, has yet to allow a barrel and owns a 1.15 expected ERA in the Top 2% in the league. Health may continue to be an obstacle, but it’s good to see Oakland give him the closer role right away (he’d have another defense if the rules weren’t so ridiculous). Miller should be considered an elite fantasy reliever.
• He may have suffered multiple injuries, but Esteury Ruiz is back at Atletismo. He was batting .326/.423/.581 with three homers and seven steals in 11 games at Triple-A after posting a 221 wRC+ in Oakland before being curiously shut down. Ruiz is not a great defender, but he deserves to play an outfield hitting a collective .216/.289/.339 without him. Ruiz swiped 67 bases in fewer than 450 at-bats last season and could approach 10 homers, so he’s a must-add in all fantasy formats; it is available in 50% of Yahoo leagues.
• Speaking of speed on the waiver wire, Jonatan Clase is another option that is available in 80% of Yahoo leagues. The rookie was called up on Monday due to injuries and Clase will have a chance to remain in Seattle’s lineup while Dominic Canzone is out. Clase hit 20 home runs and stole 79 bases in fewer than 130 games in the minors last season, and he had a 144 wRC+ (with five homers/steals and improved contact rates) at Triple-A this year. The class has “80” grade speed and is a strong addition for those looking for immediate help with stolen bases.
• Edward Cabrera showed better control before suffering a shoulder injury during the spring, a situation that continued during his return on Monday night. Cabrera posted a K:BB ratio of 10:1 with a CSW of 42%playing 68% of his four above-average pitches due to strikes (59% last season). Cabrera’s 27.2 K% last season would have ranked 10th among starters if he qualified, just ahead of Gerrit Cole and Zack Wheeler, so he could become an ace if the improved control was real. Max Meyer didn’t deserve to be sent to the minors, but Cabrera has enormous potential if his health cooperates. He won’t be as widely available in Yahoo leagues for much longer.
• Tommy Pham combined for 38 homers/steals last season in less than 130 games, including most of them in an outfield pitcher’s park (Citi Field). He boasts a career 116 wRC+ and can now play in the hitter-friendly Guaranteed Rate Field after reportedly signing with the White Sox so he can be added into deeper fantasy leagues. Chicago recently welcomed Eloy Jiménez back to its lineup, but there’s still plenty of at-bats (and playing time) available for Pham; the White Sox are fielding an ugly lineup and became the first team to be struck out six times in first 16 games since 1907.
• Teoscar Hernández is on pace to finish the season with 145 RBI and 230 strikeouts (223 is the MLB record). He hit all five RHs at home and it appears his complaint about not being able to see baseball in Seattle last season was real, although the K rate remains scary. Hernández will continue to be a top fantasy outfielder while also benefiting from the hits in the L.A. lineup and at Dodger Stadium, which has quietly increased right-handed home runs an MLB record 27% over the last three seasons.
• Michael Busch homered in his fifth consecutive game on Monday, tying the Cubs’ franchise record. Although he struggled in Los Angeles, Busch is a first-round pick who produced strong numbers in the minors, including a 150 wRC+ with 27 home runs in 390 ABs at Triple-A last season. His K rate suggests a decline will eventually occur, and he has yet to record a hit against a left-handed pitcher this year, but his hot start should help keep him regularly in Chicago’s lineup. The power is real, third base has only gotten thinner, and Busch is hitting in the middle of the Cubs’ order, so this seems like a big win for fantasy managers.
BONUS – TV Talk: “Curb Your Enthusiasm’‘s’ last season wasn’t the best, but it ended perfectly and ends as my favorite sitcom of all time…”Shogun“it’s legit. I highly recommend it if you’re not watching…”Mr. AND MRS. SMITH” It is “Griselda“there are two programs if you are looking for entertainment, while”Ripley” It is “Expatriates“they are slower upper burns…”True Detective: Night Country“did a great job of keeping my interest for such a fickle show… I finally finished it”The Dynasty: New England Patriots“, which comically belittled Bill Belichick… Looking forward to”The Jinx Part Two” It is “Hacks“We’ll be back soon, but obviously the biggest news on television is the return of “Melrose Place.”
