FANTASY BASEBALL WAIVER WIRE PICKUPS
Sam Antonacci (2B/OF White Sox): Rostered in eight percent of Yahoo leagues
So, Antonacci’s big-league debut will not come Tuesday. News leaked of his expected callup Saturday night, but the White Sox tried to put the kibosh on it the next day. That they then traded Lenyn Sosa to the Blue Jays to open up a roster spot on Monday seemed to back the initial leak, but the White Sox are still holding off for now. It still sounds like Antonacci will be up sometime this week.
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The 23-year-old Antonacci was strictly an infielder until this year, mostly focusing on second and third. He split time between short and second for Team Italy in the WBC. The White Sox, though, have stuck him in left field in Triple-A this year, giving him just two starts in the infield (both at second base).
He’s hit .289/.484/.444 and struck out just seven times in 63 plate appearances. Particularly important for fantasy purposes is that he’s also 5-for-5 stealing bases. Last year, he was 48-for-58 in 116 games at lower levels.
The offensive expectations for Antonacci are probably too high at this point. He has a great approach and he’ll sneak the occasional pulled flyballs over the fence, but probably not going to make enough consistent hard contact to bat higher than .250. The basestealing ability, though, could give him some fantasy value anyway. As often as he figures to walk and get plunked (35 times last year), the White Sox should get a boost from having him replace Chase Meidroth in the leadoff spot against righties. He’ll probably do a lot of sitting against lefties, which will hurt his stock, but teams needing a speed boost should give him a try anyway.
Dylan Beavers (OF Orioles): Rostered in three percent of Yahoo leagues
Playing time concerns on a crowned Orioles roster resulted in Beavers being dropped on draft lists this spring, but there’s really no issue there now with Adley Rutschman, Tyler O’Neill and Ryan Mountcastle joining an already crowded injured list for the Orioles. It might give Beavers just the time he needs to establish himself as a fixture against right-handers going forward.
The 24-year-old Beavers was one of Triple-A’s top performers last year, hitting .304/.420/.515 with 18 homers and 23 steals in 94 games for Norfolk. He didn’t hit for much of an average in his late season audition with the Orioles, but his 19 percent walk rate gave him a fine .227/.375/.400 line. He’s opened this year by cutting his strikeout rate from 26 percent to 20 percent, with the kind of improved contact numbers that back it up. He’s struggled some to pull the ball in the air, resulting in a mediocre .250/.311/.350 line, but that hasn’t been much of a problem for him in the past. The ability should be there for him to reach 15 homers and 15 steals if he plays regularly against righties the rest of the way. Maybe it won’t materialize, but at least for the short term, with playing time assured, he’s a solid choice.
Nick Martinez (SP Rays): Rostered in 11 percent of Yahoo leagues
There was no one less sexy to draft in mixed leagues than Martinez this year. OK, maybe Brendan Donovan in Seattle, but that’s it. A 35-year-old typically used as a swingman coming off a season in which he posted a 4.45 ERA with a 17-percent strikeout rate for the Reds, Martinez had mixed-league potential for one reason: he signed with a Rays team that’s hyper-focused on defense and was returning to play in Tropicana Field after a year in exile. It’s a great situation for pitchers and one that Martinez, whose specialty is generating soft contact, was especially likely to benefit from.
So far, Martinez has done just that, posting a 2.16 ERA in spite of a 4.88 FIP through three starts. He’s again striking out 17 percent of the batters he faces, but at least that’s three times as many as he walks. His BABIP is a ridiculous .188, and while he’s not going to keep that up, he seems like close to a lock to beat the league average there for the fifth time in five seasons since returning from Japan.
Martinez is still a fringy option in 10-team leagues and not necessarily an every-start guy in 12-team formats, but he should have more good weeks than bad on his way to posting a sub-4.00 ERA. That the Rays are still trying to figure out its lineup and bullpen nearly three weeks into the season has kept Martinez from picking up any victories yet, but they’ll come.
Waiver Wire Quick Hits
– I’m not quite as optimistic about Noah Schultz‘s short-term outlook as others seem to be. Obviously, he was off to a very encouraging start in Triple-A, having posted a 1.29 ERA and a 19/2 K/BB in 14 innings over three appearances. Last year, though, he walked 14 percent of the batters he faced in Double- and Triple-A. With the White Sox sure to handle him carefully, he’ll probably often fail to complete five innings, and even when he does, it’s going to be tough picking up wins on that ballclub. I don’t think he’s a mixed-league guy right now.
– Milwaukee’s Gary Sánchez is rostered in just two percent of Yahoo leagues, but with Christian Yelich joining Andrew Vaughn on the IL, he should be a nice catcher option for at least the next couple of weeks. He already has four homers in 28 plate appearances.
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