There is always a lot that goes into setting your lineup on a weekly basis and this week is no different as we turn a corner into August. The MLB Trade Deadline also comes in the middle of the week, so that will certainly be the initial theme as both MLB and fantasy teams look to truly move forward to make their marks in the standings. Each week there are matchups and situations to exploit from the hitting perspective, so with that being said, let us take a look at 5 hitters to stream for the current week of fantasy baseball.
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Five Hitters to Stream This Week
Carlos Santana, Milwaukee Brewers, 1B
Santana fits the qualifications of being one of our hitters to stream this week as his new team takes the field for seven games this week. It also gets better as those games come against the Nationals and Pirates so Santana gets the advantage of favorable matchups as well.
In his last 14 at-bats, Santana is hitting .286 with three home runs and five RBI, and with Rowdy Tellez still out, playing time will not be an issue. Adapting to a new team after his trade from Pittsburgh should not be a problem for the dependable veteran. While Santana is hitting just .233 on the season, he has shown minimal pop with 12 home runs, but the first baseman is a solid run producer with 51 RBI to this point.
Getting seven games out of Santana this week could certainly help from the counting stat perspective.
Brett Baty, New York Mets, 3B
Yes, I am aware that Baty hit .133 over the last seven days, but the young third baseman is a talented prospect. With the Mets clearly waiving the white flag on the season, not like they had much of a choice, there is no excuse for Baty not to receive regular playing time over the final two months.
The fact that all six of the Mets’ games this week come against right-handed pitching should be beneficial to Baty, and with them coming against the Royals and Orioles, it is also solid from the matchup perspective. In 199 at-bats against right-handed pitching this season, the majority of Baty’s playing time, he is hitting .246 with six home runs, 23 RBI, and 27 runs scored. While Baty is still working on translating his power to the big leagues, it would not be surprising to me if he went deep once or twice this week.
Johan Rojas, Philadelphia Phillies, OF
Maybe we should change this one from hitters to stream to baserunners to stream?
It is the worst-kept secret that it is always difficult to find stolen bases on a weekly basis, and those that will not sink you in other areas are especially valuable. When it comes to Rojas, we really have a mixed bag (pardon the pun). There is no doubting his speed and base-stealing ability, 30 stolen bases in 76 games at Double-A this season, but now that he is in the majors, playing time is the big problem.
Since his promotion, Rojas has 21 plate appearances in nine games with the Phillies and he has had success in the small sample size hitting .350 with three stolen bases. Philadelphia does have a full slate of seven games this week which puts him in position to pick up a few, critical, stolen bases to help you move up the standings.
Mike Moustakas, Los Angeles Angels, 1B/3B
Moustakas has a few desirable traits when you are looking for hitters to stream this week.
The first of which is opportunity as the Angels have seven games this week which means ample opportunities for the left-handed hitting Moustakas. And then when you consider the fact that all seven are coming against right-handed pitching which provides the veteran with the platoon advantage, things become even more advantageous.
In 158 at-bats against right-handed pitching this season, Moustakas is hitting .272 with eight home runs and 24 RBI, and with the Angels placing him in the middle of the batting order, he is in prime position to produce.
Luis Campusano, San Diego Padres, C
The Padres have six games on the schedule for this week and with three in Coors Field, their hitters are in a good position.
It is no secret that it is difficult to find help at the catching position, and after spending the majority of the season on the Injured List, Campusano could be a solid source of production as he is rostered in just 24% of Fantrax leagues.
In 16 games this season, Campusano is hitting a strong .296 with two home runs and eight RBI, and as long as he continues to hit, playing time behind the plate should continue to be there. Prior to this point, things with Campusano have been more about potential than production, but at this point, it looks like things are beginning to turn the corner.
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