Rest of Season Fantasy Baseball Rankings: Wheeling and Dealing

Welcome to the latest installment of my rest-of-season fantasy baseball rankings! Last week I discussed the potential impact that trades could make on the fantasy landscape. So far we have seen several interesting deals throughout Major League Baseball. The fantasy impact, however, has not been huge in most cases.

I gave both Jazz Chisholm and Zach Eflin slight bumps upward in this week’s rankings compared to last week. Miami traded Chisholm to the New York Yankees on Saturday. This is a deal that should help Chisholm from a fantasy standpoint. He goes from the team with the second-fewest runs scored to the team leading the Majors in that category. Questions remain as to where Chisholm will hit and play in New York’s lineup. I guess that he will lead off, at least for the time being. After removing Anthony Volpe from the leadoff spot earlier this month, New York tried Ben Rice in that spot, but that has not worked out. Alex Verdugo has hit leadoff on occasion, but it still feels like Chisholm will get a crack at hitting atop New York’s lineup.

If that is the case, Chisholm’s fantasy stock should continue to rise in the coming weeks. These comparisons are not always linear, but to illustrate the potential impact that this trade could have, here goes. Chisholm has reached base 139 times in 101 games this year. He has scored 46 runs, or roughly one run for every three times he reaches base. Volpe has reached base 143 times and scored 66 runs. He has scored 46.2 percent of the time he has reached base this season. If Chisholm hits leadoff, he should get a boost in runs scored. Conversely, if he hits in the middle of the order, he should get an RBI bump. Aaron Judge and Juan Soto are the league’s top two on-base threats, so Chisholm will likely benefit regardless of where he ends up in the lineup.

The Tampa Bay Rays traded Eflin to the Baltimore Orioles on Friday. I have to be honest – I always raise an eyebrow when the Rays make a trade because they usually end up on the right side of it. That goes double when trading within the division. But on the surface, this trade should help Eflin’s fantasy value. Baltimore has the third-best record in the sport. Their offense averages a run per game more than Tampa’s does, and their bullpen ERA is about a half run lower than the Rays’. Both of these factors should boost Eflin’s win total. Eflin has just five wins this year, after posting a career-best 16 victories a year ago. As long as there is no underlying issue that we do not know about, this trade is a win for fantasy managers relying on Eflin down the stretch.

Some other deals will have an impact that may be hard to immediately quantify. The Philadelphia Phillies have acquired closer Carlos Estevez from the Los Angeles Angels. Philadelphia already had three high-end arms at the back end of their bullpen even before this deal. But while most of their saves this season have come via Jose Alvarado or Jeff Hoffman, Matt Strahm is the only Phillie to record a save in the last two weeks. I am not convinced Estevez will close in Philly, so I did drop him a bit in this week’s rankings. However, time will tell how these roles will shake out. The biggest change in a player’s fantasy value could be in Los Angeles, where the closer’s role is now vacated. I expect Ben Joyce to be the frontrunner there, with Luis Garcia also potentially in the mix.

There are still a lot big names on the market, and many players will change teams in the coming days. Some will see minimal impact on their fantasy value, while others see quite a bit. Either way, it is always a fun time of year for fantasy baseball managers, so enjoy the ride!

Rest of Season Fantasy Baseball Rankings