Another week of baseball is in the books. Plenty of unexpected players continue to be productive at the plate, while others have been riding the struggle bus. This weekly write-up helps navigate tricky lineup and waiver wire decisions by covering the week’s hot and cold players from a fantasy perspective. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some fantasy baseball risers and fallers for Week 11.
Fantasy Baseball Risers and Fallers
Stats from 6/3 – 6/9
Risers
Heliot Ramos (OF — SFG)
Heliot Ramos is a man on fire. He collected multiple hits in four of his six games last week and totaled three home runs, four runs scored, and seven RBI. He also smoked the ball, posting a 70.6% hard-hit rate.
Ramos has been unstoppable since coming off the IL in early May, slashing .314/.405/.533 with a 170 wRC+ across 121 plate appearances. He’s also flexed some nice power in that span with six home runs and a .219 ISO. There will be some regression (.429 BABIP), but a 15.9% barrel rate and 58% hard-hit rate on the season are too juicy to ignore. Plus, he hit out of the top two spots of the order in seven of the last eight games. Take advantage while Ramos is bringing the fantasy goodness.
Alec Burleson (OF — STL)
Alec Burleson powered his way through the week. He went 8-for-29 (.276) and popped three home runs with five runs scored and four RBI. He also struck out at a minuscule 9.7% clip.
Burleson started seeing consistent playing time in early May, slashing .296/.319/.522 with a .364 wOBA across his last 120 plate appearances. He also tallied seven home runs and two steals in that 29-game span, with his hot play moving him up to second in the order in his last eight games. Burleson brings power and a plus batting average (.286 xBA) to the top of the lineup, making him a productive bat in all league sizes.
David Hamilton (SS — BOS)
David Hamilton had quite a week on the basepaths, successfully stealing four bags on four attempts. He also went 7-for-22 (.318) and tacked on a home run. Most of Hamilton’s fantasy value stems from his legs — he has 90th-percentile sprint speed and stole 57 bases across 103 games in Triple-A last season.
Hamilton sits against lefties but has seen consistent playing time since May 20. In that 19-game span, he’s been a sneaky steals source, swiping nine bases and getting on base at a .364 clip. He’s also moved to the middle of the order in two of his last three games. As long as Hamilton continues to get on base, he should be a force on the basepaths.
Jeimer Candelario (1B/3B — CIN)
Jeimer Candelario is starting to find his rhythm at the plate after a sluggish start to the season. He hit safely in eight of nine games in June, going 12-for-39 (.308) with five runs scored and six RBI in that span. He was also productive across the board, popping three home runs and swiping two bases to go with a .889 OPS. Candelario bats third in the order for a Reds team that has been on fire for the past week (.372 wOBA). Candelario is a solid add in 12-teamers.
Fallers
Eugenio Suarez (3B — ARI)
Eugenio Suarez’s poor 2024 continues. Last week, he went 4-for-25 (.160) with two runs scored and three RBI. He also logged a 33.3% strikeout rate. While Suarez registered three barrels (18.8%) and one home run, his overall lack of production continues a downward trend this season.
Suarez has an underwhelming .582 OPS across 257 plate appearances this season. His power has yet to appear, with five home runs and a .117 ISO (career .204) on the year. Additionally, Suarez’s quality of contact metrics have plummeted. His 33.5% hard-hit rate is a 10-point drop from last season, and his 7.5% barrel rate is a seven-year low. Suarez dropped a spot to seventh in the order since the end of May and could lose playing time if he continues to struggle. Little power, no speed, and batting in the bottom third of the order? No, thank you. Suarez is a pass outside of deep leagues or NL-only formats.
Cedric Mullins (OF — BAL)
Cedric Mullins played in only four of the Orioles’ seven games last week. While he stole a couple of bases, Mullins logged only two hits in 14 at-bats, ending an 0-for-22 skid.
It’s been a mixed bag of a season for Mullins. He’s been productive with six home runs and 13 steals across 195 plate appearances, but his .178/.227/.317 slash line and .242 xwOBA aren’t doing anyone any favors. Additionally, the Orioles have no shortage of outfielders, meaning Mullins could lose even more playing time moving forward — especially once Austin Hays returns to the lineup.
Jo Adell (OF — LAA)
Jo Adell’s season continues to nosedive following a promising first month. He recorded one hit last week — and has only two hits in his previous 14 games. Adell is 2-for-41 (.049) in that span, with a 44.2% strikeout rate, .239 OPS and a -38 wRC+. Woof.
Overall, Adell continues to mash the ball. He has 11 home runs and a healthy 14.7% barrel rate on the year. He’s also benefitted from the Angels’ aggressiveness on the basepaths with a career-high nine steals. However, his strikeout rate has climbed from 22.2% in April to 37.5% in June, fueling a .189 batting average (.243 xBA) across 57 games this season. Until he can reign in the strikeouts, Adell is tough to roster outside of dynasty and deep leagues.
Kutter Crawford (SP — BOS)
Kutter Crawford put up a dud of an outing against Atlanta last week. He allowed four earned runs on five hits across six innings. He also walked two and struck out five. The outing marked the fourth time in five appearances that Crawford allowed at least four earned runs.
Crawford didn’t face roll-over offenses in his last five starts (ATL, BAL, MIL), but his compiled 6.43 ERA (4.45 xFIP) and 1.36 WHIP across 28 innings is concerning. He also posted a 13.1% K-BB rate in that span, which doesn’t give you the warm fuzzies. While it’s not time to press the panic button yet, keep an eye on Crawford’s next few outings. If he continues to struggle, it might be time to pull the plug in shallow leagues.