The baseball season continues to chug along, with plenty of player performances worth monitoring. Some players are heating up at the plate, while others have been ice cold. This weekly write-up helps navigate 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 12.
Fantasy Baseball Risers and Fallers
Stats from 6/10 – 6/16
Risers
Tyler Soderstrom (1B — OAK)
Tyler Soderstrom powered his way through the week, popping four dingers with six runs scored and eight RBI. He reached base safely in all seven games and flexed a 71.4% hard-hit rate.
Soderstrom has seen consistent playing time since June 6, slashing .342/.419/.658 with a .316 ISO across those 43 plate appearances. He’s also smoked the ball in that span, registering a 20% barrel and 60% hard-hit rate. Soderstrom’s hot play moved him up to the middle of the batting order, where he should continue to mash and be a productive bat.
Andrew Vaughn (1B/OF — CWS)
Andrew Vaughn is swinging a hot stick. He went 11-for-30 (.367) with multiple hits in five of seven games last week. He also smacked three home runs and totaled five runs scored and nine RBI with a 59.3% hard-hit rate.
Vaughn has struggled this season but has been on a tear in June. He’s slashing .364/.386/.673 with a 198 wRC+ across 57 plate appearances for the month. He also cut his strikeout rate from 27.6% in April to 17.5% in June. Vaughn makes a ton of contact in the zone (90.5%) and has some thump in his bat, with a 44.8% hard-hit rate on the year. He’s a solid power source in 12-team leagues.
Carlos Santana (1B — MIN)
Carlos Santana had himself a nice week. He collected nine hits, including three multi-hit games. He also contributed across the board with two home runs, six runs scored, nine RBI, and a steal.
Santana has quietly had a strong June with three home runs and two steals across 51 plate appearances. He also put up solid run production numbers in that 13-game span, with eight runs scored and 13 RBI while sporting a 1.001 OPS for the month. Santana isn’t flashy, but he brings some pop and a little bit of speed to the fantasy table. The Twins have been on a heater lately, with the team posting a .357 wOBA in June. Santana’s run production totals should benefit while everyone is hitting.
Blake Perkins (OF — MIL)
Blake Perkins was a force on the basepaths last week, swiping four bags on five attempts. His 30.4% strikeout rate in June isn’t ideal, but Perkins has been a solid contributor overall. He has five home runs and 10 steals in 61 games, with most of his fantasy value coming from his 95th-percentile speed. As long as Perkins continues getting on base at a steady-ish rate (.322 OBP), he should be a nice speed source in deeper leagues.
Fallers
Leody Taveras (OF — TEX)
Leody Taveras had a brutal week, going 1-for-16 (.063) with one run scored. He stole a base, but that doesn’t move the needle for fantasy managers. Taveras has been ice cold in June, with only two hits in 42 at-bats. He’s also striking out at a 30.4% clip while posting a .178 OPS across 46 plate appearances. Oof. Taveras continues to see consistent playing time but that could start to change, especially since his four home runs, six steals, and .211 batting average this year aren’t setting the world on fire.
George Springer (OF — TOR)
George Springer’s terrible season continues to go in the wrong direction. He collected two hits last week to go with a 36.4% strikeout rate. Springer’s been especially bad in June, slashing .146/.226/.208 with a 30 wRC+ across 53 plate appearances.
Overall, Springer is failing to make quality contact this season. His 5.7% barrel rate and 34.2% hard-hit rate are career-worst marks. He also isn’t elevating the ball, posting a career-high 52.8% groundball rate. Springer’s .218 BABIP on the year indicates better days are ahead, but a .196 batting average (.256 xBA) is tough to stomach in the meantime.
David Fry (C/OF — CLE)
David Fry has been scuffling at the plate. Last week, he went 2-for-14 (.143) with an RBI. He still showcased his elite plate skills with a 12.5% walk rate and 6.3% strikeout rate, but that’s about it.
Fry has been red-hot this season, stemming from a .392 BABIP. But he’s cooled off in June, slashing .200/.282/.286 across 39 plate appearances. He also put up goose eggs in home runs and steals in that span. A .233 BABIP for the month is fueling some of that lack of production, so hopefully this is just a bump in the road. Fry brings too much to the fantasy table to consider dropping and still ranks as the fifth-best catcher — despite his recent struggles — according to FanGraphs’ Player Rater.
Michael Conforto (OF — SFG)
Michael Conforto hasn’t found his rhythm since returning from the IL in early June. He managed only two hits in 19 at-bats (.105) last week and hit the bench in two of the Giants’ six games. He also struck out at a 30% clip.
In the 11 games since his return, Conforto is batting .098 with a .354 OPS. But that ugliness comes with a .115 BABIP, so some positive regression should be coming. Also, it’s encouraging that Conforto’s quality of contact metrics in that span are consistent with his career marks. He has eight dingers in 49 games this season and should be a decent power source as long as he’s healthy. Hold steady with Conforto in 15-team leagues.