With the All-Star break over and the trade deadline dust starting to settle, the second half of the fantasy baseball season is officially underway. The latest edition of Fantasy Baseball Risers and Fallers is here to help with the final push of the season. We’ll highlight last week’s hot and cold players from a fantasy perspective — including a couple of trade deadline movers — to assist with tricky lineup and waiver wire decisions. There’s a lot to cover, so let’s get to the Week 18 risers and fallers for fantasy baseball.
Fantasy Baseball Risers and Fallers
Stats from 7/22 – 7/28
Risers
Tyler Fitzgerald (SS/OF — SFG)
Tyler Fitzgerald has been on a tear, hitting safely in all eight games last week. He also flexed some power, cranking five home runs and finishing with a 21.7% barrel rate and .563 ISO for the week.
Fitzgerald started seeing regular playing time after the All-Star break and has been a monster. He leads the league with seven dingers in that 10-game stretch and sports a 1.557 OPS. Fitzgerald also has an 11.9% walk rate and a robust .476 OBP in those 42 plate appearances. Some regression should hit (.400 BABIP), but he has pop, speed, and bats in the top two-thirds of the lineup. Fire up Fitzgerald while he’s swinging a hot stick.
Xavier Edwards (2B/SS — MIA)
Xavier Edwards had himself quite a week. He collected 11 hits in 23 at-bats (.478), swiped five bags, and finished the week by hitting for the cycle.
Edwards has hit the ground running since being called up on July 2. He has a .397/.473/.513 slash line and 179 wRC+ across 94 plate appearances. He’s also showcasing strong plate skills by walking and striking out at a 13.8% clip. Edwards doesn’t have much power, but he gets on base and has eight steals across 25 games. He also figures to be the Marlins’ new leadoff hitter with Jazz Chisholm now in the Bronx. Edwards should be a nice source of runs, steals, and batting average moving forward, and gets a boost in OBP formats.
Jorge Soler (OF — ATL)
Jorge Soler was a hitting machine last week. He went 11-for-26 (.423) across eight games, including four multi-hit performances. He also walked at a hefty 29.7% rate, fueling a .595 OBP for the week.
Soler operated as the Giants’ leadoff man since June 28 and was fantastic in that 24-game span, sporting a .911 OPS and 160 wRC+. He also popped three homers with 19 runs, 11 RBI, and one swipe to go with a 14.7% walk rate. Hopefully, Soler’s hot streak will carry over to Atlanta. Skipper Brian Snitker already announced Soler as the team’s new leadoff hitter, making him a solid source of run production moving forward. And who knows? Maybe Soler will tap into some of his 2021 magic, where he cranked 14 dingers in 55 games as a Brave. He’s worth speculating on in shallow leagues to find out.
Josh Bell (1B — ARI)
Josh Bell is on a heater. The newly-minted Diamondback hit safely in all seven games last week, including five multi-hit efforts. He also powered his way through the week, crushing five home runs and posting a 65.2% hard-hit rate and .571 ISO.
Bell has been one of the league’s hottest hitters since the All-Star break. In his last 14 games, Bell is slashing .309/.397/.673 with six home runs and a 194 wRC+. He also smoked the ball in that span with a 55% hard-hit rate. Bell heads to the desert where he’ll secure an everyday role while Christian Walker is on the IL. A hot bat and a more potent offense? Sign me up.
Fallers
Jarred Kelenic (OF — ATL)
Jarred Kelenic had a brutal week. He managed only one hit in 21 at-bats (.048) and struck out at a 43.5% clip. Kelenic is coming off a terrific June, posting a season-best .900 OPS and 24.8% strikeout rate. However, he’s been ice-cold in July. Kelenic is slashing .131/.198/.250 with two home runs and three steals across his last 92 plate appearances. He’s also bumped up his strikeout rate to 31.5%. Kelenic operated as the Braves’ leadoff hitter since mid-June, but newly acquired Jorge Soler will now take over at the top of the lineup. The move down the order plus a possible shift to a strong-side platoon role puts a dent in Kelenic’s fantasy value.
Ben Rice (C/1B — NYY)
After a fiery mid-June debut, Ben Rice has cooled off of late. Last week, he went 2-for-17 (.118) and struck out at a 28.6% clip. He also dropped from the leadoff spot.
Rice has an underwhelming .162/.253/.459 slash line in July with a 32.2% strikeout rate across the month’s 87 plate appearances. However, he’s still making a strong amount of zone contact in that stretch (87.6%) while flexing some muscle with a .297 ISO and 26.5% barrel rate. Brighter days should be coming for Rice (.140 BABIP), and he’s worth holding in 15-teamers.
Jeimer Candelario (1B/3B — CIN)
Jeimer Candelario continues to ride the struggle bus. He logged three hits in 20 at-bats (.150) last week and failed to draw a walk. Candelario has struggled since the calendar flipped to July. In 91 plate appearances, he has a .543 OPS with two home runs and one steal. He also has a lowly 44 wRC+ in that span.
Candelario has 16 dingers and four steals on the season, but his expected stats indicate he’s overperforming. Candelario is making less quality contact across the board, and his plate discipline metrics have taken a hit. His 81.3% zone contact rate and 34.3% chase rate are below league-average and career-worst marks. Additionally, his .284 xwOBA doesn’t inspire much confidence. Candelario is a better play in deeper leagues.