Hey, heaters, CK here! 

For those of you who have subscribed to our Patreon page and have been listening to the first few episodes of our excellent Half Street Fantasy Hour podcast, I do sincerely apologize for the lack of an episode this week; allergies and a vicious cold have left me with a case of laryngitis. If you haven’t been listening, you can sign up for our Patreon here. It’s $3 a month for our show or $10 a month for all the extra content only HSHH can give! You can also follow us on Twitter at @HSHHFantasyHour.

In lieu of an episode and until my voice is back to par, I present you with the best advice I can offer for fantasy baseball hots and nots, so fantasy managers can have some insight on what players to pick up or avoid going into the weekend.

Who’s Hot?

Jurickson Profar, 1B/2B/OF, Padres

Slashing .269/.394/.654 to open the season, the Padres’ utilityman is on a great pace so far. Profar’s rostered percentage (ESPN) went up 29.4% as of late, all the way up to being owned in 57% of leagues. Yesterday, he managed 9.5 points, and he’s starting to heat up. While it’s definitely not likely Jurickson continues on such a pace, he’s definitely worth picking up for a bit until his pace slows down. Also, his availability at 3 different positions is an incentive to grab him as well.

Garrett Whitlock, RP, Red Sox

Wait, I’m putting a reliever on this list? Didn’t I say I hated them on the Fantasy Hour’s first episode?

Yes, yes I am. And you should buy into this one. Garrett Whitlock has excelled for Boston to start the season, throwing consistently as a long reliever with an .093 ERA so far. Additionally, Whitlock earned his first save of the season on Tuesday, throwing a clean ninth inning in his first opportunity to close a game. For leagues with required reliever spots, check out Whitlock if he’s not already claimed in your league. His rostered percentage is climbing fast, and regardless of if he’s a long reliever or a closer, he’s been pretty consistent so far.

Connor Joe, OF/1B, Rockies

The Rockies’ newcomer has had his ESPN league rostered percentage skyrocket this week, storming up a massive 54.4% this week. An on base machine with eligibility at two positions, Joe is currently slashing .375/.474/.625 and is on an eight game hit streak. Pick him up. NOW. He’s not going to be available in your league for much longer if by some chance he’s still there.

Jesús Sánchez, OF, Marlins

Another young guy on the come up? I’m all for it. Sánchez was 3-for-6 on Sunday against the Phillies and has cooled down a bit the last few days, but he’s still consistently hitting to open the year for Miami. He’s just hitting his stride, and his rostered percentage is up 41.8% this week.

Who’s Not?

Akil Baddoo, OF, Tigers

Swinging .115 and totaling only 6.5 points to open the season, Baddoo has not had a great start thus far. His rostered percentage dropped to 21% this week, and if you still have him on your bench, I recommend letting go until he can somehow get it going. Unless that happens, the young Tigers outfielder is just dead weight.

Gleyber Torres, SS/2B, Yankees

With 10.75 points to open the season, Torres is falling off a bit. He’s still on 73.8% of ESPN Fantasy rosters, but he’s losing some value. With this guy, I’d suggest trying to see if a trade could be swung involving getting something off him before he goes even lower. Sell on Gleyber, but don’t panic if you can’t get rid of him. There’s always the possibility he’s just having a slump to open the season and will always get hot later on.

Andrew Heaney, SP, Dodgers

If we had recorded our scheduled episode on Monday night, I would have been raving about Heaney. He was excellent in his last start, throwing 11 strikeouts in 6 lights out innings against the Reds, allowing only 1 hit in the process.

There’s two problems. Firstly, it was the Reds. I realized between Sunday and now how that played a factor in his excellent start. Secondly, and more importantly, the Dodgers just plopped him on the IL with shoulder discomfort. That’s a huge blow. Because of those two things, I wouldn’t get too high on Heaney. He might be worth the wait if he can come back from injury quickly, but if you were planning on picking him up and starting him once he was healed, I would recommend against it. 

Trey Mancini, 1B/DH, Orioles

While he’s rostered in over 70% of ESPN leagues, Mancini has become a popular drop this week. Mancini has collected only 14.25 points to open the season, and while he’s been getting on base (.268 average) to open the year, he’s struggled to pick up runs or RBIs. This is partially because the Orioles suck, but that’s something that has to be considered when it comes to fantasy. If you can afford to ride it out, wait and see if Mancini can pick up his power a bit. But if you see someone on waivers you like (such as the two first basemen I listed above), don’t be afraid to move on either.

That’s all I have for now! See y’all on the next episode of the Half Street Fantasy Hour, when I ideally have my voice back.