10 Important Stories From 06/01/17 Box Scores: Buying Paul DeJong, Kluber’s Return & More

by Ray Kuhn

The first day of June came with a reduced slate of games. Corey Kluber made his return for Cleveland in a game that started at noon on the east coast, and we had sporadic action throughout the day and night. However, that doesn’t mean we were without action. Some of that action did not have a fantasy impact as a ball boy interfered with Wilmer Flores as he attempted to catch a foul ball. In reality, we shouldn’t be surprised as New York seems to be unable to go a day without some sort of drama these days. Hopefully, your fantasy team doesn’t many too things in common with the Mets. Let’s take a look at some of the fantasy performances of note from the day around baseball:

1) Kluber Makes His Return…

We got David Price back earlier in the week, James Paxton on Wednesday, and now Corey Kluber yesterday. Let’s hope that pattern continues as we look return our teams back the state they were in on draft day. Making his first start in a month, Kluber didn’t miss a beat and had one of his best outings of the season. The right-hander shut Oakland out over six innings to pick up his fourth victory of the season while allowing just two hits and a walk to go along with 10 strikeouts. Kluber’s ERA is now sitting at 4.36, but you have to feel good about him moving forward; especially after how he looked on Thursday. It doesn’t hurt that Kluber is sporting a FIP of 3.75 along with an xFIP of 3.28.

2) Anderson Doesn’t Flirt With History, But Does Pretty Good…

After taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning in his last start, Chase Anderson kept up the positive momentum against those much maligned Mets on Thursday. Anderson shut New York out for seven innings while limiting them to just three hits and a walk. It was the fourth victory of the season for Anderson who struck out seven to bring his season total to 59 in 62.2 innings while lowering his ERA to 3.30. The right-hander’s WHIP of 1.26 is concerning and would potentially cause me to be skeptical of Anderson’s continued success, but his underlying metrics paint a relatively favorable picture. Anderson’s BABIP of .295 and 75.7% strand rate are league average and his FIP of 3.39 also help to add legitimacy to his ERA. While his 4.30 xFIP does paint a little different story, we could also chalk it up to a stretch of four bad starts. However, if it happened once, it could happen again. I’m buying Anderson, but doing so cautiously.

3) DeJong Keeps on Rolling…

It really shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Cardinals would promote a young player who would then have success, but once again that is the case with Paul DeJong. In his first major league at bat on Sunday, DeJong went deep and he has continued to swing a hot bat. Batting seventh on Thursday, DeJong went 2 for 4 with a run scored to raise his batting average to .400 in 15 at bats. Listed as a third base, the Cardinals plan to take advantage of his versatility, and DeJong got the start at second on Thursday. Last season, DeJong hit 22 home runs in Double-A, and this season he was batting .294 with 11 home runs in Triple-A prior to his promotion. There are certainly bigger prospects who will get promoted this month, but DeJong should be on your radar for as long as he gets consistent at bats. Just don’t go overboard to add him to your roster.

4) Wainwright Continues His Winning Ways…

Talk about a tale of two months for Wainwright. After April, it quite honestly looked like the right-hander was done after he posted a 6.12 ERA and 1.84 WHIP. However, things weren’t nearly as bad as they looked with Wainwright falling victim to a .439 BABIP as his FIP was just 3.36 (3.24 xFIP). Wainwright bounced back in May, he had a 2.64 ERA and 1.30 WHIP, but his xFIP went in the opposite direction (4.75) although his FIP was 3.50. It is clear that Wainwright isn’t the same pitcher he was a few years, and his true value is that of a solid, mid-rotation starter. On Thursday, he continued where he left of in May by picking up his sixth victory of the season against the Dodgers. Wainwright shut out Los Angeles over six innings while allowing four hits and two walks with six strikeouts as continues to make up for his early season struggles.

5) Parra Has a Perfect Day…

At this point, we have come to grips with Colorado’s success this season, and that also goes for their exploits on the road. While the Rockies pitchers have been surprisingly good this season, they have also gotten their fair share of offensive production from a variety of sources. One of those players, Gerardo Parra, wasn’t expected to do much this season, but he shouldn’t be overlooked. Parra is obviously better in a daily league when we know he is going to be in the lineup, but is certainly worth of our attention in deeper leagues. Parra was 4 for 4 on Thursday with his sixth double of the season, a run scored, and his 27th RBI. That brought Parra’s average up to .312 on the season in 134 at bats as he rebounds for his struggles last season.

6) Trumbo Shows Off His Power…

This should not come as a surprise as we all know about what Mark Trumbo is capable of in the home run department. However, those of you who were expecting a repeat of the 47 home run campaign we saw from him last season are currently disappointed. Last night, Trumbo picked up three hits, and that included his eighth home run of the season. While Trumbo is hitting .278 on the season, which is currently a career high, he has just 28 RBI and an OPS of .767. Fantasy owners might not truly want to hear this, but we might be seeing what is closer to the “real Trumbo” this season as his 24.6% home run per ball ratio from 2016 appears to be a true out liar. That doesn’t mean that another 30 home run season isn’t in the cards though.

7) Sanchez Leaves the Park, Twice…

Don’t read too much into Gary Sanchez’s start to the season. He is a young player adjusting to his first full season as a major league player, and he also had a to deal with an injury. Now fully healthy, Sanchez can get back to growing accustomed with the second spot in the batting order, and it didn’t appear to hinder his power output on Thursday. Plus, with the way Brett Gardner and Aaron Judge have been hitting to start the season, we know that Sanchez is going to get pitches to hit. That was the case last night, and the catcher took advantage by going deep twice off Marco Estrada. The first one was a solo shot in the first inning, and he followed that up with a two run blast in the fourth inning to bring his season totals up to six home runs and 15 RBI in 100 at bats to go along with his .270 batting average.

8) Don’t Forget About Hicks…

With Aaron Hicks producing as he has, the Yankees have found themselves in a situation where they have four outfielders for three starts. Jacoby Ellsbury should return any day now, but Hicks made sure the Yankees knew what he is capable of Thursday night. Hicks went 4 for 5 on the night, including three doubles, and drove in six of New York’s 12 runs. The outfielder is up to nine doubles on the season, and with 30 RBI he is just eight behind Judge. New York has been making more of an effort to work Hicks into the lineup, and that will have to continue as he is hitting .317 with an OPS of 1.016. It’s hard to pass up that production in all formats, but his value is more in daily leagues.

9) Ahmed Picks up Three Hits…

Known more for his defense, Nick Ahmed is doing a good enough job with the bat to keep Ketel Marte down in Triple-A. Of course, there are worse places to bat in a lineup than second for Arizona, Ahmed’s home last night, but the shortstop continues to, at the very least, be serviceable at the plate. Ahmed picked up three hits to raise his average to .283 while driving in two of the Diamondbacks three runs. In 120 at bats, Ahmed has just 17 RBI, but he also is not going to hurt you if you are forced to turn to him in deeper leagues. With Chris Owings and Brandon Drury manning the middle infield for Arizona, playing time has been somewhat of an issue for Ahmed, but he isn’t going to hurt your batting average and he has been playing a few times a week.

10) Sano Goes Deep…

This certainly should not be a surprise as Miguel Sano continues to rake. The calendar has now turned to June, and the third baseman is not showing any signs of slowing down. Sano got things started with his 13th home run of the season in the first inning, bringing is season RBI total to 40, and later added a single as he is now hitting .297 on the season. While the home run total will continue to climb, his batting average likely will go in the other direction as Sano is benefiting from an unsustainable .456 BABIP.

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