Fantasy Baseball Players To Watch For The Week Ahead (June 3 - June 9)

Well, out of Shota Imanaga, Ranger Suarez, and Seth Lugo, it was Imanaga who blinked, allowing seven earned runs against the Brewers. We can finally stop talking about them in the opening blurb... next week. The coming week is going to bring its usual challenges of trying to fill the void that the injured pitcher left behind (Blake Snell) or that hitter left behind (Spencer Torkelson). Then again, there isn't much of a void to fill in the case of Snell and Torkelson who were both severely underperforming, but both were being counted on in some capacity when they were drafted for fantasy.

For those keeping track of some of last week's topics, Anthony Volpe's hit streak finally came to an end, both Tarik Skubal and Luis Gil were great again but Chris Sale's start did not go as planned, and the Mets bullpen is still (even more) in disarray.

Taking a look ahead to this week's action, we'll touch on some intriguing hitters below, both for DFS and season-long leagues. There are some enticing pitching matchups this week as well, one for a pitcher that might be flying under the radar, too. I've got my eye on these guys, and perhaps you should too.

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Players to Watch: Hitters

Corey Seager

What I'm watching: Hit streak

After a 1-for-5 day at the plate on Sunday, Corey Seager now has a 15-game hit streak going, the longest in the majors. Knowing the type of hitter Seager is and how hot he's been lately, it doesn't seem possible that the left-handed hitter was batting .219 on May 2. Since May 3, however, the four-time All-Star is hitting .326 (31-for-95) with 11 home runs, 21 RBI, 16 runs scored, and 16 walks (plus five intentional walks) to 19 strikeouts over the last 24 games. You'd think he'd have a tough matchup in Tarik Skubal to start the week on Monday, but Seager is 4-for-6 off of the southpaw in his career with a double and zero K.

Alex Bregman

What I'm watching: Does he keep rolling this week?

It took 26 games for Alex Bregman to hit his first home run of the season, but has eight on the season now with four of them coming in the last six games. During this six-game stretch, the 30-year-old is 10-for-24 (.417), so what better time to get some enticing matchups? If you see the table below under the "Key Matchups: Hitters" section, Bregman's name shows up four times, so there's a good chance he could keep up the hot hitting over this coming week. Also, note that Kyle Tucker's name is littered throughout the table and would be another hitter to potentially focus on for a core DFS pick.

Justyn-Henry Malloy

What I'm watching: Can he provide the offense that Torkelson couldn't?

After hitting 23 home runs from June 27 through the end of the season last year, there was hope Spencer Torkelson could ride that momentum into 2024. Unfortunately, he could not, culminating in his demotion to Triple-A which is expected to be announced on Monday. The Tigers will be calling up Justyn-Henry Malloy to take Torkelson's roster spot. Although it's unclear who exactly will be playing first base, Gio Urshela handled it in two of the last three games which would free up third base for Malloy, who would be making his MLB debut.

The 2021 draft pick offers decent pop, having belted 23 home runs last season at Triple-A in 487 at-bats. While the 24-year-old isn't currently hitting for a high average (.255), he's a career .278 hitter and has maintained a strong walk rate throughout his minor league career. The right-handed hitter has walked at a rate no less than 14.7% at any stop in the minors and has procured a 20.1% rate this season over 44 games (194 PA). Malloy has a fantastic .410 MiLB career on-base percentage, compared to Torkelson's .313 OBP last year and dismal .266 OBP in 2024.

Key Matchups: Hitters

These hitters caught my eye when looking over batter vs. pitcher matchups, and I kept rolling with the table format below as it seemed easier on the eyes. Most of these guys are already rostered in a majority of leagues, so you aren't running out to snag them off the waiver wire, but they could be targets for your DFS lineups. While sometimes there isn't enough matchup history worth looking at, there is frequency with these, and with frequency comes familiarity. These pitchers likely don't have any more tricks up their sleeves versus these batters.

Players to Watch: Starting Pitchers

Gerrit Cole

What I'm watching: Rehab start Tuesday

Gerrit Cole is nearly ready to make his 2024 debut, but not before he makes a couple of rehab starts, the first of which will come Tuesday for Double-A Somerset. Fantasy managers who have been stashing the ace in an IL spot will want to hear that everything went smoothly so that he is able to make his next start on time, and then potentially join the Yankees rotation by mid-June if everything goes to plan. Not that the Yankees are in a rush to get him back, as they currently have the highest winning percentage in baseball without him.

Bryan Woo

What I'm watching: Next start versus Athletics

Buyer beware, I mentioned the same thing last week for Chris Sale and that very article clearly jinxed him as he had his worst outing of the year on Saturday versus these same A's. Still, if you look at pitchers who had the lowest ERA over their last five starts, you'll find the aforementioned Lugo, Imanaga, and Suarez, but you would also find Bryan Woo mixed in there. Since coming off the IL, Woo is 2-0 with a 1.30 ERA, 0.58 WHIP, and an 18:2 K:BB in five starts (27 2/3 IP). The 24-year-old gets an attractive start against the A's on the road in his next turn through the rotation on Thursday.

Tanner Houck

What I'm watching: Next start versus White Sox

You would also find Tanner Houck mixed in there among pitchers with the lowest ERA over their last five starts. Houck has allowed three earned runs or less in all but one of his 12 starts this season, and one run or less in eight of them. Over his last five starts the righty has a 1.65 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and a 29:8 K:BB in 32 2/3 IP. The former first-round draft pick gets the lowly White Sox on the road in his next start on Thursday.

Players to Watch: Relief Pitchers

Mets Closers

What I'm watching: Who will take on the closing job?

Maybe I'll just leave this here until it is figured out. Since last week when I included this mess, Edwin Diaz has gone on the IL and Jorge Lopez has been DFA'd. Adam Ottavino has allowed five earned runs in an inning-and-a-third, Reed Garrett allowed two home runs Friday night, and Jake Diekman blew a save opportunity on Sunday that cost the Mets a win. Maybe the purpose of this section isn't to try and figure out which one you want to own for fantasy, rather, it is a public service announcement to inform you to stay away from all of them.

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