Fantasy Baseball Trade Targets - Buy/Sell for Week 20 (2024)

Time is ticking for managers to make trades in fantasy baseball leagues this year. In most leagues, the trade deadline will occur sometime over the next two weeks. In ESPN leagues, that trade deadline date is Aug. 5. In Yahoo! leagues, the final trading date is Aug. 15.

As a result, now is the perfect time to make those final trades to get your team in a better spot come playoff time. Trade for that superstar outfielder who is currently on the IL or that All-Star pitcher who has struggled recently on the mound. 

Heading into Week 20 of the MLB season, we will look at four players fantasy managers should be buying low or selling high right now. These moves could be the difference in a fantasy baseball championship. 

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Undervalued Fantasy Baseball Players to Trade For

OF Christian Yelich, Milwaukee Brewers

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich has dealt with a nagging back issue for most of the year. He missed almost a month in April/May with a lower back strain and now finds himself back on the injured list with lower back inflammation. Reports have even come out and said that Yelich could miss the rest of the season with that injury.

However, it appears that won't be the case after the All-Star met with a specialist last week. Instead of undergoing back surgery and missing the remainder of the 2024 season, the veteran outfielder will rest and rehab his back. That is surely good news for any fantasy manager who has him or is looking to acquire him.

With Yelich currently on the IL and his return date being murky, now is the perfect time to trade for the Brewers outfielder. He has been fantastic at the plate this season, hitting .315 with 11 home runs, 12 doubles, three triples, and 42 RBI across 73 games. The 32-year-old has been a consistent fantasy option all year, and he should continue to be one when he is activated off the IL in the coming weeks. 

"Baseball's tough and it's a game of ups and downs... you just keep going. You keep trying to be the best version of yourself."

Ahead of his return to the #AllStarGame for the first time since 2019, @Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich reflects on his journey to this point. pic.twitter.com/esFN3KZaeI

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) July 15, 2024

When Yelich is activated from the IL remains to be seen. But there's a good chance he will be back in Milwaukee's lineup by the beginning of September. MLB.com has the outfielder's expected return as "late August at the earliest." Even if he returns in September, he'll be back just in time for the fantasy playoffs. 

SP Tanner Houck, Boston Red Sox

For the first three months of the season, Boston Red Sox starter Tanner Houck was one of the best fantasy pitchers. In his first 16 outings, Houck had a 2.16 ERA and 101 strikeouts across 103 1/3 innings pitched. During that span, the right-hander also threw 12 quality starts. 

However, over his last five starts, Houck has struggled a bit on the mound. He has given up at least four runs in three of his last five outings, including a season-high eight runs (seven earned runs) against the San Diego Padres on June 29. The right-hander is in a bit of a rut on the mound right now, as opposing hitters are batting .277 against him since the end of June. He also has a 5.26 ERA and 15 walks issued during this rough stretch. 

2024 AL ERA Leaders

Tarik Skubal (2.35)
Corbin Burnes (2.47)
Seth Lugo (2.66)
Tanner Houck (2.79)

All Leaders: https://t.co/moXSTTYNyO pic.twitter.com/xdkQLpdVIS

— Baseball Reference (@baseball_ref) August 1, 2024

Nonetheless, he is a player fantasy managers should be looking to target in trades right now. Houck has been one of the most surprising pitchers in baseball this season, and better results should be on the way for the 28-year-old. That's why you should be taking a chance on him ahead of Week 20. The young pitcher still owns a 2.79 ERA in 20 starts in 2024. 

Overvalued Fantasy Baseball Players to Trade Away

OF Lawrence Butler, Oakland A's

It has been shocking to see what Oakland A's outfielder Lawrence Butler has been doing at the plate over the past few weeks. Butler struggled to start the 2024 season, hitting .179 with two HRs, four doubles, and seven RBI through his first 41 games. So, the A's decided to option him down to Triple-A to work on things. 

He spent over one month in the minors before the team called him up again on June 18. Since then, Butler has been the hottest hitter in baseball. The 24-year-old is batting .366 (34-for-93) with 10 HRs, six doubles, two triples, and 27 RBI over his last 25 games. That has helped the outfielder become fantasy-relevant, as he scored the third-most fantasy points in Yahoo! leagues in July. 

When Butler was optioned down to Triple-A in May, he emphasized adjusting his swing. That has helped him take his game to the next level. However, it would be hard to imagine him keeping up this pace for the rest of the season. As a result, try to trade him and see what you can get. He has been one of the most impactful fantasy players recently, so chances are you can get something solid in return. The 24-year-old is overvalued in fantasy right now due to his recent surge at the plate. 

SP/RP Garrett Crochet, Chicago White Sox 

Chicago White Sox pitcher Garrett Crochet makes this list once again. But it's important to have him on here with the MLB trade deadline now officially done. While many fantasy managers thought the left-hander was going to get traded, the White Sox decided to hang onto him for the time being. However, that might have been the worst-case scenario for Crochet. 

Looking at where the White Sox are in the standings, there is a strong possibility that the southpaw gets shut down at some point toward the end of the season. He has already thrown a career-high 114 1/3 innings. That comes after Crochet threw just 88 2/3 innings combined over the past four seasons. With Chicago playing for nothing down the stretch, expect the 25-year-old pitcher to be extremely limited in August/September. 

Garrett Crochet MLB ranks:

2.47 xERA (1)
2.44 xFIP (1)
2.54 SIERA (1)
34.6 K% (1)
4.1 fWAR (1)

Crochet has been the most dominant pitcher in baseball despite playing for one of the worst teams in decades. pic.twitter.com/gmTDMcZAbg

— Doug McKain (@DMAC_LA) July 30, 2024

Fantasy managers are already seeing that limitation with Crochet, as the left-hander has thrown just 13 total innings across his last four starts. During those four outings, the White Sox pitcher didn't go more than four innings in any of those starts. As a result, now is the time to trade him away in fantasy. His value might not be as high as it once was. However, it's still worth trading him away because he's a potential shutdown candidate in the final month.

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