RADIO
BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues
ROSTERED IN: 36% of leagues
ANALYSIS: Taijuan Walker has largely struggled to stay healthy over recent years, only managing to throw 67 1/3 total innings over the last three seasons combined, as he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2018 and strained a shoulder during his comeback. Throughout his whole career, Walker has never thrown more than 169 2/3 innings in a season.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and weekly lineup resources:- Fantasy baseball injury reports
- Fantasy baseball trade analyzer
- Daily MLB starting lineups for fantasy baseball
- Fantasy baseball BvP matchups data (Batter vs. Pitcher)
- Fantasy baseball PvB matchups data (Pitcher vs. Batter)
- Who should I start? Fantasy baseball player comparisons
- Fantasy baseball closer depth charts, bullpens, saves
- Fantasy Baseball live scoreboard, daily leaderboards
All those injuries can distract from the fact that when healthy, Walker has been a productive major league starter. For his career, Walker has produced an ERA of 3.82 and a WHIP of 1.24, with his career ERA- of 94 indicating that he has been an above-average pitcher in that time. Most importantly, Walker has never been more productive than in late 2020 and early 2021. In the shortened pandemic season, Walker produced a 2.70 ERA, which, despite an elevated 4.82 xFIP, was majorly skewed by two tough starts out of his first three to begin the year. Over his last eight 2020 appearances, Walker never allowed more than three earned runs. In 2021, it's been more of the same, as Walker carries a 2.61 ERA with a career-best 3.44 xFIP.
Walker also set a career high for strikeouts per nine innings in 2020 with 8.44, a number he has now far surpassed in early 2021 with a 10.45 rate over 10 1/3 innings, with a whiff rate in the 73rd percentile, by far his career best. As the strikeouts climb, so does Walker's value. Walker comes with his fair share of risk, but if you're looking for upside, he might finally be fulfilling his promise as a former top prospect.
Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App
Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy baseball app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, sleepers, prospects & more. All free!
More Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Adds
Check out RotoBaller's entire fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups and sleepers list, updated daily!
