The ESPN default trade deadline has already passed, while Yahoo's is on Sunday. This week and in subsequent installments, we'll focus a bit more on players who are more likely to be available on your waiver wire.
Keep working the phones, and don't be afraid to be bold. I hear victory goes to those people.
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Week 19 Buys
Brad Miller, 2B/SS/OF, Tampa Bay Rays
Miller is one of the most added players over the last week, but he’s still available in over 40 percent of both Yahoo and ESPN leagues. Over the last month, he’s hitting .322/.392/.644 with six homers, 33 R+RBI, and a pair of stolen bases. A former top prospect, Miller has already nearly doubled his previous career high in home runs. The 26 year old is eligible at both middle infield positions and in the outfield, and has recently been playing first base as well.
Devon Travis, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays
Travis has battled injuries during his first two seasons in the big leagues, but he’s consistently produced when healthy. Among second baseen, only Jose Altuve and Daniel Murphy have a better OPS than Travis during that time. Granted, he’s done it in fewer than half the plate appearances that those guys have, but you also won’t find Altuve or Murphy on the wire in the majority of leagues. And with Jose Bautista back on the disabled list, Travis will be the Jays’ leadoff man for the foreseeable future. Not bad work if you can get it.
Hisashi Iwakuma, SP, Seattle Mariners
Iwakuma got off to a rough start this season. That’s not unusual for him, but coming off a winter in which he saw a contract with the Dodgers fall through due to concerns about his shoulder, it was certainly cause for concern. The veteran has gotten on track, though – he’s won 11 of his last 14 starts while pitching to a 3.43 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. His strikeout rate is unexciting and he’s homer prone, but Iwakuma has always been a dependable fantasy asset anyway.
Week 19 Sells
Tyler Naquin, OF, Cleveland Indians
Naquin has been one of biggest surprises of the season. After never hitting more than 10 homers in a season in the minors, he has 13 in just 245 plate appearances. He’s also hitting .311 despite a strikeout rate north of 30 percent. Part of that is because his BABIP has sat over .400 basically all season (it’s currently .420). We know that isn’t sustainable, but Naquin had shown no signs of slowing down…until now. Small sample alert, but Naquin’s hit just .091/.200/.227 so far this month, and he’s struck out in a whopping 44 percent of his trips to the plate. Could just be a slump, or it could be the other shoe dropping.
Dylan Bundy, SP, Baltimore Orioles
After several years in the wilderness thanks to various injuries, Bundy looks like he’s recaptured the form that allowed him to break into the majors four years ago at the tender age of 19. Since moving into the rotation last month, he’s posted a 3.00 ERA and 0.85 WHIP over 27 innings, striking out 33 batters while walking just six. So why sell? Well, for starters, he’s enjoyed some luck during that time, with a strand rate just under 90 percent and a .190 BABIP that isn’t supported by his contact quality metrics. Mainly, though, there’s a lot of uncertainty around his workload. Bundy has thrown 65 innings this season – exactly as many as he threw in the previous three years combined. Even with the Orioles in a pennant race and short on quality arms, you have to wonder how long of a leash they’ll give him.
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