Advertisement

High Fives: Diamondbacks in the Week 7 waiver rough

High Fives: Diamondbacks in the Week 7 waiver rough

As we head into Week 7 of the fantasy baseball season, Brandon Funston, Scott Pianowski and Andy Behrens offer their top-5 takes on those players bucking for employment in fantasy leagues. Each week, we'll take a trip around the diamond to uncover the best help that your FAAB dollars can buy. Let's get to it ...

Top 5 corner infield pickups among the under 50% owned crowd

1. Kennys Vargas -  April showers (.172) have brought May flowers (.375 in first 11 games of this month)

1. Kennys Vargas - Didn't hit a lick in April, but bat has perked up this month

1. Kennys Vargas - He's not playing every night, but worth the high-maintenance ownership experience

2.  Logan Morrison - Hitting .328 with 5 HRs in his past 16 games

2. Yunel Escobar - Getting prime real estate in Washington lineup, and they're piling on the runs

2. Ryan Howard - Recent performance has proven that he's not totally worthless. Woo.

3. Ryan Howard -  Is showing that there's still useable power in his mid-30s body - 7 HR in past 23 games

3. Logan Morrison - Controlling his at-bats nicely, has shown pop of late

3. Trevor Plouffe - Productive lately, with 10 RBIs over the past two weeks

4. Maikel Franco -  Given his prospect pedigree and his wide open opportunity in Philly, it's worth giving him a trial run

4. Ryan Howard - Is this another Werth All-Star? Silly contract, but has .944 OPS in May. 

4. Jon Singleton - He's gotta get the call at some point, right? Soon. This Chris Carter nightmare can't persist.

5. Joe MauerAt the very least, a serviceable return can be expected in the batting average and RBI categories

5. Chris Colabello - I'd love to give this guy a Wiggy

5. Chris Colabello - Yup, he's doing it again. Dude is hitting nearly .500 over the past two weeks.

 

Top 5 middle infield pickups among the under 50% owned crowd

1. Aaron Hill -  Time to wake up and smell the hot streak - hitting .438 in 1st 11 games of May

1. Jace Peterson - Not a lot of pop, but has all the other skills that fit recent leadoff promotion

1. Chris Owings - Over the past two weeks, it's basically two hits every night. Nice power/speed combo.

2. Carlos Correa 7 HR and 15 SB in 29 games at AA earned him a promotion to AAA - ETA for MLB debut is 1st week of June

2. Cory Spangenberg - Ran wild in the minors, has first-round pedigree 

2. Aaron Hill - Feasting at the plate, before he was sidelined with the flu. Plenty of history here.

3. Chris Owings - Solid pop/speed  for a MI -  Like teammate Hill, he's caught holy fire of late - 12-for-20 in past 5

3. Brandon Crawford - Home park isn't ideal, but power spike starting to look real

3. Brandon Phillips - Don't own him anywhere myself. But hey, I need five names.

4. Brandon Crawford .876 OPS, 2nd-most RBI among MI-eligibles - at some point, we gotta recognize

4. Jung Ho Kang - Playing time is tricky, but his bat could force the issue

4. Carlos Correa - Add in advance of the call-up. He's coming ... and he's really, really good.

5. Jung Ho Kang - His bat has forced his way into more PT - .928 OPS thru 1st 12 May games

5. Brad Miller - Light appears to be going on for post-hype kid, and they'll play him all over the diamond

5. Delino Deshields - He's actually a lousy hitter, but the speed is nice. I drafted his dad back in the day.

 

Top 5 outfield pickups among the under 50% owned crowd

1. Ender Inciarte - Ender's hit-n-run game has been worth top 100 roto value in the Y! game

1. Ender Inciarte - More bags would be appreciated, but at least he's marked his territory in the leadoff spot

1. Anthony Gose - When he plays, he hits. And of course he keeps running.

2. Adam Eaton - He's the AL waiver version of Inciarte, only with an awful April slump masking his hit-n-run value

2. Andre Ethier - Not long ago, everyone loved that pretty lefty stroke. Not everyone realizes Chavez Ravine is a homers park.

2. Ender Inciarte - Still raking, still leading off. Capable of 20-or-so steals.

3. Josh Hamilton - Looking like his return to Texas is about one week away

3. Nori Aoki - Up to 10 steals and yet he's unowned in two-thirds of Yahoo

3. Khris Davis - Plenty of power here, and the bat is waking up.

4. Rusney Castillo - He's starting to roll in AAA - I'd bet he gets a call-up in early June, at the latest

4. Curtis Granderson - Those power/speed combos don't grow on trees

4. Andre Ethier - Injuries have cleared a path to regular at-bats; and he's taking full advantage.

5. Carlos Beltran - Currently riding an 8-game hit streak that includes a couple HRs and 7 RBI

5. Anthony Gose - Strong side of the platoon, works in a plus lineup

5. Billy Burns - I love him like my own sweet child. Crazy-fast, and he gives us two hits whenever he plays.

 

Top 5 pitcher pickups among the under 50% owned crowd

1. Clay Buchholz - When his stuff is on (like in last outing vs. M's), he's straight-up nasty

1. Chris Heston - Did you see those Wiffle Ball highlights in Houston? Signature significance, man. 

1. Brad Ziegler - I won't lie, it felt pretty awesome, dropping Addison Reed.

2. A.J. Ramos - Picked up save past week, though high volume Ks and great ratios in heavy relief role work regardless even if he doesn't lock down closer role

2. A.J. Ramos - Possession is most of the gig, and he's posted wipeout numbers all year

2. AJ Ramos - Not yet at 50 percent ownership, despite closing nod and terrific stats.

3. Brad Ziegler - The Addison Reed closing time circus show is over for now, which should work to Ziegler's immediate benefit

3. J.A. Happ - There's a feeling I get when I look to the west

3. Keone Kela - When Feliz is flipped or fired, Kela figures to take over.

4. James Paxton -His outings can get messy at times, but can't deny the stuff, and has 3 straight Quality Starts

4. Juan Nicasio - Could be the next closer if Jansen gets hurt again, and rest of package is worthy of ownership (1.02/1.08, 25 Ks)

4. Chris Young - Vote of confidence, because I'm trying to will him toward a solid outing


5. Chris Heston - Solid K rate, ratios, and has picked up Quality Start in 5 of his 7 outings, thus far

5. Will Harris - Non-closing hero with microscopic ratios and a meaty strikeout rate

5. Tim Lincecum - Sure, I'll buy him as a fantasy spot-starter. We know he's a roller coaster, but he's plenty fun.

 

With a nod to openings of Mad Max: Fury Road and Pitch Perfect 2, top 5 movie sequels

1. Empire Strikes Back - To answer Andy's question, no, this is not a debate

1. Before Sunset - Richard Linklater is film royalty

1. Empire Strikes Back - Is this even a debate? No one disputes Empire in the top spot, right?

2. Terminator 2 - Arnold is good, Linda Hamilton is ripped, the pace of the action is ridiculous and the liquid nitrogen special fx were awesome

2. The Color of Money - Paul Newman at the top of his game, with plenty of support players chipping in nicely. The balls roll funny for everybody, kid. 

2. Godfather II - OK, fine. This one is close. But no lightsaber battles. 

3. The Bourne Ultimatum - This was the best of the Bourne trilogy, which is very high praise

3. Godfather II - Probably the best film in the trilogy

3. Aliens

4. Christmas Vacation -  For a month out of the year, I can watch the Griswold's good ole fashioned family Christmas over and over and over again

4. Led Zeppelin II - Yeah, I'm cheating; movie franchises don't do that much for me

4. The Dark Knight

5. Godfather II - Because I couldn't decide between Toy Story II or III, decided to go a different direction entirely

5. Kid Griffey and Barry Bonds - Though the old men could play a little, too

5. Breakin' Two: Electric Boogallo - Unrivaled greatest film title of all-time. I never actually saw if, of course.