10-team leagues

Tim Beckham, BAL SS, 2B, 1B (55% ownership), FAAB Bid - $17 – Since being moved to Baltimore, Beckham seems rejuvenated. In the eight games he’s played with Baltimore he’s hit .500 with three homeruns and six RBI. His three-position eligibility also gives him great value in all formats. He’s viable in all leagues and all formats for the rest of the season.

Jeff Hoffman, COL SP (19% ownership), FAAB Bid - $15 – To put it very generously, Hoffman struggled in July posting an ERA of 8.00 and allowing opponents to slash .312/.400/.581. He’s responded loudly, notching two straight excellent outings to begin August and what’s most impressive is both have come at the daunting Coors Field. What Hoffman has done these first two starts is induce groundball after groundball. His highest single-month mark is 44-percent, but he’s off to a rockin’ start in August getting grounders at a 63.6-percent clip! If he can keep that up and maintain his 20.2-percent K-rate, he’ll be an extremely valuable SP3 for the remainder of the season.

Josh Reddick, HOU OF (64% ownership), FAAB Bid - $14-15 – Reddick’s production in the heart of the Astros lineup has gone vastly overlooked due to guys like Altuve, Correa and Springer. The fact 35-percent of all Yahoo league owners can still pick up a .300 hitter that could hit 20 homers, steal 10-plus bases, drive in over 75 runs and score close to 90 is a dream. Reddick is a strong OF2 for the remainder of the campaign.

 

12-team leagues

Blake Treinen, OAK RP (27% ownership), FAAB Bid - $11 – Grabbing a closer at this time in the season is like getting to throw out the big box of gushers before realizing there is still a pack at the bottom. That said, we’re not exactly sure about the amount of opportunities he’ll get seeing how bad Oakland is. He’s saved two games since July 31 and has become the A’s most reliable reliever. It’s hard to trust him in 10-team formats with the lack of volume he’ll get but in formats where saves are at a premium like most 12-team leagues are, jump on this.

Jose Pirela, SD 2B, OF (6% ownership), FAAB Bid - $8 – We’ve suggested him once this year already but there’s no need he should be this available still, even if he does play for the Padres. Just over his last two games he’s 6-for-8 with five runs, two homers and three RBI. He’s going to continue to play everyday and hit in the middle of the Padres order, giving him plenty of run-producing opportunities for the remainder of the season.

Chad Kuhl, PIT SP (8% ownership), FAAB Bid - $7-8 – On the surface, Kuhl doesn’t look like he holds much fantasy value, but since May 31, a string of 13 starts, Kuhl has been pretty damn good. He’s thrown 71 innings over that span and has a notched a 3.42 ERA while allowing a super respectable slash of .238/.326/.360. He’s posted a decent K-rate of 20.5-percent and induced grounders at a 48.7-percent clip over that span as well. Kuhl has turned into a mighty fine SP4 and we’d even argue he’s been a low-end SP3 since the beginning of this stretch we mentioned.

 

15-team leagues

Adam Conley, MIA SP (15% ownership), FAAB Bid - $3 – Since rejoining the club after an extended trip in the minors, Conley has looked sharp. He’s made four starts and has posted a 2.45 ERA with a .253/.311/.378 opponent slash line. He’s not exactly missing bats as his 15.2-percent K-rate indicates, but he is limiting the line drives to a 16.3-percent mark and collecting groundball outs 48-percent of the time. He’s an SP5 at this point, with some SP4 upside.

Derek Dietrich, MIA 3B, 2B, 1B, OF  (3% ownership), FAAB Bid - $1 – The first four months of the season did not go well for Dietrich at all but he’s begun to turn things around here in August. In seven games he’s hit .360 and the two homers he has this month are as many as he’s had in any month all year long. He is really crushing the ball right now as he’s posted an incredible 57.9-percent hard contact rate in August. Dietrich’s value diminishes a bit when Martin Prado eventually returns from the DL, but his ability to play all over the field will keep his bat in the lineup, making him valuable in deeper formatted leagues such as NL-only ones.

C.J. Cron, LAA 1B (9% ownership), FAAB Bid - $1 – Cron is in a very similar spot as the aforementioned Derek Dietrich but Cron’s starting position with the team will likely stick for the remainder of the year. He’s really picked it up since being recalled from the minors in July. It’s been 18 games since his return and he’s hit .306 with four homers and has driven in 13 runs. Just in August alone he’s notched a 35.3-percent line drive rate, which is an elite mark. Cron is a nice fit in AL-only formats for ROS.

 

*ownership percentages courtesy of Yahoo

** FAAB bids based on $100 budget