If you’re like me, you stayed up to watch the NFL draft last night and hopefully you were happy with your team’s selection. Now, worry about your fantasy baseball team, you know, a situation where you actually control who joins your team, who leaves, etc. This was a tough one to write this week, being that I had to write some positive things about a player that I’ve never been high on in the fantasy game. See below to find out. Anyways, it’s almost the weekend, so kick back, crack the tab, enjoy a brew and start impacting those categories.

Batting Average and RBI

Jason Heyward, OF CHC – I’ll be honest. Writing this is quite surprising, not only because I’m not high on Jason Heyward, but because he’s actually playing well. I say actually because I feel as if this guy has been in a slump for well over a year now. Perhaps his revamped swing is paying off, and Chicago is finally getting what they hoped when they brought him to Chi-town. He’s still not great against lefties, but at least he’s mashing righties, so we can slightly overlook that flaw in his game. Thanks to a loaded Chicago offense, Heyward has come to the plate with runners in scoring position in 14 of his 26 plate appearances over the past seven days. That is heavenly for us fantasy owners in dire need of some runs batted in. Heyward has just one stolen base on the season, but pitchers are very mindful of his whereabouts on the base paths. FUN FACT: Heyward has had 31 pick-off attempts against him at first base this season. Impress your friends or girlfriend with that one. And impress your league mates by picking up Jason Heyward.

Home Runs and OBP

Joey Gallo, 3B TEX – By now, we all know the Gallo motto. Hit it a long way or don’t hit it at all. Hey, it’s fun to watch. He’s going to be a streaky hitter for the majority of his career and his home run potential is tantalizing to say the least. Currently, he’s red hot. Scratch that, white hot. He has a well-hit average of .375 over the last week, not to mention a slugging percentage of 1.188 in that span. He has five home runs in his last eight games and he evens has three stolen bases on the year. Dual-threat! Okay, maybe not quite, but still, a few stolen bases is better than zero. Even for those of you who are bad at math, even you know a couple is more than a goose egg. In leagues that value batting average, the hype around Gallo dies a little, but for those of you in OBP leagues, fire up the Gallo train and ride it all the way across the country. If you’re in a dynasty format, Gallo must be owned. It’s not every day that players come up with the potential to hit 30+ homers on a yearly basis for the entirety of their career.

Saves

Brad Brach, RP BAL – This one was rather easy, seeing as Brach is holding down the fort while Zach Britton is on the disabled list. If for some reason he isn’t already off the waiver wire and on your team, that needs to be rectified immediately. He was one of the game’s better set-up men, so no one should be surprised by the success he’s having in the ninth inning thus far in 2017. Since the start of 2016, right-handed hitters are hitting just .122 off Brach. In case you were wondering, the league average is .246. Righties are lost at the plate when Brach is wheelin’ and dealin’. Sure, his offspeed stuff low in the zone isn’t generating many swings-and-misses at this juncture, but hey, he’s still getting outs and getting the job done. Even when Britton returns from injury, Brach is still worth owning, especially in leagues that value holds.

Quality Starts and Cheap Strikeouts

Hector Santiago, SP MIN – If you’re looking for an under-the-radar arm to give you some quality starts moving forward, Minnesota’s Hector Santiago is your man. He’s posted a quality start in three of his five outings this year, and it would be a perfect 5-for-5 if he would have gotten through six innings in his first and most recent start. He can be a bit erratic, which drives his pitch count up, but lately at least, he’s been consistent with the strikeouts. Despite being a southpaw, Santiago struggles with his command when facing left-handers. Since last year’s All-Star break, Santiago has walked 16 percent of the lefties he's faced, which is almost double the league average during that same span. Additionally, lefties have a chase rate of just 11.8 percent against Santiago. However, what he lacks against lefties, he makes up for in terms of limiting solid contact. Since the start of 2016, his 16.6 line-drive rate ranks seventh out of 189 qualified starting pitchers. He’s sneaky, he’s under the radar, but he’s valuable, and consistent.

Wade Miley, SP BAL – I’ll admit, this one is a bit scary. Miley is pitching the lights out right now, there is no denying that. Over his last 15 innings, he’s punched out 19 guys and allowed just three earned runs on six hits. Sure, he has seven walks during that span, but hey, 19 K’s! He was masterful against the Reds and pretty good against the Rays, albeit for those six free passes. Opposing hitters are batting just .140 off Wade Miley and lefties have only hit line drives 12.2 percent of the time since last year’s All-Star break. The southpaw has recorded nine of his 14 walks on the year against opposing team’s three, four and five hitters. Well, they are the best hitters, so why not walk them!? Right? Kinda. I guess. Many times, pitchers get tired and struggle after a couple times through the lineup, however, that hasn’t been the case for Wiley. When going through the lineup for a third time, he has a strikeout rate of 44.4 percent. The league average is just under 20 percent. Yeah, Miley is DEALING. Not to kill the hype, because he’s a good addition right now, but just keep in the back of your mind that this guy is a career 59-60 pitcher with a 4.13 ERA. Just something to ponder.