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By this time of the fantasy season, those in 5x5 Roto leagues should have a good idea which categories they’re set in and also the ones where they could use some help. We’re here to lend a hand with the latter. All of the players listed below are widely available in your standard 12-teamer and are capable of providing a boost.
AVG
Nicky Lopez, 2B/SS, Royals
With Adalberto Mondesi missing virtually the entire season because of multiple injuries, the Royals have turned to Lopez as their everyday shortstop. The 26-year-old has really shined defensively, and he’s shown some improvement with the bat, as well. Lopez is never going to hit for any power, and his counting stats will suffer while batting at the bottom of the Royals’ order. He’s among the league’s better contact hitters, though, and an 11.1 percent walk rate in 2021 has helped him to a .356 on-base percentage. Lopez is batting .365 over his last 26 games, and he’s also a perfect 8-for-8 on stolen base attempts this season. Obviously, the ceiling here is limited, but Lopez is worthy of some attention in deep leagues.
HR
Joc Pederson, OF, Braves
The Braves look more like sellers than buyers ahead of the trade deadline, but they supplemented an outfield badly in need of reinforcements with the addition of Pederson last Thursday. They immediately threw Pederson into the leadoff spot, and he’s gone 4-for-10 with a double, a home run and four RBI in his first 11 plate appearances with his new club. Pederson has been given a chance to play against lefties this season and he’s proven capable with a .292/.370/.415 line versus southpaws. Unfortunately, he has just a .722 OPS against righties, although he has clubbed 11 homers. Pederson’s streakiness is well documented, but if you’re hoping to catch some power lightning in a bottle in the second half, he might be your guy. The outfielder is unrostered in nearly 70 percent of Yahoo leagues.[[ad:athena]]
RBI
John Nogowski, 1B, Pirates
Nogowski cracked the Cardinals’ Opening Day roster but never made much sense on a team which already had Paul Goldschmidt. However, the Pirates did have a need for him and he’s become something of a cult hero early on, batting .452/.489/.548 with four doubles and eight RBI over his first 10 games with the Buccos. “The Big Nogowski” is not your prototypical first baseman because he’s never been much of a home run hitter, but he attempts to make up for that with excellent plate discipline. Nogowski has been locked in as the Pirates’ No. 5 hitter, and with Adam Frazier, Ke’Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds batting ahead of him, the opportunities to drive in runs should be there.
SB
Travis Jankowski, OF, Phillies
With Odubel Herrera (ankle) on the shelf and Roman Quinn (Achilles) done for the season, the Phillies have been desperate for center field help. The club has been settling on Jankowski against right-handers, and the speedster is sporting a .974 OPS with one home run and four stolen bases (without being caught) through his first 60 plate appearances for Philly. Jankowski has never tallied 400 plate appearances in a season in the majors, but he showed during his time with the Padres that he’s still capable of making a dent in the stolen base category even with just semi-regular duty. He’s not a good bet to continue his hot hitting, but Jankowski will run when he gets on base.
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R
Alcides Escobar, SS/2B, Nationals
The Nationals lost the hot-hitting Kyle Schwarber earlier this month with a hamstring injury. It’s led to Josh Harrison seeing more playing time in left field and Escobar taking over at second base and in the leadoff spot. It’s certainly a worthy discussion as to whether there are better options, but the reality is that the Nats are riding with Escobar right now and he’s off to a nice start, putting up a .296/.333/.444 batting line with one homer, seven RBI and seven runs scored in 12 contests. With Trea Turner and Juan Soto batting directly behind him, Escobar will have the chance to score some runs as long as he’s sitting atop the Nats’ order.
W
Eric Lauer, SP, Brewers
The Brewers swept the Reds over the weekend in Cincinnati as their lead in the National League Central swelled to seven games. Up next they have a two-game series against the Royals, a club which is just 8-29 over their last 37 contests. Lauer will go into Tuesday’s matchup versus Kansas City having allowed just two runs over his last three starts, and he went at least six innings in each of those outings. It’s a situation which certainly sets up nicely for the left-hander to pick up his fourth victory of the season.
ERA
Chad Kuhl, SP, Pirates
Kuhl got off to a shaky start this season, but he has certainly found his footing over the last month, putting up a 1.98 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 22/12 K/BB ratio over 27 1/3 innings covering his last five starts. Walks remain an issue for the right-hander, but Kuhl has been difficult to hit thanks in large part to a slider-heavy approach. Among pitchers with at least 50 innings this season, only Clayton Kershaw (47.4 percent) is throwing his slider more than Kuhl (44.9 percent). Batters have just a .183 average and .367 slugging percentage against the pitch, so it’s not a bad approach. Kuhl’s next start will come against the Diamondbacks, and you might have heard that they’re not very good this season.
WHIP
Cole Irvin, SP, Athletics
The A’s picked up Irvin from the Phillies back in January for cash, and it’s an under-the-radar move that’s paying dividends. The left-hander has posted a 3.65 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 78/19 K/BB ratio across 106 innings in his 18 starts for Oakland. Since the beginning of June, Irvin boasts a 2.95 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 33/8 K/BB ratio over 42 2/3 frames. Irvin pounds the strike zone with the best of them, holding just a 4.3 percent walk rate which ranks in the top four percent of the league. The elite control makes the southpaw a safe bet from a WHIP perspective.
K
Tanner Houck, SP, Red Sox
Houck will be getting a start this week against the Blue Jays in what will be his first start with the big club since back in April. That’s due in part to a flexor strain which sidelined him for a while, but Houck is healthy now and tossed three scoreless relief innings last Friday versus the Yankees. The former first-round pick has been superb at the major league level to this point with a 1.78 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 36/11 K/BB ratio over 30 1/3 innings. A 4.17 ERA and 4.0 BB/9 rate from the minors suggests there’s inevitable regression, but Houck is going to miss some bats thanks in large part to a terrific slider.
SV
David Bednar, RP, Pirates
The saves might not come immediately, but Bednar looks like the best bet to assume the closer role for the Pirates once Richard Rodriguez is flipped to a contender. The 26-year-old boasts a 2.92 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 45/13 K/BB ratio over 37 relief innings this season and has held opponents to a meager .207/.275/.370 batting line. Even if the Pirates wind up going with someone else or multiple guys to close games, Bednar is mixed league-worthy even without the saves.
