Hot Hitter Rundown: June 3

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You should always have the big picture in mind when it comes to your season-long fantasy baseball leagues. Putting too much stock in a small sample size might cause you to make a decision that hurts you in the long run. That said, it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be taking stock of what’s happened in the immediate past. It can be useful when it comes to weekly or especially daily lineup decisions, waiver wire considerations, tracking who might be coming into more playing time, etc.

The Rotoworld Player Rater is a handy tool that’s among the extensive offerings in Season Pass. Each week, I’ll be using the Player Rater to look at the hottest hitters, position by position, over the last week, and providing commentary.

*The following data is based on 5x5 Roto scoring and covers games played from May 27-June 2.

Editor’s Note: Stay ahead of the competition from wire to wire with rankings, customizable projections, trade evaluator, exclusive columns and more in our Season Pass. And start using optimized lineups on Yahoo!, DraftKings and FanDuel with our DFS Toolkit!

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Catcher

Rank	Player	Tm	Pos	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	R	VAL
#1	Jorge Alfaro	MIA	C	1.35171	1.95603	-0.39831	2.07679	0.12245	5.11
#2	Gary Sanchez	NYY	C	2.45441	0.59756	-0.39831	0.14644	1.09350	3.89
#3	Matt Wieters	STL	C	1.35171	0.59756	-0.39831	0.52419	0.60797	2.68
#4	Elias Diaz	PIT	C	-0.85370	2.40885	-0.39831	1.44720	-0.36307	2.24
#5	Tom Murphy	SEA	C	0.24900	-0.30808	1.18102	0.79710	0.12245	2.04
#6	Grayson Greiner	DET	C	1.35171	0.59756	-0.39831	0.14644	0.12245	1.82
#7	Curt Casali	CIN	C	0.24900	1.05039	-0.39831	0.77602	0.12245	1.80
#8	Yasmani Grandal	MLW	C	1.35171	-0.30808	-0.39831	0.83870	0.12245	1.61
#9	Chris Iannetta	COL	C	1.35171	0.59756	-0.39831	0.29343	-0.36307	1.48
#10	Buster Posey	SF	C	0.24900	-0.30808	-0.39831	0.29343	1.57902	1.42

Jorge Alfaro has his OPS back up over .800 following a 13-game stretch during which he’s batted .375/.412/.708 with four home runs and 13 RBI. With a 33.8 percent strikeout rate and 4.8 percent walk rate, Alfaro’s plate discipline remains among the worst in the game. However, he continues to hit the ball hard when he does make contact (45.9 percent hard-hit rate). Alfaro has a real shot to hit 20 homers, so it’s easy to forgive his flaws … Matt Wieters is in line for regular playing time with Yadier Molina (thumb) likely to miss multiple weeks. The 33-year-old’s bat has been surprisingly potent in limited action this season with a .973 OPS and three long balls over 42 plate appearances. Wieters’ 91.1 mph exit velocity is also easily his best during the Statcast era, and he’s even batted fifth in his last two starts. He’s been a well below average hitter for the previous three seasons and is likely to get exposed the more he plays, but Wieters looks like a viable second catcher for a while … Speaking of catchers now in line for more playing time, Elias Diaz will be the Pirates’ primary backstop with Francisco Cervelli (concussion) out indefinitely. Over the last 14 games, Diaz is sporting a .392/.407/.451 batting line while driving in 11 runs. He’s yet to go deep in 100 plate appearances for the Bucs this season, but with 10 dingers across 277 plate appearances last year, Diaz has shown some pop at the big league level. His high contact rate (16.5 percent strikeout rate) also means he shouldn’t sink your average …

First Base

Rank	Player	Tm	Pos	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	R	VAL
#1	Albert Pujols	LAA	1B	2.45441	2.86167	-0.39831	0.25127	1.09350	6.26
#2	Max Muncy	LA	1B	1.35171	1.05039	-0.39831	1.55204	2.06455	5.62
#3	Carlos Santana	CLE	1B	1.35171	2.40885	-0.39831	0.46095	1.09350	4.92
#4	David Freese	LA	1B	1.35171	0.14474	-0.39831	2.09787	1.57902	4.78
#5	Brandon Belt	SF	1B	0.24900	1.50321	1.18102	0.85978	0.60797	4.40
#6	Josh Bell	PIT	1B	1.35171	1.50321	-0.39831	0.64954	1.09350	4.20
#7	Ronald Guzman	TEX	1B	1.35171	1.50321	1.18102	-0.10540	0.12245	4.05
#8	Eric Thames	MLW	1B	1.35171	0.59756	-0.39831	1.02785	1.09350	3.67
#9	Christian Walker	ARZ	1B	1.35171	1.05039	-0.39831	0.46095	1.09350	3.56
#10	Pete Alonso	NYM	1B	1.35171	1.50321	-0.39831	1.17429	-0.36307	3.27

A blast from the past, as future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols tops this list thanks to a three-homer week during which he drove in nine runs over five games. Pujols continues to be one of the more difficult players to strike out (12.3 percent strikeout rate), and he’s also got his walk rate back up to a healthy 9.3 percent this season. The 39-year-old continues to hit in the middle of the Angels’ order, so his 30-homer, 91-RBI pace could be attainable if he can manage to stay healthy … Max Muncy sat against some lefties early on in the season, but he’s been an everyday player for a while now and has rewarded Dodgers manager Dave Roberts with an .876 OPS and four home runs in 71 plate appearances versus southpaws. The Statcast data for Muncy this season isn’t nearly as eye-popping as it was last year, as he’s not hitting the ball nearly as hard (37.2 percent hard-hit rate in 2019 versus 46.7 percent in 2018). Still, he’s been plenty productive – especially since the beginning of May – and it looks like fantasy owners will get a lot more volume out of him this year … David Freese homered in back-to-back games over the weekend and has his OPS on the season up to an even 1.000 following an 11-for-21 stretch across his last eight contests. Freese is also sporting an 18.8 percent walk rate – which is double that of his career mark – and he’s top-20 in the league in barrels/PA (10.6 percent). He’s obviously not going to play enough to be viable in a standard mixer, but Freese is useful in a league allowing daily lineup moves …

Second Base

Rank	Player	Tm	Pos	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	R	VAL
#1	Derek Dietrich	CIN	2B	3.55712	2.86167	-0.39831	1.57312	0.60797	8.20
#2	Keston Hiura	MLW	2B	2.45441	1.95603	-0.39831	0.71278	1.09350	5.82
#3	Mike Moustakas	MLW	2B	2.45441	1.05039	-0.39831	0.73386	1.09350	4.93
#4	Luis Rengifo	LAA	2B	0.24900	1.50321	-0.39831	-0.00056	3.03559	4.39
#5	DJ LeMahieu	NYY	2B	1.35171	1.95603	-0.39831	0.10428	1.09350	4.11
#6	Enrique Hernandez	LA	2B	1.35171	1.95603	-0.39831	0.27235	-0.36307	2.82
#7	Yolmer Sanchez	CWS	2B	-0.85370	0.59756	1.18102	1.57312	0.12245	2.62
#8	Jonathan Villar	BAL	2B	0.24900	-0.76090	2.76035	0.02052	0.12245	2.39
#9	Adeiny Hechavarria	NYM	2B	0.24900	1.50321	-0.39831	0.58687	0.12245	2.06
#10	Addison Russell	CHC	2B	1.35171	0.14474	-0.39831	0.73386	0.12245	1.95

You may have heard that Derek Dietrich has been hitting a lot of home runs this season. The 29-year-old already has a career-high 17 bombs and is slugging a ridiculous .700 after a four-homer week which included the first three-homer game of his career. While his hard-hit rate (36.3 percent) and exit velocity (88.2 mph) aren’t anything to write home about, Dietrich’s 17.5 percent barrel rate ranks in the top three percent of the league. He’s also put up easily the highest flyball rate of his career at 51 percent. His 34 percent HR/FB will surely drop, but when you’re barreling the ball and hitting it in the air a lot and you play in Great American Ball Park, it’s going to lead to home runs … Keston Hiura’s 33.3 percent strikeout rate and 4.3 percent walk rate in his first 17 games with the Brewers is troubling, and we can’t necessarily count on improvement since he was striking out a lot this year at Triple-A, too (27.2 percent). Still, the exit velocity (91.7 percent), barrel rate (15.7 percent) and hard-hit rate (44.4 percent) have all been encouraging, and his strikeout rate was down to 22.2 percent during his three-homer week this past week. Hiura also batted cleanup for the Brew Crew on Sunday ... I was intrigued by what Luis Rengifo could do with regular playing time after Andrelton Simmons (ankle) went down, although that was mostly from a speed perspective given his big stolen base totals in the minors. However, while Rengifo is still looking for his first steal, he’s put together a .308/.404/.436 line with one dinger, eight RBI and 11 runs scored across his last 11 tilts. I doubt he’s going to be fantasy-relevant unless he starts running, though, as Rengifo’s power is fairly limited and he’s stuck at the bottom of the Angels’ batting order …

Third Base

Rank	Player	Tm	Pos	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	R	VAL
#1	Eduardo Escobar	ARZ	3B	2.45441	2.86167	1.18102	0.56579	1.09350	8.16
#2	Nolan Arenado	COL	3B	0.24900	2.40885	-0.39831	2.03463	2.06455	6.36
#3	David Fletcher	LAA	3B	-0.85370	0.59756	1.18102	2.01355	3.03559	5.97
#4	Todd Frazier	NYM	3B	1.35171	0.59756	-0.39831	1.19537	2.06455	4.81
#5	Colin Moran	PIT	3B	1.35171	1.50321	-0.39831	0.43987	1.57902	4.48
#6	Matt Chapman	OAK	3B	2.45441	0.59756	-0.39831	0.71278	1.09350	4.46
#7	Alex Bregman	HOU	3B	1.35171	1.05039	-0.39831	0.71278	1.57902	4.30
#8	Christian Arroyo	TB	3B	1.35171	1.05039	-0.39831	0.04160	1.09350	3.14
#9	David Bote	CHC	3B	1.35171	1.05039	-0.39831	0.85978	0.12245	2.99
#10	Howie Kendrick	WAS	3B	0.24900	1.05039	-0.39831	1.61528	0.12245	2.64

Eduardo Escobar’s first full season with the Diamondbacks got off to a rotten start with a lowly .637 OPS and just one home run over his first 20 games. Since then, though, he’s been one of the best hitters in baseball with an absurd 1.034 OPS, 14 long balls and 40 RBI across 39 contests. The 30-year-old is currently on a 41-homer, 130-RBI pace, although nothing has changed in his batted ball profile to suggests it’s remotely sustainable. Escobar is a flyball hitter (45.4 percent), and he should continue to see a good number of RBI opportunities if he keeps batting third. That said, his hard-hit rate has always been below-average and that’s been no different this season (30.1 percent). He also has an 18.1 percent HR/FB rate, which would easily be a career high … David Fletcher was already an everyday player while bouncing around to multiple positions prior to Andrelton Simmons (ankle) getting hurt, but he’s settled in as the Angels’ shortstop since then while batting an eyebrow-raising .429/.509/.612 with one homer and two steals over 12 games. Fletcher makes some of the weakest contact in the league with a hard-hit rate (21.5 percent) and barrel rate (1.1 percent) both ranking in the bottom three percent. However, while he lacks hard contact, the fact that he makes so much contact is what makes him interesting. Fletcher boasts a 13/18 K/BB ratio, with his 5.9 percent strikeout rate easily ranking as the lowest in baseball among 166 qualifiers. The 25-year-old is extremely limited from a power perspective, but he’s a good bet to be a batting average asset and could help in stolen bases and runs, as well, especially if he continues to bat leadoff … Todd Frazier has kind of been a forgotten man with the Mets, but he’s perked up offensively of late with a .345/.433/.552 batting line and a couple long balls over his last 17 tilts. That said, Frazier is striking out more (26.2 percent) and walking less (6.6 percent) than ever before, and his 87.2 exit velocity is his lowest in the Statcast era. The veteran infielder also isn’t guaranteed everyday playing time once the Mets get healthier …

Shortstop

Rank	Player	Tm	Pos	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	R	VAL
#1	Trevor Story	COL	SS	1.35171	1.95603	2.76035	2.66422	3.03559	11.77
#2	Xander Bogaerts	BOS	SS	2.45441	1.50321	-0.39831	2.51722	3.52112	9.60
#3	Orlando Arcia	MLW	SS	2.45441	1.95603	-0.39831	0.96462	2.06455	7.04
#4	Francisco Lindor	CLE	SS	0.24900	0.59756	1.18102	1.30021	1.57902	4.91
#5	Adalberto Mondesi	KC	SS	0.24900	-0.76090	4.33968	-0.02164	1.09350	4.90
#6	Tim Anderson	CWS	SS	0.24900	0.14474	2.76035	0.02052	0.60797	3.78
#7	Corey Seager	LA	SS	1.35171	1.05039	-0.39831	0.60795	1.09350	3.71
#8	Dansby Swanson	ATL	SS	1.35171	1.50321	-0.39831	0.25127	0.60797	3.32
#9	Brandon Crawford	SF	SS	1.35171	1.50321	-0.39831	0.60795	0.12245	3.19
#10	Jose Iglesias	CIN	SS	0.24900	0.59756	-0.39831	-0.25239	2.55007	2.75

Orlando Arcia had the first multi-homer game of his career this past weekend and has gone deep four times over his last nine games. The shortstop is up to eight bombs on the year already after managing just three dingers across 119 games last season. Arcia’s batted ball data remains below average, but he’s been way less aggressive with a notable drop in swing rate down to 45.3 percent. He’s also more than doubled his walk rate year over year to 9.5 percent. I’m not convinced that Arcia has turned a corner yet, but it’s possible … The Indians’ offense has been a big disappointment this season, but Francisco Lindor can’t be blamed with a .310/.417/.507 line over his last 18 games to push his season OPS up to .847. He’s also posted the highest exit velocity (91.2 mph) and walk rate (9.5 percent) of his career. There’s no doubt that Lindor’s run and RBI totals have been affected by his poor supporting cast, though, and it’s not looking like that’s going to change … Brandon Crawford entered last week with an embarrassing .168/.255/.272 batting line over his previous 37 games, but series against the Marlins and Orioles is apparently what he needed to get him going. The shortstop went 7-for-22 at the plate in six contests and had his first two-homer game of the season on Sunday. It’s difficult to get excited about Crawford from a fantasy perspective, though, as he’s striking out more than ever (23.8 percent), sporting the lowest hard-hit rate (32.9 percent) since 2015 and often hitting in the bottom third of a bad lineup …

Outfield

Rank	Player	Tm	Pos	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	R	VAL
#1	Austin Meadows	TB	OF	1.35171	3.31449	2.76035	2.37022	2.55007	12.35
#2	Mallex Smith	SEA	OF	-0.85370	1.05039	9.07767	0.81762	0.12245	10.21
#3	Nomar Mazara	TEX	OF	1.35171	1.50321	1.18102	2.13947	2.55007	8.73
#4	Starling Marte	PIT	OF	1.35171	1.50321	1.18102	1.74064	2.06455	7.84
#5	David Dahl	COL	OF	1.35171	1.05039	-0.39831	2.74797	2.06455	6.82
#6	Mike Trout	LAA	OF	1.35171	1.95603	1.18102	1.21645	1.09350	6.80
#7	Niko Goodrum	DET	OF	2.45441	1.05039	-0.39831	1.30021	2.06455	6.47
#8	Garrett Cooper	MIA	OF	1.35171	1.50321	-0.39831	1.42613	2.55007	6.43
#9	Bryce Harper	PHI	OF	1.35171	2.86167	-0.39831	1.80388	0.60797	6.23
#10	Byron Buxton	MIN	OF	1.35171	1.50321	1.18102	0.88086	1.09350	6.01

You think the Pirates wish that they could take back the Chris Archer trade? Austin Meadows is one of a few reasons why the answer to that question is undoubtedly “yes,” as his 1.085 OPS ranks fourth in all of baseball among players with at least 150 plate appearances. He’s been on an insane run over his previous eight games, going 17-for-35 with three bombs, 13 RBI, 10 runs and three stolen bases. Meadows has benefitted from a .404 BABIP, but with an xBA of .317, we can’t just chalk this up to good fortune. It’s also been encouraging to see Meadows in the lineup five of the last seven times that the Rays have faced a left-hander. He’s earned everyday treatment with a .932 OPS versus southpaws … Mallex Smith is capable of carrying you in the stolen base category by himself, and he showed that this past week by going 6-for-6 on the basepaths (while also batting .321/.387/.429). Four of those stolen bases came in one game, which included a steal of home. Smith’s strikeout rate this season is way up at 28.7 percent and he continues to make some of the weakest contact in the league (22 percent hard-hit rate), so it’s not a surprise that he’s still batting under .200. That said, he has just a .267 BABIP in 2019 after entering the season with a career .349 BABIP, so odds are he has some batted ball luck coming his way. Smith has batted leadoff in each of his last six tilts, although that could change soon with Dee Gordon (wrist) on the comeback trail … David Dahl took advantage of the Rockies’ recent 10-game homestand, going a ridiculous 18-for-40 with two home runs as Colorado took nine of 10 at Coors Field. Dahl has been a disappointment from a counting stats perspective with just five homers and one stolen base, and his hard-hit rate (38.4 percent) and exit velocity (88.1 mph) are ordinary. He has his average up to .331 after his hot stretch, although with a 28.4 percent strikeout rate and lol-worthy .454 BABIP, some regression is likely coming in that regard …