FANTASY PLAYS: Players to pick up or stream in baseball
PLAYERS TO PICK UP
ANDREW HEANEY, SP, Los Angeles Angels (47 percent owned in Yahoo): The Angels aren't treating Heaney with kid gloves after his Tommy John surgery. After his complete game shutout Tuesday night, Heaney has thrown at least six innings in six of his last seven starts. He's traded his higher strikeout rate for a lower walk rate and ERA this season. The Angels six-man rotation makes owning any LA starter frustrating in a weekly league, but Heaney has high upside as a former top pitching prospect.
JAKE BAUERS, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays (4 percent) - Bauers got the call Wednesday night, and as deep as first base looked during draft season, it's been dismal so far in 2018. Bauers doesn't do one thing great, but he does a lot to help across the board. As a first baseman with a nice walk rate and the ability to sprinkle in some stolen bases, he's worth a speculative add in 12-team leagues.
KYLE BARRACLOUGH, RP, Miami Marlins (48 percent) - The experiment of trying to get as much trade value out of Brad Ziegler has failed for the Marlins, as Barraclough appears to be the man in the lead for saves in Miami. He's a No. 2 closer for those in need of saves.
KOLBY ALLARD, SP, Atlanta Braves (1 percent) - Julio Teheran went on the disabled list with a thumb contusion and has underperformed. One of the Braves' top pitching prospects could be up this weekend to fill in in the rotation. We've seen Mike Soroka and Luiz Gohara have success this year, and Allard could be the next young impact player for the Braves this year.
TWO-START PITCHERS TO STREAM
JON GRAY, SP, Colorado (65 percent) - Last year, Gray was better at home than on the road. This year, Gray has reversed splits, but he's still been tough to start on the road with his 4.73 ERA. Roll the dice with him in two starts against Cincinnati and Texas on the road.
TREVOR WILLIAMS, SP, Pittsburgh (37 percent) - It's a tough week for two-start pitchers, and that's why Williams is on the list. His early-season peripherals suggested that he was due for negative regression, and that's played out with his 4.18 ERA on the season. It's all about the matchups for Williams, as he makes two starts in two pitcher-friendly parks in Arizona and home against the Reds.
JACK FLAHERTY, SP, St. Louis Cardinals (62 percent) - Flaherty struggled against the Marlins, but expect him to bounce back in a big way next week against the Padres and Cubs.
HITTERS TO STREAM
SHIN-SOO CHOO, OF, Texas Rangers (58 percent) - He's been underrated again this year, and despite only having five games on the schedule, Choo gets to face the Rockies three times.
JOSH REDDICK, OF, Houston (34 percent) - Reddick gets the Athletics and Royals this week, which should make for a productive week for the veteran fresh off the disabled list.
JUSTIN BOUR, Miami (49 percent) - With seven games on the slate and five against right-handed pitching, Bour is a good streamer this week against San Francisco and Baltimore.
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This column was provided to The Associated Press by the Fantasy Sports Network, http://FNTSY.com
