What’s Goin’ On? The Middle Infield Report

Fantasy baseball is both a fast-moving (injuries, call-ups, closer implosions) and a long-con game.  The trick is balancing the two.  Being quick to the waiver wire can have its benefits, but only if the struggling player you let go isn’t about to go on an epic heater for someone else.  Likewise, publishing positional rankings for the rest of the season every four weeks can make them somewhat obsolete in a matter of days.  Consider this a supplement to hold you over until the next rankings post.  Since my Rest of Season Rankings dropped two weeks ago, there have been several developments. So let’s check into the league and see how you can benefit from them:

Jazz woke up: I wrote that unless Jazz got on a hot streak, he would be unlikely to give managers their 3-4th round draft value.  So, a funny thing happened.  He did.  The last two weeks, Jazz has put up 11/4/10/3, hitting at a 271 clip.  This is his expected performance.  Basically, if you believed in Jazz, your buy low window is likely over.

Ozzie continues to mash: Alibies is having a renaissance year and benefiting from the Braves lineup resurgence.  He’s first in runs scored, 3rd in RBI, 2nd in bombs, 6th in BA, and 3rd in OPS.  He’s not running at all, though few Braves are (they’ve only got 19 SB as a team). I wish I had more shares of him. Alas, I had been burned too often.

Brooks Lee got hot, and Zac Gelof returned: These two former prospects came on my radar for different reasons.  Lee had a great week, but he’s been a real drag.  He’s got a lot of blue on his Savant page, which tells me this was just an anomaly.  He’s very unrosterable.  Gelof, on the other hand, has gotten off to a decent start since beginning the year in AAA.  If he can keep his average up, he’ll be a 20/20 threat.  He would be my 2B target.

Is Xander Bogaerts Back(?):  Xander has decided that he’s going to match his power output of last year by mid-May.  It’s all pull side power, but it’s working. He’s still not striking out, and he’s matching his career OBP, which is a really good sign.  But… I’m not sure I believe it.  I will remain skeptical because he really hasn’t been good since 2023. If you believe, he’s a FA in about 46% of Yahoo leagues, and would technically be my SS pick up of the week.

Konnor Griffin has arrived for real now:  Griffin seems to have adjusted. in a big way.  Over the last two weeks, Griffin has put up 6/2/8/4/362/1.019.  This is good for the 2nd best SS performance over that time, behind CJ Abrams going out of his mind.  If you waited out Griffin’s adjustment period, it’s time to reap the rewards.