That’s What I Like: Randy Rodriguez, Carlos Santana, Drake Baldwin

Razzfolks! It’s a lovely championship weekend — not only the NBA and NHL, but also the Tetris World Championships! You know what I’m most excited for? No long bar droughts! Also, SGA to whoop the Pacers, and for Canada to bring the Stanley Cup home. Meanwhile, over here in baseball land, we’re still a month before the All-Star break, and honestly, it feels like the doldrums of the season. The freshness of April has passed. The trade market hasn’t warmed up yet. And yet, we’ve still got some hot players to add to your struggling teams. Let’s check them out!

That’s What I Like

Randy Rodriguez, P, Giants: A hot minute after recommending Camilo Doval to my ravenous readers (thanks all 14 of you!), I come bearing the good news of yet another Roleless Rob: Randy Rodriguez (aka R^4). If this were the 80s, his nickname would be “Radriguez.” Unfortunately, this is merely the 2020s, where our love of neon has taken a dive. R^4 hasn’t allowed a run since the start of May, and then didn’t allow a run before that. Hey Siri, can you rewrite that last sentence for me? Oh, he’s allowed 2 earned runs all year. But I’ve also said that about total waiver wire fodder like Chris Flexen. Well, C-Flex will at least nab you some Wins, which are tough to find. R^4 will get you Ks and…Holds? Or as least some great ERA and WHIP ratios. Over his last 9 innings, Radriguez has a 14.5 K/9 rate to go along with 1 walk (total) and three hits allowed (total). He’s racked up a save and 4 holds in that time, and hopefully, you monsters in custom scoring leagues already have him. Oh wait — he’s available in 99% of leagues. Do we hate winning? I can’t pretend to know what real life MLB managers do when choosing closers, but I do know that adding 10 IP of 0.00 ERA and a minuscule WHIP will help just about any team.

Carlos Santana, 1B, Guardians: Every year, drafts finish up in April, and every year, you were probably looking at Carlos Santana in the last round. But then the Razzball mantra popped into your head — Pick upside! So you went and drafted somebody like Luke Keaschall, and now that dude is on the IL. So you keep looking around the waiver wire, picking other “upside” guys who aren’t playing. Meanwhile, boring ol’ Carlos Santana has ascended higher on the Player Rater than Luis Arraez, Jake Burger, and Christian Walker. That last one hurts. Since mid-May, Santana’s racked up a .364 average to pair with a .582 slugging rate, notching 11 Runs and 8 RBIs along with 3 dingers. Those Runs are surprising — he bats in the middle of the order and runs like a lost sheep. But, it’s fantasy baseball and we’ll take the points wherever they show up. Santana has big Nelson Cruz vibes — he’s not the kind of guy you want to have, but his hit tool is just so good that he keeps your fantasy team alive to fight another day. He’s available in 80% of leagues if you need some hitting help.

Drake Baldwin, C, Braves: Saying a catcher should be on your target list is like saying you should target McDonalds for some great cuisine. Carson Kelly is still available in some leagues and would be my go-to recommendation if you need a catcher. But if Kelly is off the board, the next best guy is Drake Baldwin. He’s slowed down a bit in recent days, but he’s still batting .328 with a .569 slugging rate since ascending to the middle of the batting order. More stunning is that his K-rate is a meager 11%, meaning that he’s making contact. And his walk rate is…5%. Meaning that he’s swinging at everything and making contact. Typical rookie stuff, to be honest. There’s a lot to like, but also a bit more risk than somebody like Carson Kelly. If you need a catcher, Baldwin is still available in 25% of leagues.

I’m the Problem, It’s Me

Bryce Miller, SP, Mariners: Something, something, injuries. Miller was never the flame-throwing high K/9 guy on your team. He was the solid SP3 who was going to rack up innings and Wins and stabilize your ERA. [checks the past couple starts] Yeesh. Sure, he’s had an IL visit and is working through some stuff, but it’s not worth the damage he’s doing to your team. In his last four starts, Miller’s ERA is 9.50 and his FIP is 6.24. Yuck. While he’s not walking anybody, he’s also not striking anybody out. He’s allowed more runs than innings pitched, and his HR/9 rate is sitting at 2.00. Believe it or not, he’s just barely over a year of MLB service time and has a bunch of options left. With the Mariners in the running for an easy-to-win AL West, it makes no sense for the team to keep him in the majors and hope that he figures himself out against tough competition. It’s more likely that they send him down to the minors until the All-Star break and let him recover a bit and give him some breathing room to return to form. Whether he stays in the majors or minors, he’s useless for your fantasy team, and it’s time to move on.