We're through three weeks of the regular season, and panic has started to set in regarding slow starters. We're seeing some drastic roster decisions as a result, so now is a good time to assess recent roster churn we've seen on ESPN and Yahoo to decide whether it's worth capitalizing on other managers' decisions to cut well-established names.
I've sorted through some of the most dropped players across the last several days and looked into each player's performance and value in points formats. Our focus will be batter heavy, because the add and drop rates for pitchers fluctuate considerably due to streaming.
Hitters
Yahoo
Michael Toglia (39% rostered, dropped in 4,481 leagues in the last two days)
Slow starts are one thing, but Toglia has taken that to a new level by striking out at a near-50 percent clip through 66 plate appearances. That makes him a pretty straightforward cut in traditional points league redraft formats, even after his grand slam Wednesday, and he should remain on the waiver wire.
There are specific ways that I'd be willing to give Toglia a chance, such as timing him as a streamer or stash as the Rockies head into a homestand.
Dylan Crews (63% rostered, dropped in 4,276 leagues in the last two days)
Crews has had a bad start to the year from a skills perspective, but I'm inclined to give him a longer leash due to his pedigree and projected ability to make consistent contact. It appeared that the Nationals
We're through three weeks of the regular season, and panic has started to set in regarding slow starters. We're seeing some drastic roster decisions as a result, so now is a good time to assess recent roster churn we've seen on ESPN and Yahoo to decide whether it's worth capitalizing on other managers' decisions to cut well-established names.
I've sorted through some of the most dropped players across the last several days and looked into each player's performance and value in points formats. Our focus will be batter heavy, because the add and drop rates for pitchers fluctuate considerably due to streaming.
Hitters
Yahoo
Michael Toglia (39% rostered, dropped in 4,481 leagues in the last two days)
Slow starts are one thing, but Toglia has taken that to a new level by striking out at a near-50 percent clip through 66 plate appearances. That makes him a pretty straightforward cut in traditional points league redraft formats, even after his grand slam Wednesday, and he should remain on the waiver wire.
There are specific ways that I'd be willing to give Toglia a chance, such as timing him as a streamer or stash as the Rockies head into a homestand.
Dylan Crews (63% rostered, dropped in 4,276 leagues in the last two days)
Crews has had a bad start to the year from a skills perspective, but I'm inclined to give him a longer leash due to his pedigree and projected ability to make consistent contact. It appeared that the Nationals were losing faith in him in the short term, but he has since started four straight games through Thursday. If he starts to lose playing time again, Crews becomes a straightforward cut/leave on the waiver wire.
Brandon Lowe (60% rostered, dropped in 3,932 leagues in the last two days)
Lowe started the season hitting for a lot of power but has slowed down considerably, tallying zero extra-base hits in the last seven games. He also sat Wednesday with a lefty on the mound after beginning the season regularly in the lineup against same-handed pitching. His value is also tricky to judge for other reasons. The Rays have played 15 of 18 games at their homer-friendly home park, George Steinbrenner Field, which should have benefitted his ability to hit for power. It would have been reassuring to see him take more advantage. We know from past seasons that Lowe is capable of getting hot and carrying fantasy teams, so he's not a name to ignore, but his volatile results and potentially inconsistent playing time make him a lesser priority.
ESPN
Jordan Westburg (74% rostered, -12.4% this week)
Westburg is likely still rostered in most leagues, so we can keep this brief. There's no reason to panic over his slow start on the surface, as his underlying skills have been stable or improved in key areas. His 22.6 K% is exactly in line with his career rate, and his barrel rate (14.3%) is an improvement. We shouldn't necessarily project the latter to continue, but it's an illustration that Westburg has run into some early-season bad luck (.205 BABIP). Take advantage if you happen to be in a league where he was dropped.
Eugenio Suarez (54.4 rostered, -19.9% this week)
Suarez got off to a scorching start but hasn't scored multiple points in a game since April 1 (using ESPN default scoring). His power metrics (pull and barrel percent) are in line with expectations, but his high strikeout rate makes him nearly unplayable when he isn't in the midst of a hot streak. He's a name to keep a close eye on, but one I'd be willing to look past for the time being, which is particularly easy considering some of the emerging options to play at his position in the short term. Josh Smith (assuming he avoids the injured list) recently started batting third in the Rangers' order, and both Gabriel Arias and Zach McKinstry are off to strong starts and remain widely available.
Both
Jake Burger (80% Yahoo, 41% ESPN)
Burger is among the most dropped overall players on both ESPN and Yahoo and has been part of a Rangers' lineup that has slumped nearly from top to bottom to begin the season (.283 wOBA). There was considerable hype for Burger after he was acquired by the team this offseason due to a projected park and lineup upgrade. Both could come to fruition, but he has had only one standout season for points league purposes (2023) and has been shuffled to the bottom third of the Texas order. First base is another position where we've had some options emerge. Ben Rice is still widely available on both sites (34% ESPN, 62% Yahoo) as are Jonathan Aranda (17% ESPN, 45% Yahoo) and Michael Busch (23% ESPN, 57% Yahoo). The latter has a similar profile to Burger but has been far more productive. Similar to Lowe, Burger's not a player I'd keep scrolling past without considering, but there are better options to stream in the short term.
Pitchers
ESPN
Yusei Kikuchi (66.2%, -7.1% in last week)
Kikuchi is among only six pitchers who have been dropped in at least seven percent of leagues in the last week. The point for concern is lost velocity, with all of his pitches being down between one and three miles per hour. That's translated to more hard-hit pulled flyballs and a homer problem (1.5 HR/9). Kikuchi's skills profile has never been perfect and he has additional points of concern to start 2025, but he's still managed double-digit points in three of his four starts this season, and he has a safe baseline thanks to his ability to generate strikeouts. Given some of the blowups we've seen from other starters around the league, he is currently a reasonable stabilizing option with the chance to turn things around.
Ryan Pepiot (26% ESPN, -11.1%)
Pepiot has had poor results, but his underlying numbers suggest that's primarily been poor luck. There are multiple layers to consider, most of which can be found on his Statcast page. Pepiot has allowed six home runs, with an xHR of 4.4, and of the other 29 stadiums, he is expected to have allowed four or fewer home runs in 14 of them. That's where we get into the Rays' home stadium, which has been very homer-friendly to begin the season. That's clearly not a helpful thing for the team's pitchers overall, but all four of Pepiot's starts this season have come at George Steinbrenner Field. Unlike Kikuchi, Pepiot's pulled flyball data is excellent (7.4%) and suggests he should perform far better once the schedule evens out. I would prioritize adding him.
