Matt Adams (STL - 1B) - This is stunning for me to write, but since May 12, Matt Adams is batting .397 with a 1.125 OPS. I had written Adams off as a career under-achiever through the first month of the season; he's just made me look silly since, in part with his 3-run HR last night. For the year, Adams is now batting .331 and he's finally showcasing some of the power from his 6-3 260 lb frame. If we throw last year's 60 game sample out, Adams' peripherals look pretty similar to his 2014 season, except his Hard% is up notably from 32.1% to 39.2% - a stark increase. He's certainly cool down a bit, but he could put together his best season since 2013, when he tallied a 135 wRC+ in 108 games. I was surprised to see Adams available in my competitive Yahoo league; he's worth a pickup in you're in need of a decent average and 20+ HR.
Brandon Moss (STL - OF) - Brandon Moss should be added in most daily lineup leagues at this point if you're in need of power (which can be scarce). He's horrendous against lefties, but he's sporting an incredible 153 wRC+ against righties this season, and that's before last night's 2-for-4, 2 HR 3RBI game. Unfortunately, he's collected just 5 hits in 30 PA against lefties, so you're best to sit him against southpaws. Moss will offer some solid power, but admittedly a poor average. His K rate is too high at 32.5% that will limit his value, but when he makes contact, he hits the ball hard. Literally - his Hard% is 40.2%, the highest of his career. If you can start him against RHP only, he's a pretty serviceable power option going forward. If you're using him in weekly leagues, you're best off sitting him if there are two lefties or more over that week.
Javier Baez (CHC - U) - Baez had four hits in four PAs yesterday, collecting 3 RBIs on the day. It's been a tough season for Baez, but there are some improvements in his game - most notably the fact that he's striking out just 20.2% of the time vs. 30% last year. I'm somewhat unsure that he can maintain the improvement though - his contact% is actually down and his SwStr% is improved, but barely so from 16.4% to 15.9%. So with that in mind, I can't recommend Baez yet moving forward, particularly because playing time remains somewhat uncertain and the power has yet to really showcase itself like it did in the minor league levels. He likely still has a productive career ahead of him, but there may be some more growing pains in his age 23 season.
Dexter Fowler (CHC - OF) - Fowler was 0-for-5 yesterday with a strikeout, but regardless, he remains one of the most interesting players so far in 2016. He played five full seasons in Colorado, yet his is sporting his highest OPS ever (.939) and it's not even close. Such an outlier this late in a career should be a pretty big red flag. In my opinion, it's a concern, but not that big. His career BABIP is .343 (partly inflated from Coors); 2016 BABIP is .378, so unsurprisingly I would expect a little bit of regression; however, his LD% is impressive at 25.8% and his speed warrants a higher BABIP. It's tough to pinpoint where his BABIP will settle. That said, if you can get top 15 OF value for Fowler, I'd probably take it just to be safe that he slows down. If not, hold onto him as the leadoff guy for one of the league's best offenses and enjoy the low-risk pick you made this year.
Wei-Yin Chen (MIA - SP) - Chen struggled against last night, allowing 5 ER with just 2 strikeouts in 5.1 innings. Chen has been a pretty big disappointment so far in his move to the National League. I had trouble trusting him last year, but he sported a 3.34 ERA and was potentially starting a trend of being able to outperform his FIP/SIERA numbers. Unfortunately, two straight years does not make a trend, as he's seen his ERA balloon to 4.25 (prior to yesterday), which is actually in excess of his 4.05 SIERA. Chen screams "average" to me - he makes for an okay streaming option that I'd have a tough time trusting. Perhaps he'll have a strong second half once he has a chance to acclimate to his new team, but unfortunately there doesn't appear to be any stark improvement with his move to the NL in 2016.
