Seoul Series
Yu Darvish, SD
Darvish lasted just 3.2 in his opening start against the Dodgers in Seoul, allowing 1 unearned run on 2 hits and 3 BB's, while recording 3 K's. While he was able to keep his ERA clean, it wasn't exactly a stellar performance as he threw only 42 of 72 pitches for strikes (58%) and only got 5 swinging strikes. At the same time, he was facing one of the best offenses in the league, and it could have gone a lot worse. Darvish has had a strong spring, allowing 3 ER's and posting a 10:1 K:BB across 9.1 IP and he should still be a solid performer this season, but he shouldn't be expected to return to ace form, especially since his strikeout rate has dropped over the past couple of years.
Tyler Glasnow, LAD
Glasnow made it through 5 IP against the Padres in his regular season Dodgers debut on Wednesday and allowed 2 ER's while walking 4 and striking out 3. The strikeout total was modest, but Glasnow did record a 15.6% SwStr% for the outing and he has struck out 14 in 10 IP this spring, so there shouldn't be any concern in that regard. Glasnow may not always go deep into games as the Dodgers tend to be careful about overworking their starters, especially one who has a lengthy injury history, but his ratios should be strong when he is on the mound.
Shohei Ohtani, LAD
Ohtani was solid in his Dodgers debut on Wednesday, going 2-5 with an RBI and a SB. He batted second between Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman so he's in a great position to amass both runs and RBI. Ohtani is recovering from Tommy John Surgery after suffering an elbow injury last Aug 23 but it hasn't kept him out of the lineup. It's worth noting that in the 8 games that Ohtani played following his injury in 2023, his EV dropped to 87.2 (94.4 for the season) and he didn't hit any homeruns. It's a small sample size but something to keep an eye on. Off the field, Ohtani's interpreter has been fired after allegedly stealing money from Ohtani as part of a gambling scandal, but as of right now, Ohtani himself is not facing any discipline.
Xander Bogaerts, SD
Bogaerts went 2-4 with an RBI on Opening Day against the Dodgers on Wednesday. He hit leadoff and played second base where he is expected to play primarily this season, and he should gain eligibility there shortly in fantasy leagues. Bogaerts seems to be somewhat undervalued in fantasy leagues, probably because he doesn't have tons of power or speed, but he has hit .285 or higher in 6 straight seasons, while hitting at least 15 HR's in each of those seasons (other than the pandemic-shortened 2020). He has also scored 80+ runs in 7 of the last 8 non-pandemic seasons. In addition to that, he stole a career high 19 bases in 2023, and while he may not match that total again this season, the rule changes make it a lot more likely that he'll hit double-digit steals again. With a spot atop the Padres lineup and strong contact skills (career 18.1% K%), Bogaerts should once again have a strong chance at surpassing 80 runs while hitting for a high average and contributing in all areas.
Teoscar Hernandez, LAD
Hernandez hit 6th in his Dodgers debut and went 1-5 with two runs scored against the Padres. Hernandez is coming off a season in which he posted an .817 OPS against LHP and a .718 OPS against righties. He started against a righty on Wednesday, and while the Dodgers like to mix and match, it appears that Hernandez will have a chance to play most days, which is obviously crucial for his fantasy value. Hernandez really struggled at home last season (.643 OPS) compared to on the road (.830 OPS) and while it could just be a coincidence, if his struggles were in fact related to playing in Seattle, that bodes well for him seeing a boost in his performance. Hernandez strikes out a lot but he hits the ball hard, and is a good bet for 25+ HR's along with a BA that won't hurt you.
Evan Phillips, LAD
Phillips recorded the first save of the 2024 season, shutting out the Padres with a perfect 9th inning in which he struck out one batter. Phillips has been dominant over the past two seasons, producing a 1.59 ERA, 3.04 xFIP, 10.35 K/9, and 2.03 BB/9 across 124.1 IP. He took over closing duties for the Dodgers last season, and while initially it looked like the team might use some sort of committee approach, Phillips ended up saving 17 games over the final 3 and a half months of the season and appears set to be used as the primary closer in 2024. With elite ratios and an expectedly strong team, Phillips should be one of the better closers in baseball.
Joe Musgrove, SD
Musgrove will get the start for the Padres in Game 2 of the Seoul series against the Dodgers, and it will be his first start since July of last season, before he went down with a shoulder injury. Musgrove was great last season again and now has 3 consecutive seasons with an ERA below 3.20. His strikeout rate is nothing extraordinary, but he has shown excellent control (1.94 BB/9 in 2023) and he gets a good amount of ground balls. He has a tendency to avoid hard contact, which puts him in a good position for another strong season in 2024, even if his initial matchup against a powerful Dodgers lineup is not ideal.
Tigers 3B job
Matt Vierling, DET
Vierling went 2-2 with his 2nd HR of the spring and 4 RBI against the Twins on Wednesday. He is currently battling Gio Urshela for the Tigers third base job. Vierling's 2023 stats don't jump off the page; he hit .261 with 10 HR's in 134 games last season. But his peripherals are solid as he doesn't strike out too much thanks to a career 7.7% SwStr%, and he hits the ball pretty hard (career 44.9% HardHit%). If he does get a full-time starting job, we should expect his production level to increase.
Gio Urshela, DET
Urshela is in a competition for the Tigers third base with Matt Vierling. Urshela has hit .291 over the past 5 seasons, but he doesn't provide much power or speed. He has just 7 SB's and 64 HR's in 664 career games. He hits the ball decently hard, but his 32.8% FB% is on the low end and limits the homerun opportunities. Even if Urshela does win the starting job, he's unlikely to help you much in any category other than BA.
Around the League
Giancarlo Stanton, NYY
Stanton hit 3 HR's in a spring matchup against the Pirates on Wednesday, as he looks to bounce back from a disappointing 2023 in which he hit .191 with 24 HR's in 101 games. Over the past two years, Stanton has struggled mightily to stay healthy or hit for average, as he has combined to hit .202 and play in 211 games over those two seasons. He continues to hit the ball extremely hard (50.1% HardHit% during that span) and on a per game basis, his power has still been elite (42 HR's per 162 games), but his LD% has been awfully low (13.7%) which has killed his BA. We can't expect him to suddenly hit for average, but considering where he's going in drafts now (ADP over 200), he can easily provide value with HR's and RBI if he stays remotely healthy.
Blake Snell, SF
Snell will not be ready by Opening Day for the Giants, which is not a surprise considering that he just signed with the team earlier this week. One would expect that he should be able to make his San Francisco debut at some point in April. Snell's ERA is expected to regress from the 2.25 mark that he posted in 2023, but pitching his home games in Oracle Park should help mitigate that regression. While his results over the past few years have been up and down, his xFIP has actually been below 4.00 for 6 straight years now and his K/9 has been north of 11.00 in each of those years. The high walk rate makes last year's result unsustainable, but an ERA in the 3.00's and an elite strikeout rate will still be quite valuable.
Louis Varland, MIN
Varland was torched for 8 ER's on 9 hits in 4 IP against the Tigers on Wednesday. He walked 3 and didn't strike out a batter. He had been good this spring until now, posting an 11:1 K:BB in 11 previous IP without allowing a run. Varland has been given a spot in the Twins rotation after a 2023 in which he showed some promise, posting a 71:17 K:BB across 68 IP and finishing with a 3.81 xFIP. His ERA was a shakier 4.63 as he did have a HR problem, but his 21.1% HR/FB is due to come down a bit. Varland will have a chance to show that he belongs in the rotation even after some of the other Twins' pitchers are healthy again.
Daniel Vogelbach, TOR
Vogelbach hit his 3rd HR of the spring as he tries to make a case for more playing time with the Blue Jays. While Vogelbach does have some power, he's a career .220 hitter and he's basically guaranteed not to play against lefties, as he has a career slash line of .129/.248/.215 against them. This makes it hard to roster him outside of daily contests.
Dane Dunning, TEX
Dunning dominated the Reds on Wednesday, striking out 8 in 5 IP. He now has 15 K's in 11 IP this spring. Last season, Dunning pitched to a career best 3.70 ERA, but there was some luck involved as his xFIP was 4.39. To take the next step forward, he would probably have to improve upon his 7.30 K/9. To do that in spring is one thing, but we will see if he can carry that over to the regular season.
Matt Carpenter, STL
Carpenter went 2-2 with a double and an RBI against the Nationals on Wednesday as he continues to have a strong spring, hitting .381 with a 1.176 OPS. After a comeback year with the Yankees in 2022, Carpenter crashed in 2023 hitting .176 with 5 HR's in 76 games. His K% shot back up 6% from the previous season while his HardHit% dropped 11%. It's now 3 out of 4 years that Carpenter has been terrible, and he's not likely to see everyday at bats with the Cardinals, although he should get semi-regular at bats as the DH as long as he's hitting. He's made a miraculous comeback once before but can he do it again?
