Mike Trout, OF, Angels
Mike Trout had a monster performance at the dish on Monday, smashing two home runs, scoring three times, and tallying five RBI. These were his first home runs since the first two games of the season, and he's now slashing .224/.400/.483 with four home runs, 16 runs, 12 RBI, and two steals. It's also extremely promising that he's only striking out at a 20% rate, to go along with an identical 20% walk rate. Getting his strikeout rate down to a manageable level could transform his fantasy value, as he struck out at a 32% clip in 2025, which ranked in the 2nd percentile. He still crushes the baseball, as evidenced by his 23.7% barrel rate and the 115.4 mph max EV he posted last season, and he really would be a complete hitter if he could stop striking out so much. The two steals and 90th percentile sprint speed are also promising, as he could be a threat on the basepaths again if his knees are truly feeling 100% again.
Trent Grisham, OF, Yankees
Trent Grisham didn't start the game on Monday, but ended up pinch-hitting and going 2-for-3 with two home runs and five RBI. It snapped him out of a slump and homeless drought to begin the year, and he's now slashing .167/.344/.354. The hitting obviously hasn't been great up until this point, but he's remained somewhat useful with a .344 on-base percentage, thanks to his 21.3% walk rate and 16.4% strikeout rate. Despite the poor numbers, Grisham may have been one of the unluckiest hitters in baseball heading into the night. He had an xSLG of .426, which was way ahead of his actual mark of .200, and his 62.9% hard-hit rate ranked in the 98th percentile. Additionally, his squared up rate was a 94th percentile mark of 34.8%. He's hitting the ball hard consistently and flashing elite plate discipline, and it's only a matter of time before his actual production reflects that. The one downside is that he's sitting against many left-handed pitchers, but he's still worth an add if one of your league mates already gave up on him.
Justin Wrobleski, SP, Dodgers
Justin Wrobleski was lights-out against the Mets on Monday night, tossing eight scoreless innings. He allowed two hits and struck out two. This was the lefty's second start and third appearance of the season, following a five-inning one-run effort against the Blue Jays in his last start. While it was a great start, he still showed shockingly low upside in the strikeout department. He only punched out two and induced only four whiffs on the entire night, leading to a miniscule 8% whiff rate and 4% swinging-strike rate. This wasn't an outlier either, as Wrobleski has consistently lacked whiffs all season long. It makes a start like this seem more lucky than anything else, and it's hard to ever truly trust him in fantasy due to this. Still, he plays for the best team in baseball, so his win chances are great, and he can be worth streaming in good matchups. Just don't get too carried away with your expectations, as it can all fall apart quickly when so many balls are put into play.
Garrett Crochet, SP, Red Sox
Garrett Crochet did not look like himself on Monday against the Twins, allowing 11 runs (10 earned) on nine hits and three walks with no strikeouts in 1.2 innings. This is a complete nightmare outing, especially in roto leagues where your ratios will be permanently affected by this horrible start. What's potentially more concerning is that he was down at least one mile per hour on nearly all of his pitches, along with reduced spin. Both Crochet and Alex Cora reiterated that he was healthy following the start, so it's unclear what was affecting the lefty. He'll look to rebound in his next start against the Tigers, and it'll definitely be worth keeping an eye on how his stuff and velocity look.
Ryan Jeffers, C, Twins
Ryan Jeffers delivered the best of many good hitting performances on the Twins on Monday, going 3-for-4 with a home run, a walk, three runs scored, and three RBI. His underlying metrics already looked good prior to this game, as he posted a 14.3% barrel rate (84th percentile), 92 mph average exit velocity (79th percentile), and 15.2% walk rate. Those stats continued to improve, and he's now slashing .317/.440/.512 with two homers, 10 runs, and 10 RBI. Jeffers isn't too far removed from hitting 21 home runs in 122 games in 2024, and he has always shown impressive offensive upside for a catcher. He makes for a very solid second catcher in two-catcher leagues, and could be a valuable streaming option in one-catcher leagues if he continues this hot start.
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