SS Trevor Story, Boston Red Sox (55%)
After dislocating his shoulder at the beginning of the season and missing the past five months, Trevor Story is finally back and starting for the Red Sox. He will have a lot to prove, as he hasn’t done much as a hitter since his 2021 season when he hit 24 home runs and stole 20 bases. That being said, he will have plenty of at bats as Boston’s shortstop over the remainder of the season and is worth a speculative add in case he returns inspired to make up for lost time.
1B Ty France, Cincinnati Reds (47%)
After being DFA’d by Seattle in late July, France was acquired by Cincy and has been a significantly better hitter. Most recently, France has had three multi-hit performances over the past week, including a homer and a steal. He is trying to make a statement after being dropped by his former team, and fantasy owners in need of a corner infielder might be able to take advantage of this.
1B, OF Seth Brown, Oakland Athletics (35%)
Brown has 7 multi-hit performances over his past 10 games, and four of those hits have been home runs. In fact, since the beginning of July, Brown has hit over .300 with an impressive slugging percentage. It’s easy to see that this has to do with a clear effort on his part to improve his plate discipline. Brown had five walks over the first two months of the season and struck out 51 disconcerting times. Over the past three months, Brown has walked 16 times compared to 39 strikeouts. That is a phenomenal improvement and makes Brown a different hitter- one that is quite good. His season-long stats are masking how well he has done recently, but owners can feel good about picking him up and starting him over the remainder of the season, given the changes he has made.
SP Landon Knack, Los Angeles Dodgers (33%)
Knack has not been able to start very frequently for the Dodgers this season, but his nine starts have been fairly encouraging. Aside from a four-run game against Arizona, Knack has not allowed more than two runs in any start. With Clayton Kershaw injured and Bobby Miller struggling tremendously, Knack has a chance to prove he should stick in the rotation. In his most recent start against Cleveland, Knack pitched six innings and allowed two runs and a walk but struck out eight hitters. His next start should be against Atlanta, who have scored fewer runs than Cleveland this season.
OF Jonny Deluca, Tampa Bay Rays (16%)
Deluca has started off swinging a hot bat in September. He is hitting .360/.385/.600 over 25 at bats this month, including several multi-hit performances. He has also stolen three bases in the last week. While he is this hot, he is a great bet to help fantasy owners in deeper leagues.
SP JT Ginn, Oakland Athletics (13%)
Ginn has displayed an interesting profile over a short sample as a major league starter. While he doesn’t throw very hard, he can induce a ton of ground balls (56.8% groundball rate) with his 93.5 mph sinker, and both of his secondaries grade out as being good pitches. His slider, in particular, seems to be a lethal weapon for him, and Ginn is rocking a very strong 13% swinging strike rate and 30.2% CSW percentage. Put all of this together, and Ginn makes for an intriguingly effective starting pitcher. He is worth the scoop and is available in nearly 90% of Fantrax leagues.
Honorable Mentions
OF Mickey Moniak, Los Angeles Angels (24%)
Streaky hitter that is hot right now. 7 home runs since the start of August.
SP Brant Hurter, Detroit Tigers (22%)
4 wins in a row and doesn’t walk many hitters.
Brady Basso, Oakland Athletics (4%)
Went 6 scoreless innings in his first start. Worth watching.
