Sleeper hitters for Week 16 (July 7-13)
While his progress has been stalled by a trio of IL stints, Austin Hays' 3.39 Head-to-Head points per game are the 12th-most among outfielders -- and that's not even his best format. With the Reds having the most favorable hitter matchups this week, it's time to buy in ... and hard.
| ||
After a couple weeks in the doldrums, Addison Barger is once again living up to the bright red bars on his Baseball Savant page, going 8 for 19 (.421) with two doubles and two home runs to begin the month of July. He'll get the benefit of the third-best hitter matchups this week, squaring off against the White Sox and Athletics pitching staffs, with the last three games coming at a Sacramento venue that's tied with Coors Field for the most hitter-friendly this year.
| ||
After a quiet June, Kyle Stowers is showing that he wasn't just some early-season fluke, batting .333 (15 for 45) with six homers in his past 13 games. The Marlins are scheduled to face three lefties in their seven games this week, but now that Stowers is rolling again, he's likely to face one or two of them. And the matchups are the second-best in baseball.
| ||
It took a while for him to get going because of a strained oblique that cost him the first quarter of the season, but this year's Joshua Lowe may be the best we've ever seen. His strikeout and pull air rates are both career bests, and his expected stats are at least on par with his big 2023 season. The Rays' matchups this week are nothing special, but they're one of just 10 teams scheduled to play seven games.
| ||
Otto Lopez is batting .284 (31 for 109) with five homers and four steals over his past 28 games, placing him among the top four at both second base and shortstop during that time. The Marlins' matchups this week should only further his cause, featuring such pitchers as Brady Singer, Nick Martinez, Dean Kremer, Trevor Rogers, and Brandon Young.
| ||
Turns out getting hit by a pitch on the hand Wednesday was hardly enough to slow Spencer Steer down. He's gone 3 for 10 with a double since returning to the lineup Friday and is 23 for 59 (.390) with five homers in his past 16 games, making him a prime candidate to get the most out of the top-ranked hitter matchups this week.
| ||
Matt McLain has also been performing better lately, batting .265 (26 for 98) with three homers in his past 27 games, which is good timing with the Reds having the most favorable hitter matchups this week. All seven of their games are at home, too, where McLain's career OPS is 190 points higher than on the road.
| ||
While we're still waiting for the steals to pick up for Xavier Edwards, he has hit more to his capabilities since the start of June, batting .316 (37 for 117) in his past 29 games. No reason to think he'll slow down with the Marlins having the second-best hitter matchups this week.
| ||
While the Nationals aren't among the teams with the five best hitter matchups, they would place sixth on that list if I bothered to extend it that far, going against pitchers like Andre Pallante, Miles Mikolas, Quinn Priester, and a broken-down Brandon Woodruff. Notice those are all right-handers? That's all the Nationals are scheduled to face this week, which means Luis Garcia should stick in the lineup.
| ||
Jeff McNeil is another player who is only certain to be in the lineup when a right-hander is on the mound, which is the case for five of the Mets' six games this upcoming week. McNeil, who has homered six times in his past 24 games, should also benefit from having the fourth-best hitter matchups, which include pitchers like Brandon Young, Tomoyuki Sugano, Charlie Morton, and Michael Lorenzen.
|
