Author: Todd Zola

Welcome to the weekly Tout Wars FAAB report, on its new home right here on the Tout Wars site. Each week, we’ll review the free agent acquisitions from all five leagues, with commentary from a league member, as well as yours truly. We changed the timing of the weekly run to 1 PM ET every Sunday, with the report posted later that afternoon so you’ll have time to digest and apply to your own leagues. In addition, I’ll be joining Lawr Michaels and Justin Mason on the Tout Wars Hour on the FNTSY Network every Sunday at 3:20 PM ET to discuss the results.

You can find the complete list of Tout Warriors here. Everyone starts with 1000 FAAB units, less any penalty incurred by finishing below a designated point in the standings. This is a means of keeping everyone motivated to keep playing all season long. The minimum bid is $0. FAAB units can be traded as well as rebated for players released off the DL.

The report will list all winning bids along with unsuccessful tries and contingencies. This provides the maximum level of information to help gauge interest on the players.

The American and National League only formats are 12-team leagues, as is the new points-based head to head league, The Mixed Auction and Draft each have 15 clubs. All the leagues have four reserves with an unlimited DL, expect the head to head league, which allows six reserves.

The headings above each league are links to publicly accessible sites where you can see standings, roster and a complete review of transactions. The initial auctions and drafts can be found here.

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
CBassitt, Oak	Chris Liss 100	Jeff Erickson 11	Vlad Sedler 9
		Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 1
BDrury, NYY	Chris Liss 66	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 21	Vlad Sedler 17
		Mike Podhorzer 2
WPeralta, KC	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 56	Chris Liss 77	Vlad Sedler 37
		Jeff Erickson 11	Doug Dennis 7
EJackson, Oak	Chris Liss 55	Vlad Sedler 9	Jeff Erickson 3
JDiekman, Tex	Patrick Davitt 29
JFry, CWS	Patrick Davitt 29
RBorucki, Tor	Rob Leibowitz 28	Vlad Sedler 9	Jeff Erickson 5
FPena, LAA	Vlad Sedler 9	Vlad Sedler 6
RStanek, TB	Jeff Erickson 7	Vlad Sedler 9
SWilkerson, Bal	Mike Podhorzer 2
RRua, Tex	Vlad Sedler 2
HVelazquez, Bos	Lawr Michaels 1
KSmith, CWS	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
EPagan, Oak	Doug Dennis 0

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
AMejia, Min	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 1
BPhillips, Bos	Mike Podhorzer 1
JKelly, Bos	Jeff Erickson 1
TMotter, Min	Vlad Sedler 0
CSisco, Bal	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
JBriceno, LAA	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
JPhegley, Oak	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
JSucre, TB	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
RoPerez, Cle	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
KCowart, LAA	Mike Podhorzer 0
JCave, Min	Chris Liss 0
JField, TB	Chris Liss 0
SCasilla, Oak	Chris Liss 0
VReyes, Det	Chris Liss 0

Todd’s Take

Either Chris Liss is a closet A’s fan or he needs starting pitching – my money is on the latter. Bassitt has a home affair on the docket with the Padres, a soft enough landing to use this week. I’m not so warm and fuzzy about E-Jax visiting Cleveland.

League leaders Colton and the Wolfman made a couple of shrewd pick-ups, grabbing Wily Peralta, ostensibly the new Royals closer and Kevan Smith, filling in behind the plate as Welington Castillo is in time-out. Not only do Glenn and Rick lead the league, they’re on top of the standings in the save category. The reason Peralta makes sense is adding a few more saves could enable the duo to deal one of their other closers (Cody Allen and Keona Kela) not to mention they’re playing some defense, inhibiting a competitor to gain some points in a tightly contested category.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
MFried, Atl	Andy Behrens 111	Craig Mish 54	Phil Hertz 42
		Tristan H. Cockcroft 1
PLopez, Mia	Craig Mish 71	Phil Hertz 14	Tristan H. Cockcroft 5
AKnapp, Phi	Phil Hertz 27	Scott Wilderman 0
TGlasnow, Pit	Phil Hertz 24	Phil Hertz 20	Andy Behrens 0
CAsuaje, SD	Phil Hertz 17	Phil Hertz 1
TomHunter, Phi	Phil Hertz 16	Phil Hertz 14
PValaika, Col	Scott Wilderman 4
CShaw, SF	Andy Behrens 1
JHughes, Cin	Grey Albright 1
DSantana, Atl	Derek Carty 0	Scott Wilderman 0
JMathis, Ari	Scott Wilderman 0

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
JMcNeil, NYM	Phil Hertz 2
ESantana, Pit	Grey Albright 1
JFields, LAD	Grey Albright 1
VArano, Phi	Grey Albright 1	Andy Behrens 1
CGimenez, ChC	Scott Wilderman 0
ESogard, Mil	Scott Wilderman 0
JValentin, Phi	Scott Wilderman 0
SKieboom, Was	Scott Wilderman 0
ABass, ChC	Phil Hertz 0
DHudson, LAD	Phil Hertz 0
TPeterson, NYM	Phil Hertz 0

Todd’s Take

It was a rather quiet week for the NL Warriors with Andy Behrens leading the way, taking a chance Max Fried impresses the Braves while Brandon McCarthy is out. Luiz Gohara looms at Triple-A but at least for now, Fried remains with the big club. Fried’s development was curtailed recovering from Tommy John surgery. He pitched in the AFL, looking like one of the league’s better hurlers. Still just 24, there’s plenty of time for Fried to carve out a career, likely as a mid-rotation starter.

Craig Mish is hoping Pablo Lopez gets another start, though the Marlins plans are unclear. Lopez and Sandy Alcantara both started games last week with Jose Urena out with a sore shoulder and Caleb Smith out for the season. Urena is due back early in the week, likely displacing either Lopez or Alcantara from the Marlins short term plans.

Team Mastersball is still in need of another starting pitcher, but I didn’t see anything to use my limited FAAB on. Plus, there’s only one player in my active lineup, Taylor Williams, I care to release and I have Lorenzo Cain due back. Since I can activate Cain when he’s ready, I can use Williams (currently at swing) then drop him for Cain.

MIXED LEAGUE AUCTION

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
ADeSclafani, Cin	Derek VanRiper 87	Ray Flowers 9
TClippard, Tor	Zach Steinhorn 83	Tim Heaney 13	Ray Flowers 9
		Jeff Zimmerman 5
FPena, LAA	Al Melchior 39
YSanchez, CWS	Zach Steinhorn 38	Fred Zinkie 12
AMejia, Min	Derek VanRiper 37
WSmith, SF	Al Melchior 36	Fred Zinkie 0
KBroxton, Mil	Fred Zinkie 30	Derek VanRiper 22	Tim Heaney 22
		Ron Shandler 18	Al Melchior 18
		Scott Engel 4
RTapia, Col	Ron Shandler 18
WPeralta, KC	Tim Heaney 13	Zach Steinhorn 28	Al Melchior 18
		Ray Flowers 9	Jeff Zimmerman 5
MFried, Atl	Ron Shandler 11
ELauer, SD	Ray Flowers 9
RBorucki, Tor	Ron Shandler 5
NHundley, SF	Brent Hershey 5
TWatson, SF	Jeff Zimmerman 2	Al Melchior 18
APujols, LAA	Jeff Zimmerman 2
EDiaz, Pit	Scott Engel 1	Brent Hershey 0
MCanha, Oak	Scott Engel 1
CBassitt, Oak	Fred Zinkie 0	Ray Flowers 9	Derek VanRiper 1

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
SAlcantara, Mia	Derek VanRiper 22
BKeller, KC	Ray Flowers 9	Ron Shandler 5	Al Melchior 0
JShields, CWS	Ray Flowers 9
MHarvey, Cin	Ray Flowers 9
CPerez, Hou	Ron Shandler 5
JBonifacio, KC	Ron Shandler 5	Jeff Zimmerman 0
SRomano, Cin	Ray Flowers 3	Derek VanRiper 0
DHolland, SF	Al Melchior 2	Fred Zinkie 0	Derek VanRiper 1
HBader, StL	Scott Engel 1	Jeff Zimmerman 1
PLopez, Mia	Al Melchior 1
SOh, Tor	Tim Heaney 0
THildenberger, Min	Jeff Zimmerman 0
DRobertson, NYY	Fred Zinkie 0
JJeffress, Mil	Fred Zinkie 0
MStrahm, SD	Fred Zinkie 0
JHolder, NYY	Al Melchior 0
SGaviglio, Tor	Al Melchior 0

Jeff Zimmerman’s Commentary

Not many standouts were available during this week’s FAAB run. Most of the league’s focus was trying to pick up the few possible Save candidates in Kansas City (Wily Peralta), San Francisco (Tony Watson, Wil Smith), and Toronto (Tyler Clippard). The struggle for Saves is real.

I took a chance and picked up Albert Pujols after league leader Tim Heaney dropped him last. Pujols is a huge drag on OBP and Heaney needed to drop the burden since he’s in 13th place in OBP. I probably have too much of an OBP cushion with an eight-point lead over Brent Hershey in second place and a 13-point lead over Derek VanRiper in third. I don’t mind one bit having too much OBP early on as I can take on these riskier players has the season goes on.

My favorite pickup of the week was Yolmer Sanchez. He’s the replacement level hitter for our league. He’s had five different owners with winning bids of $5, $14, $20, $38, and $59.

Todd’s Take

it’s interesting Ron Shandler grabbed two starting pitchers with uncontested bids. Fried has already been discussed. Borucki isn’t a top prospect, but he can be an innings-eater type. The Jays are thought to be a seller, with J.A. Happ one of the better starting pitchers potentially on the market. Currently, Borucki is filling in for Aaron Sanchez. If Happ is moved, his visit could be extended to something more permanent.

MIXED LEAGUE DRAFT

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
KBroxton, Mil	Tim McCullough 61	Anthony Perri 24	Adam Ronis 16
		Charlie Wiegert 7
JPolanco, Min	Adam Ronis 58	Rudy Gamble 1
ABarnes, LAD	Gene McCaffrey 47
WSmith, SF	D.J. Short 35	Ray Murphy 16	Tim McCullough 2
		Scott White 0
AMondesi, KC	Gene McCaffrey 33
NEovaldi, TB	Anthony Perri 31	Perry Van Hook 27	Tim McCullough 22
		Charlie Wiegert 2
DRodriguez, SF	Perry Van Hook 27
KTucker, Hou	Scott White 22
MMaldonado, LAA	Jeff Boggis 21	Charlie Wiegert 2
RTapia, Col	Tim McCullough 21	Adam Ronis 2
SOh, Tor	Ray Murphy 16
DWinkler, Atl	Ray Murphy 16
JShields, CWS	Jeff Boggis 12	Tom Kessenich 2
EJimenez, CWS	Scott White 6
HPerez, Mil	Tom Kessenich 4
MFried, Atl	Tim McCullough 3
JMarisnick, Hou	Charlie Wiegert 3
CMoran, Pit	Michael Beller 3
JAlfaro, Phi	Charlie Wiegert 2	Gene McCaffrey 2
HBader, StL	Charlie Wiegert 2
CStratton, SF	Michael Beller 2
CCulberson, Atl	Michael Beller 1
AGarrett, Cin	Michael Beller 1
DHolland, SF	Tom Kessenich 1	Charlie Wiegert 2
KPlawecki, NYM	Perry Van Hook 0	Charlie Wiegert 2
RMartin, Tor	Michael Beller 0	Perry Van Hook 0

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
BMiller, Mil	Adam Ronis 16
WFlores, NYM	Adam Ronis 16	Charlie Wiegert 2
JAlvarado, TB	Ray Murphy 6
LTrivino, Oak	Ray Murphy 6
CVazquez, Bos	Charlie Wiegert 2
IKennedy, KC	Charlie Wiegert 2
JGant, StL	Charlie Wiegert 2
APlutko, Cle	Tom Kessenich 1
JJeffress, Mil	Tom Kessenich 1
KYates, SD	Tom Kessenich 1
CMcHugh, Hou	Scott White 0
JMurphy, Ari	Perry Van Hook 0
ONarvaez, CWS	Perry Van Hook 0
SLeon, Bos	Perry Van Hook 0

Perry Van Hook’s Commentary

Some very interesting bids/strategy this week in the mixed draft league. The high bid was for recently recalled Brewer outfielder Keon Broxton who had a great line in his first game back – enough to get $61 from Tim McCullough (dollars to donuts that is his best game of the year)

Next highest was for Twins shortstop Jorge Polanco who hasn’t played his first or best game yet as he is soon to be activated from his 80 game suspension. But with a need at MI, Adam Ronis put his bet at $58.

I wanted one of two starting pitchers this week – the younger hurler on the better team, Dereck Rodriguez (SF) or the veteran with a good two start week, Nathan Eovaldi (TB)? I bid $27, ten percent of my remaining FAAB and had Rodriguez first who I won because Eovaldi went for $31 to Anthony Perri.

I needed to DL Gary Sanchez but found a good handful of catchers who wouldn’t hurt by OBP that I bid $0 on. Good thing lists differ widely because two backstops not on my list went for $47 (Austin Barnes, LAD) and $21 (Martin Maldonado, LAA).

Scott White had his eye on the future, rostering current minor league studs Eloy Jimenez ($6), and Kyle Tucker ($22) and hoping they more than cover the zeroes he will likely get from them this week.

Todd’s Take

Something to consider with Tucker is George Springer missed Sunday with a sore back incurred while falling into the stands. Reportedly, it’s minor and Springer isn’t expected to lose more time, but you never know, backs are tricky.

Keon Broxton is giving the Brewers something else to think about as Lorenzo Cain nears a return, though Broxton’s  services may still be needed if Christian Yelich’s back continues to be an issue.

Austin Barnes receive some attention is a few leagues. Yasmani Grandal is mired in a slump with Barnes playing three of the past four games through Sunday. Something similar happened last season though it was later in the season. It’s not panic time for those with Grandal on their roster, but it’s something to keep in mind.

HEAD-TO-HEAD MIXED AUCTION

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
EHernandez, LAD	Michael Rathburn 22	Peter Kreutzer 0
CBassitt, Oak	Jeff Mans 18	Peter Kreutzer 1
JCamargo, Atl	Peter Kreutzer 14
RChirinos, Tex	Andrea LaMont 7	Michael Rathburn 6	Jake Ciely 4
RYarbrough, TB	Peter Kreutzer 7	Michael Rathburn 6	Dr. Roto 4
		Clay Link 0
WChen, Mia	Peter Kreutzer 7	Clay Link 0
JBauers, TB	Michael Rathburn 6
MBoyd, Det	Michael Rathburn 6	Peter Kreutzer 1
ADeSclafani, Cin	Dr. Roto 5	Stephania Bell 4	Justin Mason 0
MPina, Mil	Michael Rathburn 4
JHeyward, ChC	Peter Kreutzer 4	Andrea LaMont 3
ROdor, Tex	Andrea LaMont 3	Michael Rathburn 4
KTucker, Hou	Justin Mason 1
JShields, CWS	Clay Link 1
SRomano, Cin	Justin Mason 1	Dr. Roto 4
DCovey, CWS	Justin Mason 0
JGant, StL	Clay Link 0

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
WFont, TB	Jeff Mans 11
ARussell, ChC	Michael Rathburn 6
WFlores, NYM	Michael Rathburn 6
AMejia, Min	Peter Kreutzer 3
AMondesi, KC	Peter Kreutzer 3
RBorucki, Tor	Jeff Mans 2	Clay Link 0
SAlcantara, Mia	Dr. Roto 2	Clay Link 0
FPena, LAA	Jeff Mans 2
CIannetta, Col	Andrea LaMont 2
JHellickson, Was	Justin Mason 1
EHernandez, Mia	Jeff Mans 1
JBautista, NYM	Peter Kreutzer 0
KBroxton, Mil	Peter Kreutzer 0
SLeon, Bos	Andrea LaMont 0

Todd’s Take

There’s no doubt the head to head league has caught on with the notion of picking up two-start pitchers. The problem is this week there just aren’t that many options routinely available, even in shallower leagues.

Justin Mason is well aware of this as he explained on his show with Lawr Michaels on the FNTSY network. Justin is looking a week ahead, bidding on pitchers with one start this week but lined up for a double dip next week.

The first week of Period 4 belongs to Lenny “The Legend” Melnick as his 164.85 points bested the 161.1 total put up by Scott Pianowski from Yahoo Fantasy Sports. Michael Rathburn finished third in a hotly contested, high-scoring week.

Using a couple of mid-priced but effective pitchers (David Price and Steven Matz) paid huge dividends as Melnick’s bats came through, lead by Alex Bregman’s homer plus three double night. Lenny was also aided by homers from Jesus Aguilar and Gorkys Hernandez. Check out the legendary lineup below.

Melnick, Pianowski and Rathburn have the early lead for the next three Golden Tickets awarded for the Tout Daily Survivor Tournament Finals.

Rick Wolf extended his overall lead for the wild card entry into the finals with Bret Sayre leapfrogging Todd Zola for the second most points over the entirety of the contest. Track your favorite Tout’s plight on the Leaderboard.

Be sure to look for our picks very Tuesday, along with the other Tout Wars content including the Tout Wars FAAB report every Sunday and the ToutTable every Monday.

Here’s Lenny’s winning roster:

It’s a clean slate as this is the first week of Period 4 in Tout Daily. There’s three more Golden Tickets on the line. Tonight’s slate is intriguing as there’s weather issues along with some top hurlers on the road. Here’s where some of the Touts are looking to get a jump on the field.

Vlad Sedler (Fantasy Guru Elite, @Rotogut)

Freddy Peralta: Will be chalky today, but the price is right for the rookie with high strikeout upside making just his fourth big-league start against a struggling Royals’ squad with a league-low wOBA (.246) this month (nearly 30 points lower than the next-worst team – White Sox .276).

J.D. Martinez: So many solid options on a 14-game slate, but JD is the best bet for a dinger tonight by sacrificing Lamb at home. The Angels’ Syndergaard-wannabe has allowed three home runs over his first two starts and doesn’t deserve to be a part of a major-league rotation.

Gene McCaffrey (Wise Guy Baseball, @WiseGuyGene)

Freddy Peralta: I hate paying up for road starts, plus Freddy Peralta looks like the real deal, at home against the DH-less Royals.

Mike Trout: I’m going to shock the world and pay for Mike Trout.

Jeff Boggis (Fantasy Football Empire, @JeffBoggis)

Luis Severino: Over his last 10 games, Luis Severino is 7-1 and averaging 27.4 fantasy points per game. At a top salary of $13,100, you will have to find some diamonds in the rough on the hitting side tonight.

Chris Davis: Is Chris Davis a diamond in the rough or fool’s gold? At only $2,500 tonight, he’s worth a flyer. Let’s hope he’s found his swing mojo.

Lawr Michaels (CreativeSports2, @lawrmichaels)

Frankie Montas: Perhaps the steadiest of the Athletics hurlers these days, Montas faces the largely anemic Tigers, batting just .241 against right-handers.

Jose Ramirez: Ramirez is expensive, but he not only rakes, and bats left, and Jose and his Tribe mates face Carlos Martinez who is 0-2, 8.16 over his last four starts with a 2.580 WHIP allowed.

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola)

David Price: Not a good sign as this is the third guy I’ve decided to use. First was Lynn, scared by weather. Next was Godley, scared because it’s Godley. Using Price ater looking at the Angels lineup. Sure, stocked with RHB, but they’re reserve types and I’ll take the vest to navigate through. FWIW, this means I need to play Lynn and Godley in a small GPP, you know, just in case.

Nolan Arenado: I’ll likely have some extra budget tonight so I’ll pay up for Arenado, taking batting practice against Derek Holland, albeit in AT&T

Patrick Davitt (BaseballHQ, @patrickdavitt)

Freddy Peralta: Like Gene said: Peralta looks good at home versus the punchless Royals. Looks like this might not be as uncommon a pick as hoped.

Jose Altuve: Jose, can you see that rookie pitcher facing the World Champs, at home, in his first MLB game ever? Me too.

What would it take for you to deal Mike Trout in a redraft league?

Michael Rathburn (Rotowire, @FantasyRath): If I owned Trout, I’d have to be in the bottom half of the league to make a deal. Ideally Id look to get 2 players worth about $25 per or 3 players totaling $50-$60 in value. 1 hitter/1 pitcher or 2 hitters/1 pitcher.

Patrick Davitt (BaseballHQ, @patrickdavitt): A redraft league offers a more clear-cut decision path: I’d trade Trout for players who would move me more points in the categories than I would lose from trading Trout. For instance, I can see a two- or three-for-Trout if I had Trout plus some dead weight or replacement-level guys, while some other team had a roster surplus through returning DL players. The particular players would depend largely on where I stood—if I had a good position in OBP, I might look at acquiring, say, Khris Davis and Dee Gordon, and while I’d be getting 85 cents on the value dollar (using HQ projections), losing some ground in OBP and breaking even on HR, I’d be gaining 33 runs, 23 RBI, and 18 steals. Those are numbers that could move a team in multiple categories. But again, it all depends on where I was in the categories at the time of the proposed deal—and where I saw my team at season’s end.

Perry Van Hook (Mastersball, @): A redraft league of any kind is likely the only type of league where you would deal Mike Trout and you SHOULD if a trade will pick up enough categorical points to win the league or dramatically increase the likelihood you will finish in the money. As great a season as Trout is having this year if you can improve your pitching more than you will lose in hitting points (if any) then you definitely should work on a trade that will help you and your potential trading partner(s).

Mike Gianella (Baseball Prospectus, @MikeGianella): If I’m trading Trout (I have him in LABR AL, a redraft league) I’m looking for the perfect combination of quality and volume. Teams that sunk $40+ into Trout in a redraft usually had to skimp somewhere else so I’m looking to make up those deficiencies. So a second tier-hitter plus a high end arm or three solid hitters to fill in dead spots might do the trick. It’s a tough sell though, because even with Trout and some zeros on offense I’m still near the top in runs/RBI because Trout is that good.

Gene McCaffrey (Wise Guy Baseball, @WiseGuyGene): Very simple: I want more value in return – and I daresay it wouldn’t be too difficult to find it. Dispassionate analysis shows that any top SP is worth more in the roto format, so that pitcher plus a mediocre hitter is a good deal. There is greater risk in the pitcher, and that’s the trade-off, but assuming health such a deal is a winning move.

Rick Wolf (Fantasy Alarm, @RickWolf1): Let’s look at this as a BA league since if it is OBP, you would NEVER trade Trout. You need to look at categories, how big your lead is and then calculate what you need to gain points. EXACTLY what you need. Then calculate the loss in points that is possible by losing him. Normally with players of this caliber, I wait until August first and then make the move to make sure that I WIN. Sometimes it means that you would be trading for multiple closers or multiple STUD starting pitchers, but generally not for hitters. If you are middle of the pack or bottom, trading now makes sense because if you are not 1st – you are last. Thanks Ricky Bobby. Find someone fishing for Trout and get the maximum number of points based on your needs. Remember, in most leagues pitching is easier to fix so get A LOT and sure things. Make the COMPLETE plan on how the trade will help you and do not just look at VALUE. Someone could give you Kluber and Mookie Betts and that might seem good, but you need to look to see if you need what the guys you get will move you to the TOP of the standings. Like Commander Mike Metcalf says in Top Gun, “Gentlemen, there are no points for second place.”

Ray Flowers (Fantasy Guru Elite, @BaseballGuys): Trout is an A+ in terms of production and consistency. Still, in a game where we start 14 hitters and nint pitcher, and with all the injuries everyone is dealing with, there has to be a point where you would consider dealing him for a relative bounty. Considering that you could get two all-stars for Trout in any format, potentially even three in many deals, you have to consider it. You don’t deal Trout for prospects. You don’t deal Trout for guys on the DL. You also don’t deal Trout for guys that are performing out of their minds who have no track record of success. You deal Trout to fill holes getting back guys who are likely to fill the hole/need you have. With all the injuries in today’s game, trading Trout for a multitude of top level players to aid your team makes sense a while lot of sense to me.

Scott Pianowski (Yahoo! Fantasy Sports, @Scott_Pianowski): The first point in all this is that anyone should be tradable. Your team should be “the touchables.” Don’t let fear of looking bad sabotage you from doing something you think can or will work. If you constantly live your life afraid to make a mistake, you’re doing it wrong. As for what it would take, several of my colleagues have already hit on the key point – it’s all about solving the standings puzzle. You’d need to get back stuff that would make sense categorically. I occasionally screw this up myself, but if you’re going to trade a star, two things are essential: let the league know the star is in play, and do an extensive audit of the league standings and the opposing rosters to figure out where the fitting pieces might be.

Fred Zinkie (Years in Tout Wars: 8, @): Aces are so valuable that I would have to consider trading Trout if my pitchers were struggling. A top-5 starter and a $20-25 hitter sounds like a fair return. Or a top-10 starter and a $25-30 hitter.

Phil Hertz (BaseballHQ, @prhz50): Give me a Scherzer, Verlander, or deGrom and someone akin to Freddie Freeman, and Trout is yours.

Ron Shandler (RonShandler.com, @RonShandler): This is purely a hypothetical question for me because I have never known the bliss of Trout ownership. I did make a trade offer for Trout this year – an act that was completely out of my comfort zone. I offered any one of Carrasco, Greinke, Flaherty or McCullers, plus Nelson Cruz, plus $200 of FAAB. GIven Phil’s asking price above, I suspect even $300 of FAAB wouldn’t have done it.

Lawr Michaels (CreativeSports2, @lawrmichaels): I pretty much agree with the bulk of my comrades in that it obviously depends upon the depth of the league, standings and categories relative to what I need and I can afford to give up at the time. I think Scott and Fred hit the closest to my belief, that anyone should be tradeable at anytime depending upon what was needed and how I can ideally improve my team enough to win..

Scott Wilderman (OnRoto, @): I would never have Trout on my team in an auction league — too much money to risk on one player. In a mixed draft league, it’s hard to imagine that Trout + an FA would not be more productive than any two players you could trade for, unless both of them are very good players and one is a catcher. I love SPs, but a huge part of their standings points gain production comes from wins, the most valuable but most fickle roto commodity. Even on a good run scoring team, you might got get the return you need picking up an ace — a 2.50 ERA and 0.950 WHIP with 6-4 doesn’t justify trading Trout. I would make one exception to that right now, though — the Indians have almost 20 game left with KC and CWS, meaning Kluber is going to get a bunch of starts in which he has a way better than usual chance of winning. If I had Trout and needed pitching, I would slow-play a deal to package Trout for a hitter better than the FA list and Kluber.

Scott Swanay (FantasyBaseballSherpa, @fantasy_sherpa): In order for me to trade Trout, as others have already pointed out, I’d have to be confident that I’d be better off in the overall standings after the trade than before the trade. Simple as that sounds, I can’t imagine too many combinations of players that could do that. If I were focused on getting pitching back, the deal would almost certainly have to include Kluber, Scherzer, or Sale (sorry, Kershaw) and either another mid-upper tier starting pitcher or a well-above average hitter. If I were focused on getting hitting back, it would probably take 2-3 All-Star caliber hitters who in aggregate would be better than Trout + the other hitter(s) they’d be replacing. And if you’re in a dynasty league (the only format I currently have him on a roster), then given Trout’s relative youth, I have a hard time imagining a deal that would make sense – I’d probably need to get either Acuna or Vlad Jr back, plus a whole lot more.

Mike Podhorzer (Fangraphs, @MikePodhorzer): There’s never a player that is off limits on my teams, so even though it would be painful to trade Mike Trout, if the value is there, you make the move. The key is determining when the value is there. Of course, it’s extremely context dependant, including where you are in each of the hitting category standings, along with how the rest of your roster looks and what holes, if any, you stand with. In a shallow mixed league, I would need two top tier guys, like second round levels, at the very least, and two second rounders might not even be enough. In this format, I always want quality over quantity given the talent level in the free agent pool, which makes it that much more difficult to find a Trout trade that truly benefits you.

Doug Dennis (BaseballHQ, @dougdennis41): I would find it very hard.  I think you want all that value back and that would mean the players coming back would have to be worth Trout AND the players you are subtracting from your active roster to use the players you are acquiring. (And by “worth” I mean to your position in the standings, not in any other way).

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola): My colleagues have covered almost. Something I’d like to emphasize is Pianow’s assertion (among others) everyone is on the block. I’m impressed no one invoked the tired cliche to never deal the best player. A few (correctly) suggested getting back an ample return would be tough, but it’s heartening no one said impossible. While a few focused on value, Doug’s parenthetical point about worth/value is the correct approach. It’s not about dealing a $50 Trout for a $30 pitcher and $25 hitter — or whatever algebra you want. It’s about gaining more points than you lose. That said, some leagues have veto rules and those voting haven’t grasped this concept, hence disallowing some excellent trades on the premise one side is getting more value. For those still on the value train, Wiseguy Gene referenced this, allow me to embellish. Every dollar amount cited assumes conventional valuation where we allocate between 65-70 percent of budget to hitting. Why this is the case isn’t germane, it’s a story for another day. The point is, in-season, when talking value, the budget should be distributed equally. This knocks a $30 hitter down to $21 while elevating a $30 pitcher to $50! So, on paper, in most eyes, dealing a $30 hitter for a $30 pitcher is even Steven. In my eyes, it’s worthy of a veto (typed tongue in cheek, but you get the point).

Welcome to the weekly Tout Wars FAAB report, on its new home right here on the Tout Wars site. Each week, we’ll review the free agent acquisitions from all five leagues, with commentary from a league member, as well as yours truly. We changed the timing of the weekly run to 1 PM ET every Sunday, with the report posted later that afternoon so you’ll have time to digest and apply to your own leagues. In addition, I’ll be joining Lawr Michaels and Justin Mason on the Tout Wars Hour on the FNTSY Network every Sunday at 3:20 PM ET to discuss the results.

You can find the complete list of Tout Warriors here. Everyone starts with 1000 FAAB units, less any penalty incurred by finishing below a designated point in the standings. This is a means of keeping everyone motivated to keep playing all season long. The minimum bid is $0. FAAB units can be traded as well as rebated for players released off the DL.

The report will list all winning bids along with unsuccessful tries and contingencies. This provides the maximum level of information to help gauge interest on the players.

The American and National League only formats are 12-team leagues, as is the new points-based head to head league, The Mixed Auction and Draft each have 15 clubs. All the leagues have four reserves with an unlimited DL, expect the head to head league, which allows six reserves.

The headings above each league are links to publicly accessible sites where you can see standings, roster and a complete review of transactions. The initial auctions and drafts can be found here.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
ACobb, Bal	Larry Schechter 124	Rob Leibowitz 7	Vlad Sedler 3
DPomeranz, Bos	Larry Schechter 47
WFont, TB	Jason Collette 46	Vlad Sedler 38
THill, KC	Jeff Erickson 43	Larry Schechter 23	Vlad Sedler 6
BMaurer, KC	Vlad Sedler 33
ABibensDirkx, Tex	Vlad Sedler 26
RHerrera, KC	Vlad Sedler 13	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
DJansen, Tor	Patrick Davitt 9
CHerrmann, Sea	Vlad Sedler 6
CaJoseph, Bal	Rob Leibowitz 4
GGreiner, Det	Jason Collette 2
KMcCarthy, KC	Doug Dennis 2	Vlad Sedler 12	Jeff Erickson 5
YDiaz, Cle	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 1
RGoins, KC	Mike Podhorzer 0	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
AAlmonte, KC	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
JBiagini, Tor	Jason Collette 3
FPena, LAA	Vlad Sedler 2
POrlando, KC	Vlad Sedler 2
TMotter, Min	Vlad Sedler 1	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
MHermosillo, LAA	Rick Wolf/Glenn Colton 0
DButera, KC	Jason Collette 0

Todd’s Take

Years of research shows more pitching than hitting emerges from the free agent. The jury is still out how helpful these arms will be but there was a preponderance of hurlers purchased this week in AL Tout. Larry Schechter was the big spender, grabbing Alex Cobb and Drew Pomeranz. Pomeranz, of course, is on the DL while Cobb is flashing signs of mediocrity with three seven-inning efforts in his last five starts.

Everyone’s heard the expression, “Baseball is a game of inches.” For Wilmer Font, it’s about 18 inches as a shift back to the third base side of the rubber has done wonders for the Rays opener — or is that now full-blown starter? Jason Collette hopes so after Font’s 5.2 inning blanking of the Yankees last time out.

I like Patrick Davitt’s preemptive bid on Blue Jays receiver Danny Jansen. Russell Martin has gotten more attention for being a side-show, playing third, shortstop and outfield than he has for his work behind the plate. A .625 OPS just doesn’t get it done. Meanwhile, Jansen is slashing a tidy .298/.411 /476 at Triple-A Buffalo.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
KHerrera, Was	Brian Walton 101	Steve Gardner 45	Phil Hertz 37
		Tristan H. Cockcroft 15	Grey Albright 11
ASlater, SF	Phil Hertz 81	Craig Mish 11
BMiller, Mil	Mike Gianella 44	Phil Hertz 81	Craig Mish 27
		Scott Wilderman 14	Lenny Melnick 11
HPence, SF	Craig Mish 37	Mike Gianella 17	Phil Hertz 7
		Lenny Melnick 3	Scott Wilderman 0
SDyson, SF	Steve Gardner 37	Brian Walton 101	Grey Albright 29
		Phil Hertz 1
WSmith, SF	Grey Albright 21	Craig Mish 2	Phil Hertz 1
JGant, StL	Grey Albright 21	Phil Hertz 17	Tristan H. Cockcroft 15
JOsuna, Pit	Lenny Melnick 3	Mike Gianella 14	Scott Wilderman 2
JCastillo, SD	Lenny Melnick 2
RMoronta, SF	Tristan H. Cockcroft 1	Grey Albright 5	Todd Zola 0
JBrebbia, StL	Phil Hertz 1
KKaczmarski, NYM	Craig Mish 1	Lenny Melnick 1
AMorgan, Phi	Tristan H. Cockcroft 0
TWilliams, Mil	Todd Zola 0

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
JHughes, Cin	Steve Gardner 22	Grey Albright 5
ABlandio, Cin	Mike Gianella 6
JFields, LAD	Grey Albright 5
SRodriguez, Pit	Phil Hertz 2	Phil Hertz 1
MSzczur, SD	Craig Mish 1	Mike Gianella 0
VArano, Phi	Grey Albright 1
DMarrero, Ari	Mike Gianella 0
JBarnes, Mil	Phil Hertz 0
PBourjos, Atl	Mike Gianella 0
RErlin, SD	Phil Hertz 0
SAlexander, LAD	Phil Hertz 0
TMcFarland, Ari	Todd Zola 0
YRivera, Mia	Mike Gianella 0

Brian Walton’s Commentary

“Don’t chase saves, they say.”

Well, when you are clawing for any points whatsoever and have potential leverage in the category, when a top arm becomes available, you have to go for it. At least that is what I told myself this week.

Kelvin Herrera was lights out with Kansas City, making him an appealing trade target for the Nationals. The downside is that Washington already has a closer, meaning saves are not assured. On the other coast, Sam Dyson seems to have inherited the job in San Francisco after Hunter Strickland came in second place with a wall in a punching contest.

I decided to get one of them this week, but in hindsight, I probably should have tried to acquire both. I prioritized Herrera higher due to his skills and the fact his team is considerably better. However, my $101 offer only needed to be $48 to edge Steve Gardner of USA TODAY. I was slightly encouraged in that Gardner is based in the DC area and follows the Nats more closely than me and his bids suggest he also favored Herrera.

Steve did add Dyson for $37, which coincidentally is the same price that Craig Mish paid for Dyson’s Giants teammate Hunter Pence. The 35-year old outfielder had a burst of productivity last week, which is pretty much his first sign of life all season to date.

Another Giants outfielder, Austin Slater, fetched the second-most money this week, $81, from Phil Hertz of BaseballHQ. Mish owned Mac Williamson, dispatched to the minors for ineffectiveness. That may have opened up the Giants’ left field job for either Pence or Slater, the latter just up from Triple-A.

Todd’s Take

A few weeks ago, I had three closers and would be looking to deal a couple to a group looking for help in the category. I did deal Brandon Morrow for Gregory Polanco, leaving me Brad Boxberger and Arodys Vizcaino. Now with Vizcaino out, I’m down to one, but after the interest in saves, perhaps I should put Boxberger on the block since I can afford to go without a closer in an effort to make up ground in saves.

Williamson is a good reminder not all of the card-carrying members of the launch-angle revolution are automatically successful. The jury is still out, there’s a good chance Williamson gets it together at Triple-A Sacramento. The point is, Williamson serves as another example of why we need to account for some reversion when analyzing batters with a power spike. I’m sure those investing in Logan Morrison and Justin Smoak are saying, “Now you tell me.”

MIXED LEAGUE AUCTION 

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
MTrumbo, Bal	Scott Pianowski 107	Zach Steinhorn 88	Fred Zinkie 40
		Scott Engel 28
FPeralta, Mil	Jeff Zimmerman 87	Derek VanRiper 77	Fred Zinkie 73
		Scott Pianowski 61	Scott Swanay 28
MMinor, Tex	Zach Steinhorn 52	Derek VanRiper 33	Fred Zinkie 17
PStrop, ChC	Scott Swanay 28	Al Melchior 11	Jeff Zimmerman 0
WFont, TB	Al Melchior 28
MFranco, Phi	Tim Heaney 26
BMiller, Mil	Derek VanRiper 23
CSpangenberg, SD	Ron Shandler 18	Scott Engel 4
CDavis, Bal	Ray Flowers 17
TomMurphy, Col	Fred Zinkie 17	Derek VanRiper 11
JBautista, NYM	Scott Engel 14
SRomo, TB	Scott Engel 11	Scott Pianowski 1
DWinkler, Atl	Tim McLeod 7
JHicks, StL	Scott Pianowski 4	Jeff Zimmerman 0
MGarver, Min	Derek VanRiper 3
KYates, SD	Scott Pianowski 1	Jeff Zimmerman 0
SDyson, SF	Scott Pianowski 1	Al Melchior 22	Scott Swanay 7
		Jeff Zimmerman 1
RDavis, Cle	Scott Pianowski 0

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
ADeSclafani, Cin	Zach Steinhorn 42
SCishek, ChC	Scott Swanay 28
THill, KC	Al Melchior 22	Scott Pianowski 1	Jeff Zimmerman 1
DHolland, SF	Al Melchior 22	Jeff Zimmerman 0
WDifo, Was	Ron Shandler 18
DTravis, Tor	Ron Shandler 8
TWatson, SF	Scott Swanay 7	Jeff Zimmerman 0
MCanha, Oak	Scott Engel 1
JWilson, ChC	Jeff Zimmerman 1
EDiaz, Pit	Derek VanRiper 1
KSmith, CWS	Derek VanRiper 1
ELauer, SD	Jeff Zimmerman 0

Todd’s Take

Knowing when to cut bait and when to ride out a cold spell for an established hitter is one of the biggest challenges in mixed leagues. To be honest, there’s no right or wrong answer. In most cases, team context drives the decision.

When you drop a player like Mark Trumbo, you do so knowing someone else could reap future benefits. Scott Pianowksi hopes Trumbo’s current knee soreness isn’t serious.

After a couple of weeks devoid of two-start options, this is one of the summer’s busiest weeks. Most feel look at two-start pitchers and fear ratios. However, the main benefit of a double-dip is increased whiffs. That is, big picture, more points are gained over the course of the season in strikeouts than are lost in ratios, assuming mostly good choices are made. When a strikeout pitcher like Freddy Peralta has a pair, it’s well worth picking him up.

MIXED LEAGUE DRAFT

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
KMarte, Ari	Scott White 63	Adam Ronis 23	Ray Murphy 21
AHanson, SF	Scott White 57	Adam Ronis 8
SDyson, SF	Gene McCaffrey 38	Perry Van Hook 3
AMinter, Atl	Adam Ronis 33
SRomo, TB	Greg Ambrosius 21	Charlie Wiegert 12	Adam Ronis 12
		Rudy Gamble 2
JPirela, SD	Greg Ambrosius 21
BSuter, Mil	Rudy Gamble 17	Greg Ambrosius 15	Adam Ronis 12
		Charlie Wiegert 1
KMorales, Tor	Charlie Wiegert 12	Greg Ambrosius 17
LLynn, Min	Charlie Wiegert 12	Adam Ronis 29
FBarreto, Oak	Ray Murphy 11	Adam Ronis 6
BHardy, Det	Charlie Wiegert 10
MHarvey, Cin	Greg Ambrosius 9
ABradley, Ari	Perry Van Hook 7	Rudy Gamble 2
NHundley, SF	Ray Murphy 4
KSmith, CWS	Adam Ronis 4
EDiaz, Pit	Perry Van Hook 3	Adam Ronis 4
KFreeland, Col	Scott White 2

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
BPeacock, Hou	Gene McCaffrey 38	Greg Ambrosius 11
KMcCarthy, KC	Gene McCaffrey 38
AAltherr, Phi	Greg Ambrosius 20
JJeffress, Mil	Greg Ambrosius 17
CMoran, Pit	Greg Ambrosius 15
RGuzman, Tex	Charlie Wiegert 10
DomSmith, NYM	Charlie Wiegert 10
KPlawecki, NYM	Ray Murphy 4
BMcCarthy, Atl	Greg Ambrosius 3
ADeSclafani, Cin	Perry Van Hook 3
THill, KC	Rudy Gamble 2
SCishek, ChC	Rudy Gamble 2
JGant, StL	Charlie Wiegert 2
IKennedy, KC	Charlie Wiegert 2
ONarvaez, CWS	Perry Van Hook 1
KTucker, Hou	Scott White 1
JAlfaro, Phi	Adam Ronis 1
EJimenez, CWS	Scott White 1
ARomine, NYY	Perry Van Hook 1

Perry Van Hook’s Commentary

While there is always the closer hunt – Sam Dyson ($38), A.J. Minter ($33); Sergio Romo ($21); and maybe Archie Bradley ($7); the high bid for the week went to rejuvenated Diamondback middle infielder Ketel Marte who after two hot weeks went for $63 to Scott White.

Wanting to upgrade Maile at C and replace Tyler Anderson (after another disappointing two start week) I went the budget route. I had Bradley on top of my pitcher list and also got my top rated C, Elias Diaz, PIT who should get the majority of the at bats with Francisco Cervelli on the DL. Diaz is very good in OBP leagues.

Todd’s Take

Handicapping saves is akin to reading tea leaves, but with former Ray’s opener notching four saves the past couple of weeks, he’d top my list of would-be closers bid on in the league this week.

HEAD-TO-HEAD MIXED AUCTION

SUCCESSFUL BIDS

PLAYER	WINNING BID
MStroman, Tor	Jeff Mans 88	Peter Kreutzer 7	Dr. Roto 5
FBarreto, Oak	Peter Kreutzer 78	Andrea LaMont 18
CRichard, SD	Andrea LaMont 46	Justin Mason 33	Peter Kreutzer 13
		Jake Ciely 7	Jeff Mans 5
SBieber, Cle	Peter Kreutzer 38	Jeff Mans 33	Jake Ciely 24
		Justin Mason 17	Dr. Roto 17
MMinor, Tex	Jeff Mans 28
NWilliams, Phi	Dr. Roto 16
SLugo, NYM	Justin Mason 15	Michael Rathburn 8	Jake Ciely 7
		Michael Rathburn 6	Dr. Roto 3
AniSanchez, Atl	Jake Ciely 7	Andrea LaMont 1
NEovaldi, TB	Jake Ciely 7	Jeff Mans 15
NAhmed, Ari	Michael Rathburn 6
SMiller, Ari	Michael Rathburn 6	Peter Kreutzer 7	Jake Ciely 7
		Justin Mason 0
DStraily, Mia	Michael Rathburn 6	Justin Mason 0
JPeraza, Cin	Dr. Roto 5	Michael Rathburn 6
KKela, Tex	Dr. Roto 3	Andrea LaMont 1
JJay, Ari	Peter Kreutzer 3	Michael Rathburn 6
CBettis, Col	Justin Mason 1	Dr. Roto 1
DMesoraco, NYM	Jake Ciely 1
JSoria, CWS	Dr. Roto 1

UNAWARDED BIDS

PLAYER
JCamargo, Atl	Peter Kreutzer 11	Michael Rathburn 6
TRichards, Mia	Jeff Mans 8
GoHernandez, SF	Michael Rathburn 6
GParra, Col	Michael Rathburn 6	Peter Kreutzer 3
MGonzalez, Hou	Dr. Roto 5
MTrumbo, Bal	Dr. Roto 2
CBassitt, Oak	Jeff Mans 1
CDevenski, Hou	Dr. Roto 1

Todd’s Take

Here’s where you can see the real search for two-start hurlers as it’s all about points in the head to head league. Granted, a poor outing can result in negative points, but the outing has to be really poor and it’s rare there are two such outings in the same week. The key here is to be willing to burn and churn, borrowing the phrase used by Justin Mason when we talked earlier on the Tout Wars Hour along with Lawr Michaels. Especially in a 12-team league, you simply can’t get married to a fringe player. There’s a fine line between aggression and recklessness. The one best able to toe the line usually comes out on top.

Jeff Boggis’ impressive 172.6 points easily won the final week of Period 3 but it wasn’t enough to secure a Golden Ticket. Finishing behind Boggis this week were Bret Sayre and Gene McCaffrey. Sayre, from Baseball Prospectus, finished as the Period 3 winner, securing a spot in the Tout Daily Survivor Finals as well as a T-shirt from Rotowear.

Boggis knew coming into the week he’d need a big score to make a run at a Golden Ticket and he did his part. Unfortunately, a lot of the Touts were also on a Coors stack, and although Jeff got homers from the less-popular Kolten Wong and Kole Calhoun, it still wasn’t enough. In order to click in some of the higher priced Rockies, Boggis deployed the duo of Mike Clevinger and Cole Hamels, hitting pay dirt with each.

Joining Sayre with Period 3 Golden Tickets are Rotogrinder’s Derek Carty and USA Today’s Steve Gardner. Fantasy Alarm’s Rick Wolf leapfrogged Todd Zola into the top overall spot in the race for the wild card entry into the finals. Check out where your favorite Tout stands on the Leaderboard.

Here’s a list of everyone with a Golden Ticket so far: Clay Link (2), Zola (2), Wolf, Ray Murphy, Sayre, Carty and Gardner.

The end of one period signals the beginning of the next so please stop by next Tuesday afternoon as the Touts will share their picks to kick off Period 4.

Here’s Jeff’s week-winning lineup:

It’s the last week of Period 3 in Tout Daily with three Golden Tickets on the line a well as a free t-shirt from Rotowear.

Here’s where the Touts are looking.

Patrick Davitt (BaseballHQ, @patrickdavitt)

Cole Hamels: I’m pretty far back in the overall despite one top-10 finish in the period, so I have to roll the dice a little. Hamels draws the woeful Royals, who are bottom-third in ISO, Hard-Hit% and HR/F vs LHP. I’m also stacking TEX hitters vs Jason Hammel.

Nomar Mazara: ($4,100) Mazara has a career OPS over 1.000 in KC, .884 against finesse pitchers, and .795 against RHP. I like his chances in KC against a finesse righty.

Gene McCaffrey (Wise Guy Baseball, @WiseGuyGene)

Cole Hamels: Cole Hamels – Not expecting greatness, just hoping for decent start against a weak opponent that when paired with a cheaper SP (Romano or Lauer) will enable me to use a heavy Coors Field stack.

Logan Morrison: Logan Morrison vs. Chris Sale seems borderline insane, but LoMo is super-cheap and he loves flyball pitchers.

Rick Wolf (Fantasy Alarm, @RickWolf1)

Mike Clevinger: There are a lot of hitting bargains so although I dabbled with taking Peralta vs Pirates or German at home after two 20 points starts in a row and looking sharp. No one can argue with the upside of Clevinger. That coupled with Sale having a couple of stinkers and the way too high price for Verlander (who I am taking too), Clevinger wins my war for pitching promise.

Jose Ramirez: It is chalk to take Arenado or Story or even Desmond in Coors vs a LHP. I will go to the other LHP who will have trouble with Jose Ramirez. Rodon has great talent, but ramirez has no holes and if Carlos has to challenge him, we could see some fireworks tonight!

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola)

Jameson Taillon: Waffling between Sale and Verlander so looking at a solid but more cost-efficient option at SP2. I’ll take Taillon in PNC vs. the Brew Crew

Dansby Swanson: I’ll have a little Coors exposure but can’t stack – love Swanson on top of Braves order vs. Garcia

Michael Rathburn (Rotowire, @FantasyRath)

Jason Hammel: His last 5 starts – 31.2 IP, 28 K, 5 BB. At $5K why not?

Brandon Nimmo: Will gladly go Find Nimmo @ Coors

Jeff Boggis (Fantasy Football Empire, @JeffBoggis)

Chris Sale: Playing for pride this week. Going with Chris Sale tonight at $12,700. Saving the $600 that it would cost me to roster Justin Verlander.

Ian Desmond : Ian Desmond ($4,500) will lead my Colorado stack against Jason Vargas at Coors Field.

Lawr Michaels (CreativeSports2, @lawrmichaels)

Chris Sale: I need a lot of points, but similarly, I need a foundation with hopes my crapshots pay off, thus Sale, a dominant lefty is just that. He faces the Twins, who hit about as soft a .242 (just ten homers) as exists on the planet.

Eric Hosmer: I like Eric Hosmer and his nice little team facing another fun team, but with its starters taking its lumps as it tries to become a big league rotation. That makes Paul Blackburn (1.3 frames, eight runs allowed last start) tonight’s target. I do have a few shares in Athletics hitters, so maybe this will be a run-fest?

How do you rank the following injured pitchers for the rest of the season: Yu Darvish, Clayton Kershaw, Shelby Miller, Robbie Ray, Ervin Santana?

Ray Flowers (Fantasy Guru Elite, @BaseballGuys): I wish we didn’t have to deal with this whole mess, with arm after arm hitting the infirmary on a daily basis. The best skills analysis is often thwarted by the continual injuries. It’s brutal. That said, we all have to play the game on even footing, so let’s have at it. If I ranked em’ it would be Kershaw, Ray, Darvish, Santana and Miller. Miller was blasted to the stone age last time out allowing eight runs with nine outs coming back from surgery. Santana has had setbacks with his finger, and he’s thrown 5.1 innings, as of this writing, in 2018, and his return is totally up in the air. The other three are all working their ways back from injury with all hoping for a return before the All-Star Game. Hell, who knows at this point. Ray has predictably regressed, Darvish hasn’t looked like himself at virtually any point, and Kershaw hasn’t been himself either with that back, but a 1.12 WHIP, 9.73 K/9 and 4.82 K/BB ratio prove he can still get outs with the best of them… when his body holds up.

Patrick Davitt (BaseballHQ, @patrickdavitt): I have to say I just don’t know.

Vlad Sedler (Fantasy Guru Elite, @Rotogut): Kershaw – Ray – Darvish – Santana – Miller — It won’t be a completely lost season for Kershaw as I’d expect for him to right his ship after the All-Star break and deliver top 8 SP roto numbers. Ray should be back soon and that humidor should help him just as it has his rotation-mates. Those whiffs are dreamy, but they come with the warts that are walks on walks on walks. Darvish has been broken, cursed, whatever you want to call it, since the World Series. His 12% walk rate is a career high and his lack of control is the issue that will continue to plague him. He only gets the nod over Santana because Erv continues to have setbacks in his road to recovery and he may be hard-pressed to provide value to fantasy owners who have been patiently waiting. Not to be stubborn, but “never again” for me and Shelby Miller. I won’t be bidding for his services even though he may occasionally post solid starts in Chase Field. Those blowups will occur far too often.

Doug Dennis (BaseballHQ, @dougdennis41): Kershaw and then a wide gulf.  The truth is, I have no idea whether Kershaw is just going to reset and blow ’em away July through playoffs or if he is going to have another problem in two weeks. But I’d still take him over the others because he could blow ’em away. After that, Ray, I guess, but he wasn’t all that consistent even before he hurt his oblique. I might go for those Ks, but it will cost you in WHIP, I’d expect–especially in the early going.  I might rather someone else jump on him and then trade for him if he struggles initially but proves healthy. After Kershaw and Ray, I’m done. I don’t want what Darvish would cost when he hasn’t really done anything to create a glimmer of hope and I don’t see Santana or Miller providing anything positive at all.  It is all idle guessing, though, until we see them performing (for better or worse) in MLB games.

Mike Podhorzer (Fangraphs, @MikePodhorzer): Since players returning from injury are usually a crapshoot, the safe answer here is clearly Kershaw as top dog. Then given his track record, you have to rank Darvish second. I’d go with Ray third, following by Santana, and lastly Shelby Miller. I projected Ray to post ratios somewhere in between his bloated 2016 and breakout 2017 marks, and the humidor in Arizona should benefit him. I was a fan of Miller’s when he enjoyed a velocity surge last season before succumbing to an elbow injury that ultimately required Tommy John surgery. I don’t bet on TJ returnees.

Scott Swanay (FantasyBaseballSherpa, @fantasy_sherpa): The flip side of Kershaw’s having missed so much time w/ back injuries the last few seasons is that he has a track record of being able to pitch effectively after returning from them. The others? Who knows – I never know what to expect when a pitcher returns from an arm, elbow, shoulder, or hand injury. I’ll go w/ Darvish, Santana, Ray, and Miller, but that’s admittedly a SWAG.

Stephania Bell (ESPN Fantasy Sports, @Stephania_ESPN): My ranking: Kershaw, Ray, Darvish, Miller, Santana. Obviously there are no guarantees when it comes to returning from injuries…but if anyone has shown an ability to return from injury and pitch effectively, it’s Kershaw. The difference this time is that he isn’t coming off a stellar start to the season; his fastball velocity has dipped and his home run yield is higher than normal. Most concerning is the amount of time he’s been unavailable between the biceps tendinitis and now his back…again. BUT…given the options here, the upside of Kershaw is far higher than the others and if he continues to progress on his current path, he could deliver better results – even if he isn’t at peak Kershaw performance – in the second half of the season. As for the others, Ray is nearing a return which keeps him ahead of Darvish who may not come back until the second half. Both offer the potential for strikeouts but Ray is pitching in rehab games currently while Darvish has yet to face live hitters. Not finding a lot to be thrilled about with either Santana or Miller but Miller is ahead of Santana (as of this moment) when it comes to approaching a return. Miller had a lousy rehab outing recently where he gave up eight runs but followed it with a nice bounceback performance. Pitchers are often inconsistent early in their return from TJ surgery but he is at least throwing all of his pitches and, as of yet, isn’t dealing with unusual soreness. Meanwhile, Santana has had some setbacks due to discomfort in his middle finger post-op, still isn’t throwing all his pitches and is eight years older than Miller. Santana could be back for the second half but there is still uncertainty there and that’s enough for me to rank him below Miller.

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola): I wish I shared my response before Stephania since I’m in lockstep with her reply, though there’s one major difference. This is her realm while I’m just reading tea leaves, though admittedly a semi-educated reading from lessons I’ve learned from her and Rick Wilton over the years.

As an aside, while I don’t want to apologize to my fellow Touts for this question, I recognize crystal ball questions aren’t our favorite to answer. More hedging on my part – it’s not quite unfair to have asked this, since the answers are likely of interest to fantasy managers. That said, with Stephania being the obvious exception, some of our answers fall under the mantra “your guess is as good as ours”. This is also germane to questions like who will get the saves for the Royals and who will be traded at the deadline. With the disclaimer this is my opinion and not necessarily that of the Tout brethren, but in most cases, it’s your team, your call. Find expertise most apropos to the question and use it to formulate your own opinion. Again, speaking for me, I don’t know if it’s Kevin McCarthy or Tim Hill (as an example). Your guess is as good as mine.