Jose Altuve Hits a Skid at the Plate: Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve has struggled at the plate lately and is underperforming in fantasy baseball. Altuve is hitting just 3-for-28 over his last seven games with zero home runs, zero RBI, two walks, and five strikeouts. The 16.7% strikeout rate over that span suggests he's putting the ball in play at a decent clip, but the BABIP is far from ideal. His power has also been diminishing, as he has only hit one home run in the month of April. All in all, through 29 games this year, he has 110 wRC+, which is his lowest mark since the COVID-shortened 2020 season. The Astros as a whole are struggling, so Altuve isn't alone. Still, it's frustrating for fantasy managers who drafted him with the expectation that he'd perform similarly to 2025, when he launched 26 homers, or 2024, when he was an All-Star and received MVP votes. As it stands, he is still holding his ground as the #5 second baseman in RotoBaller's latest fantasy baseball rankings. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 13:13:05
Sandy Alcantara Getting Results Despite High Hit-to-Strikeout Ratio: Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara has pitched deep into games and continues to earn wins, but the process to get there hasn't been flawless. Alcantra was hit hard for seven runs over six innings on April 12, and although he has a respectable 4.24 ERA since then, his hit, walk, and strikeout ratios are far from ideal. During that three-game span since the April 12 game, he has posted 10.59 H/9, 4.76 BB/9, and just 4.76 K/9. He's walking one batter for every strikeout, and he's averaging more than one hit per inning. Even though he's pitching relatively deeper into games, those ratios don't bode well for his fantasy value. We'd like to see him get back to his early-season form; he went 7+ innings in each of his first three starts this year, posting a 1.11 ERA, 6.66 K/9, and 1.48 BB/9 during that span. Managers will have to accept the fact that he's not a major strikeout threat, but still offers innings and a decent ability to limit runs. As it stands, Alcantara is the #48 starting pitcher in RotoBaller's latest fantasy baseball rankings for 2026. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 12:55:06
Rafael Devers Off to a Career-Worst Start in First Full Season with Giants: San Francisco Giants first baseman Rafael Devers has endured major struggles at the plate so far this year. It's his first full season with the Giants, and it's fair to wonder if his issues are related to playing at Oracle Park, which is far less friendly to left-handed hitters than his previous home, Fenway Park. Learning a new position (first base) could be another reason why Devers' bat hasn't been as hot. Whatever the reason, fantasy managers are hoping he turns things around fast. Through 31 games so far, he's slashing just .207/.248/.289 with two home runs, a 5.4% walk rate, a 31.0% strikeout rate, and 48 wRC+. Obviously, all of those numbers represent career lows for the three-time All-Star and former Silver Slugger. We'd expect him to have some positive regression over a larger sample size -- enough to feel more confident putting him in your fantasy lineups -- but it's fair to question whether he'll ever return to his pre-trade form. Devers has fallen to #16 among first basemen in RotoBaller's latest redraft rankings for fantasy baseball. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 12:19:06
Teoscar Hernandez Hits a Slump as Power Diminishes: Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernandez has struggled at the plate lately, leading to reduced production in fantasy baseball leagues. Over his last seven games, he's hitting just 3-for-24 with three singles, four RBI, four walks, and seven strikeouts. He hasn't homered since April 15, and he has just four total homers this year. To this point in the season, he owns a modest 95 wRC+, which is the lowest mark since his rookie campaign in 2016. It's fair to be concerned about his power output, as his ISO is down to a career-low mark of .163. The 33-year-old is hanging around as the #27 outfielder in RotoBaller's latest fantasy baseball rankings, so managers will hope that he can get back on track and produce a spark soon. In an attempt to give him a mental and physical reset, the Dodgers held Hernandez out of the lineup on Wednesday against the Marlins. With the off day Thursday, that gave him back-to-back days off. He should be back in the starting nine on Friday against St. Louis. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 12:11:06
Dansby Swanson Back in Lineup for Friday's Series Opener: Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson (glute) is back in the team's starting lineup for Friday's series opener at Wrigley Field against the Arizona Diamondbacks and right-hander Zac Gallen, according to MLB.com. Swanson is hitting ninth in the batting order. The 32-year-old veteran did not make the start in Wednesday's series finale against the San Diego Padres due to a left-glute cramp, but he's good to go on Friday after an off day on Thursday. Swansby does have six home runs on the year in 98 at-bats, but he's hitting just .214 (21-for-98) with 23 RBI, 23 runs scored, and two stolen bases in 30 games played. The two-time All-Star won't have much DFS appeal batting out of the nine-hole, especially against a pitcher that he hasn't had much success against in his career. In 14 career at-bats versus Gallen, Swansby is hitting .214 with a .553 OPS. Swansby has started to turn things around at the plate of late, going 7-for-20 (.350) with a homer, eight RBI, three runs, a stolen base, and three multi-hit performances in his last six games. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 11:30:05
Jeffrey Springs Expected to Make his Next Start: Athletics left-hander Jeffrey Springs (hip) was pulled after three ineffective innings in his outing on Thursday against the Kansas City Royals with what the team called right-hip soreness, but Sports Illustrated's Jason Burke reports that Springs is expected to make his next start. Manager Mark Kotsay called the move to pull Springs on Thursday precautionary. Springs was looking outstanding to begin the year, posting a 1.46 ERA through his first four starts, but he's now gone just 14 innings in his last three starts with an 8.36 ERA. The left-hander had Tommy John surgery in 2023, putting him out for most of the 2024 campaign. The 33-year-old veteran was getting his feel back in 2025, when he went 11-11 with a 4.11 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, and 138:54 K:BB in 171 innings pitched. Springs needed 67 pitches to get through his three innings, and even though he has a nice matchup against the struggling Phillies his next time out, he'll be a big risk coming off an injury scare. He'll need to get his strikeout rate back up and stay healthy to remain fantasy relevant in shallow mixed leagues all year. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 10:36:02
Logan Webb Solid in Start on Thursday, but Hard Contact Continues to be a Problem: San Francisco Giants ace Logan Webb (2-3) has been a bit of a letdown thus far in 2026 with a 4.30 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, and only 38 strikeouts in 44 innings pitched. However, his outing on Thursday was good, as he threw seven innings, allowed one earned run, and struck out six. Additionally, he generated 13 whiffs, most of which came on his sinker, but he did generate whiffs on all five of his pitches. While Webb's control (8.1 percent walk rate) and groundball rate (59.3 percent) remain good, he is getting hit hard, as he's allowed a 49.6 percent hard hit rate and 91.2 mph average exit velocity on the season, both of which are worse than his career numbers. That being said, Webb has been a model of consistent success over the past eight seasons, so fantasy managers who invested a top pick on him shouldn't be panicking, but should perhaps temper expectations that he is going to have one of the better seasons of his career. Up next for Webb is a good matchup at home early next week against the Padres. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 10:09:06
Randy Arozarena Heating Up at the Plate, Showing Signs of Power and Speed: Seattle Mariners outfielder Randy Arozarena is having a good stretch at the plate over the past seven days, hitting .286 with three doubles and a stolen base. On the season, he now finds himself slashing .289/.381/.439 with seven stolen bases, 11 RBI, two home runs, nine doubles, and 22 runs scored. While the homerun production isn't quite there yet, Arozarena is tied for eighth in MLB in doubles. Most importantly, we are seeing improved plate discipline from Arozarena, decreasing his strikeout rate to 21.6 percent from his career 25.7 percent rate. Arozarena has hit 20-plus home runs the last two seasons, so with improved plate discipline, historic power numbers, a strong average that is backed up under the hood (.263 xBA), and his nine doubles are all encouraging signs for him to continue his power and speed combination and be a valuable asset for fantasy managers who invested a middle-round pick on him. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 09:52:05
Chase Burns on a Roll of Late With 17 Strikeouts in Last Two Starts: Cincinnati Reds right-hander Chase Burns is starting to break out in 2026 after flashing signs in 2025. So far this season, Burns is (3-1) with a 2.65 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, and 39 strikeouts in 34 innings pitched. His fastball velocity remains elite (98.1 mph average), and his control remains in check (8.8 percent walk rate), while he continues to miss bats and rack up the strikeouts (28.5 percent). Burns is primarily a two-pitch pitcher, throwing his four-seamer 56 percent of the time and slider 37 percent of the time, but both pitches are excellent and top-tier (.230 batting average on the four-seamer and .140 batting average on the slider). Most encouragingly, Burns has shown a lot of consistency through his six starts, having gone five innings in every outing, while allowing two earned runs or less in all but one start on April 10, where he allowed five earned runs to the Angels and was his only loss of the season. Up Next for Burns is an excellent matchup on Sunday, May 3, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he should be fired up confidently in your lineups. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 09:39:05
Bo Bichette Continues to Struggle: New York Mets third baseman Bo Bichette's struggles at the plate have continued, as he is slashing .190/.280/.333 over the past seven days. On the season, his slash line is .230/.272/.317 with two home runs, 14 RBI, and 15 runs scored to go with one stolen base. Bichette is a proven player in the league, so fantasy managers should not be dropping him; however, we are now seven weeks into the season, and Bichette has yet to find his groove with the struggling Mets. Fantasy managers looking for some signs to hold onto Bichette should look at his underlying data, as he has a .290 xBA, .322 xwOBA, and .409 xSLG. All of those do indicate positive regression is on the mend, but in the meantime, he has not given fantasy managers the return they expected from a player going in the middle rounds. Up next for Bichette and the Mets is a weekend series in Anaheim to take on the Angels and a three-game set in Coors to face the Rockies, both of which should be good hitting conditions and a chance for Bichette to start to turn things around. - as of Fri, 01 May 2026 09:19:09