We have reached the middle ground, or thereabouts. What better time to play a little, “buy, sell or hold” with other foreign players in exciting good and bad rolls than now. Of course, in non-commercial leagues, you can’t buy or sell most of them, so it’s a bit of a theoretical exercise here. But hey, we all probably play in some commercial leagues, I’ll check Yahoo and see what real payouts are going on….at least the ones that don’t seem to have a goalie thing attached to them, so they don’t tell us the league details.
Jag Caglianone
77 June PA’s: .379/.468/.742, 7 HR, 17 Runs, 16 RBI, 2 Steals
It’s finally happening! The popular mega prospect “floundered” last season, mostly due to a crazy bad .138 BABIP and a tendency to hit too many ground balls. His .321 xwOBA hinted at better things to come, and his 22% K% was encouraging for a power hitter making his debut in the bigs. However, it was pretty much the same in the first two months, if not worse, as his K hit 30% and his LA went from 4.1 to 7.2. At the end of May, he had just 5 homers in 195 PA’s and a .238 average. But since the calendar turned, he has been on fire. LA averaged 11.2, and had 93 EV and 17.6% Barrel%.
Verdict: Buy it
I was enthusiastic about Jac Cags during the draft season and, it turns out, so was everyone else, and he had a lot of helium, and mine was the only assignment in the draft and I held that empty team. You’ll be cool at this speed for sure, but the power looks really real. The batting average might not be much, but in a full season, you’re probably a 30+, .250 guy, who’s really playing. I will definitely trade him.
Recent Transactions
Shota Imanaga
Raleigh
Well, Shota, yeah…I mean, considering the pitcher-for-hitter swap is compatible in the first place. SP3 or higher seems like a fair price. Big Dumper though? I know it’s been a tough season for him so far, but I’m not going to get too high here.
Bryan Reynolds
77 June PA’s, .319/.390/.623, 5 HR, 13 Runs, 13 RBI, 1 Steal
Reynolds is the very definition of a tough but boring vet. He’s 31 now, and his career is a metronome of steady consistency, or at least until last season. He hit 24 homers in 3 of 4 seasons between 2021 and 2024, and 27 in another, and had a combined 156 and 183 runs in all of them, and hit at least .262 with between 5 and 12 steals. Just solid stuff, especially in the deep leagues. But then he really took off in 2025 hitting .245 with 16 homers and 3 steals. Well, guess what, you’re back in Metronome Mode. On the year he’s hitting .287 with 11 homers and 5 steals, so it looks like 2025 was just a blip.
Verdict: Hold on
It’s really hard to get carried away here. I doubt we have a 31 year old breakout. He’s hot right here, right now as he hit .478 with three homers last week. But alas, that’s on a dream road with stops in Sacramento and Denver. Sell to anyone who wants to pay for that, but if not just stay here. Unless you’re in a league that includes Statcast Fielding Runs Value, you’re a utility man but not a league winner.
Recent Transactions
Gerrit Cole
With Trey Yesavage for Kyle Tucker
Again, we don’t know the specifics, but in principle I’d like to take a shot at Cole’s top. Yes, I know he is old and injury free, and K is down, but he has shown flashes of his former ace. As for the other, well. You usually “win” a Fantasy trade if you get the best player. But who is that really? Which brings me to….
Kyle Tucker
.234, 6 Homers, 44 runs, 40 RBI’s, 6 steals
I know I post Tucker all the time here, but I wanted to at least update my take on it! And vent my frustration. He has a strong character and is on an all-star team, so his season probably went as much under the radar as it would for a $60 million-a-season signing. He didn’t have Fernando Tatis Jr.’s unending homer drought. or miss the big time like other top picks. Even if you don’t miss any time for that matter, he’s been healthy all year. But man, oh man, he doesn’t do anything for us. And there’s no real sign he’s going anywhere, here’s his rolling 15 game wOBA
What is worrying is that his ability has really deteriorated. His K% is at a record high of 20.5%, and his EV is at 88.9, the worst ever. Blast/Swing is a stat that measures how often you swing the ball at high bat speed. It is well suited for both strength and scale. Junior Caminero leads all professional hitters at 20.7%, followed by Yordan Alvarez and Juan Soto. That’s the kind of company you want to keep Tucker, yet he’s just 8.3%, which puts him 124th out of 154. Instead, he hangs with Willi Castro, Daulton Varsho, and Jakob Marsee.
Verdict: Sell
It just doesn’t happen. Guys with big contracts often take time to adjust to their new environment. It’s possible for now with Tucker, but halfway through the season, and he looks like a shell of his former self. Counting figures look as interesting as they should bat on that list. But he often finds himself in the 6th or 7th hole now after starting the year on top.
Recent Transactions
Hunter Greene
Tucker and Yanier Diaz by Austin Riley and Jackson Merrill
Okay, the second trade was mine, and I actually traded Tucker even though I wasn’t optimistic. But I heard. It’s a sort of “my disappointment is yours” kind of work that another guy started. All four are having tough seasons. Merrill and Tucker are the same unlike 5 categories, and I like Tucker better (or dislike him less). It’s also a 14-team, two-man league, so I’m more inclined to trade Riley for Diaz since Riley looks completely cooked, and I wasn’t even starting him.
But generally, I would sell Tucker at a loss, just not such a big loss.
