2018 Fantasy Baseball Week 12 Hitting Planner: Finding Nimmo

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The big news of the week had to go to the Twins demoting former All-Star Miguel Sano to the minors. It happens to a lot of players, but the Twins went all out on this one, demoting Sano to High-A. The demotion didn't come out of nowhere - Sano has been awful all season. He's slashing .203/.270/.405 and has a K% of 40.5 percent. That ridiculous K-rate would easily be last in the league among qualified batters. Think about that. Sano was striking out more often than Chris Davis.

His demotion to single-A likely means the Twins want Sano to iron out his mechanics in a friendly, confidence building environment. There's been no word on how long he'll be in the minors, but I doubt it will be a long stint. He'll likely be back around early July.

Now, on to the Hitting Planner.

2018 Fantasy Baseball Week 12 Hitting Planner

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Offense to Target - New York Mets

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For the most part, the Mets have been a poor offense. Over the last month, they're hitting .221 as a team and have a wRC+ of 84, good for 23rd in the league. Yoenis Cespedes managed to injure himself during a rehab stint and will be out for a longer period of time. Thankfully, they'll have a chance to redeem themselves this week with a series in Colorado.

Everyone knows how good Coors Field is for a teams offense. Paul Goldschmidt used the thin air to break out of his season-long slump, going 8-for-13 with four home runs at Coors last weekend. Over the last two series' at home, the Rockies have given up 62 runs in six games. The Mets will play four games in Denver to start the week, giving their sluggish bats a chance to wake up at the high altitude.

The Mets will then travel home for a series against the Dodgers. During the three-game series, they will line up against Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, and rookie Caleb Ferguson. Stripling is on an incredible run and owners should probably bench their Mets hitters for his start. On the other hand, Wood has been disappointing this season, posting a 4.43 ERA thus far. He's also been sputtering of late, surrendering 13 runs over his last 12 innings pitched. Ferguson is a bit of an unknown, but he hasn't shown anything the Mets should be worried about.

Notable Players

Though they've cooled off a bit, Asdrubal Cabrera and Brandon Nimmo are great options this week. Michael Conforto has been awful thus far, and if you're not going to play him for a four-game series at Coors, you might as well drop him.

Owners looking to stream a catcher should add Devin Mesoraco for the series in Colorado. Reliable old Todd Frazier should be good for owners needing power as well.

Offense To Avoid - Detroit Tigers

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I feel like the Tigers are on here quite a bit. Their offense is already in the bottom half of the league and they just lost Miguel Cabrera for the rest of the season. John Hicks isn't the worst option, but he's no future Hall of Famer. The Tigers will be working against the schedule this week, only playing five games.

Their first assignment will be in Cincinnati, where they'll play a mini two-game series against the Reds. It's a great matchup as the Reds are still the worst pitching staff in the league. However, it'll likely be the only production the Tigers will see all week.

After another day off Detroit will travel to Cleveland for three games against the Indians. Everyone knows how dangerous the fourth-ranked Indians rotation is. Fortunately, the Tigers will avoid Corey Kluber, but will still line up against Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer. The inconsistent Adam Plutko will also pitch and will be the Tigers' best chance to score some runs over the weekend.

Notable Players

Without Miggy in the lineup, the entire lineup is vulnerable. Nick Castellanos is now their best hitter, and he's been ice cold lately, going 4-for-31 in his last seven games. Until he starts to pick it up, it's tough to trust him.

John Hicks, Jeimer Candelario, and Leonys Martin have been pleasant surprises this season, but need to be avoided this week. I won't blame owners in daily leagues if they want to play these guys against the Reds, but weekly league owners should place them firmly on the bench.

Offense To Target - San Francisco Giants

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The Giants will spend the entire week in the beautiful confines of AT&T Park. Surprisingly, AT&T has actually been an above average hitters park, ranking ninth in runs produced among ballparks this season. The Giants also get the added benefit of facing two sub-par rotations.

The Marlins rotation is an easy one to pick on, ranking 28th in WAR, 21st in ERA, and 25th in BB/9. The trio of Caleb Smith, Dan Straily, and Jose Urena should be easy to handle. Smith is the best of the bunch, but the Giants should be able to handle him, as they're the eighth-ranked team against lefties this season. The Giants are even better against right-handers, so Straily and Urena shouldn't present problems either.

The Padres rotation is a little better than the Marlins but still rank 19th in the league. None of the pitchers on the schedule have an ERA under 4.00 and should be easy work for the Giants, who have been the sixth-ranked offense in the last 30 days.

Notable Players

Andrew McCutchen has been hot lately, collecting multiple hits in eight of his 13 June games. One of the best breakout stories of the year, Gorkys Hernandez, has been the steady leadoff hitter and will have plenty of streamer appeal next week.

Offense To Avoid - Tampa Bay Rays

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The Rays will be in tough this week against two of the best rotations in the league.

First, they'll have to face the Astros in Houston. While their rotation has cooled a bit since their record-breaking start, they are still the best staff in the league and the only one with a team ERA under 3.00. Gerrit Cole, Justin Verlander, and Charlie Morton are scheduled to start, so all Rays should be avoided in this series.

The Rays will then travel home for a three-game set with the Yankees. Their staff numbers are boosted a bit, thanks to their dominant bullpen, but the starting rotation is still the ninth best in the league. Granted, Luis Severino is a big part of that, but CC Sabathia has played his role well. He's inducing a ton of soft contact and is looking like their second best pitcher.

Notable Players

There are no specific players that will do worse this week. Based on matchups I would avoid all Rays this week. The only Tampa Bay player I can see in a weekly lineup would be Wilson Ramos, thanks to the depth of the catcher position. Otherwise, guys like Jake Bauers and C.J. Cron should be on the bench.

Platoon Targets

Brian Anderson, 3B, Miami Marlins

Anderson has been a very nice surprise for the Marlins, providing a very consistent bat all year long. The former third-round pick could be in for a breakout week thanks to some choice matchups. Anderson is slashing a very nice .310/.395/.521 against lefties this season and will get to play against lefties in half his games this week. As an added bonus, the Marlins will be visiting Coors Field over the weekend, where lefty Tyler Anderson will take the hill for the Rockies. Start him with confidence this week.

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