Hello Fantasy Baseball Fans and Welcome Back to the Fantasy Six Pack Drop List!
After taking a long overdue vacation, I am back to hopefully help you strengthen your fantasy baseball rosters. Do you see someone available in your league that you want to pick up? Wondering which player you should drop? I found two hitters that are hitting below the Mendoza Line and two pitchers that are no longer required to be on your roster.
Let's dive back in and find out who these players are in the 2018 Fantasy Baseball Week 4 Drop List.
2018 Fantasy Baseball Week 4 Drop List
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Hitters
Matt Davidson, 3B, Chicago White Sox
Matt Davidson made himself fantasy relevant when he hit 26 homers in 443 plate appearances in 2017, his first full major league season. Davidson was a deep sleeper for fantasy owners looking for power coming into this season. He made those owners look like geniuses after hitting three home runs on Opening Day this season.
Davidson got everyone's attention but it was short-term. He has only hit two other homers since that Opening Day homer binge. Currently, he is hitting below the Mendoza Line with an ugly .197 batting average. In addition, he currently has an awful 43.9 percent strikeout rate which follows his 37.2 percent strikeout last season.
Matt Davidson was a hot pickup after his three-homer binge. If you were able to pick him up and sell high, congrats, that's how you win in fantasy baseball. If he still on your roster, you must be winning in all of the hitting categories besides home runs. Davidson doesn't make enough contact to take advantage of his power and will kill your team in every other category.
Davidson is a swing and a miss for fantasy owners and should only be rostered in the deepest of the deepest of leagues.
Kole Calhoun, OF, Los Angeles Angels
Kole Calhoun has been one of the most consistent hitters over the last several seasons. He is definitely not flashy but he won't kill your fantasy team either. He normally averages around .260 with 15-20 homers and 80 runs scored. Unfortunately, he has been struggling enough to start this season that there needs to be concerns about his viability on fantasy rosters.
Calhoun is another hitter whose batting average is below the Mendoza Line. He is hitting a dismal .180/.207/.236 slash line with 25 strikeouts in 89 at-bats. He is struggling as he is hitting just .050 over his last seven games going 1-for-20 at the plate with seven strikeouts.
Kole Calhoun is not an exciting player and is no longer a must-own. Even if his bat warmed up at some point this season, you will more than likely be able to get him back if you're desperate for an outfield bat.
Pitchers
Matt Harvey, SP, New York Mets
Matt Harvey was once one of the cornerstones of the New York Mets. Due to chronic injuries and just plain ineffectiveness, Harvey has been taken out of the starting rotation by the Mets and demoted to the bullpen. With minimal success on the field since 2015 and as a free agent after this season, Harvey has no choice but to go to the bullpen and try to save his career.
In 26 innings over four starts, Harvey was 0-2 with a 6.00 ERA. He has allowed 26 hits, four home runs, and four walks. Harvey has allowed a combined 14 runs in his last three starts. With the return of left-handed starter Jason Vargas to the rotation on Saturday, that left the unproductive Harvey without a spot in the Mets' rotation.
The right-hander was an All-Star in 2013 but missed the 2014 season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. Harvey helped the Mets reach the World Series in 2015. He then missed half of the 2016 season following surgery to correct Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. He was out more than two months last season with a right shoulder injury and finished the 2017 season with a 5-7 record and a 6.70 ERA.
The best case scenario for Harvey is that Mets' manager Mickey Callaway works his magic. The same formula he used with Carlos Carrasco, Trevor Bauer, and Danny Salazar while with the Indians. He sent them to the bullpen to work on their mechanics. They returned to be better than ever starting pitchers. Realistically, it would seem that we have seen the last of Matt Harvey as a relevant fantasy pitcher and someone that easily be dropped.
Lucas Giolito, SP, Chicago White Sox
Giolito, a Washington Nationals first-round draft pick in 2012, brought immense expectations last season into his first camp after the White Sox acquired him in the Adam Eaton trade. Giolito had seven starts down the stretch for the Sox last season, in which he went 3-3 with a 2.38 ERA. He struck out 34 and gave up just 31 hits with 12 walks in 45.1 innings. The right-hander continued to impress this spring with a 2.04 ERA, striking out 17 with four walks over four Cactus League starts.
Giolito has had an ugly start of the 2018 season with an ERA of 9.00Â and 1.85 WHIP after four starts. In addition, he has 19 walks in 20 innings with just nine strikeouts! His command has always been an issue. He recorded a dismal 6.75 ERA over six outings which included a miserable 11/12 K/BB ratio with the Nationals in 2016. The Nationals finally gave up on waiting on the potential of Lucas Giolito.
So should fantasy owners also give up on Giolito? I believe it is safe to move on and drop him. He is playing on an awful White Sox team, they are tied for the third-worst record in baseball at 5-15. Lucas Giolito was a sleeper prospect in 2018 (again?). He might have shown small glimpses of being a productive pitcher. However, the current numbers bear out that those useful fantasy stats are an aberration.
Now you know which players to drop, who should you pick up to help your fantasy roster? Take a look at our very own Tyler Gettman's suggestions in the 2018 Fantasy Baseball Week 4 Waiver Wire: Call Me Crazy.
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