Welcome to the 2023 Dynasty Baseball Buy or Sell 5-10-23.
The Calendar has been flipped to May, which means that Mother's Day is right around the corner. The MLB always does a nice job honoring all the mothers around the world. The hitters use pink bats and then the bats are auctioned off and the proceeds go to charity.
I am burying the lead here. The big topic this year in our household is how to celebrate Mother's Day. My wife has decided that instead of the traditional celebration of hanging out with family and our kids, she would prefer to have a day to herself. To be pampered and just be removed from the day-to-day hustle and bustle of motherhood and all the things that kids bring.
My first thought was, no way! It's Mother's Day, you have to spend time with your offspring and enjoy Mother's Day by being a mother. Then as time has gone on, the idea has grown on me and I am fully on board. Mother's Day is just that, however "MOM" wants to celebrate and spend her day, as the perfect day in her eyes. (Plus let's not forget Father's Day comes in June and I can't wait to spend the day golfing, grilling, and drinking some cold beer).
Let me know in the comments how you spend your Mother's Day, traditional or non-traditional. Either way, Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms in the World!
Now let's get into this week's Dynasty Baseball Buy or Sell.
2023 Dynasty Baseball Buy or Sell 5-10-23
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Buy
Masataka Yoshida, OF, Boston Red Sox
The second-best import from Japan since sushi. Wait I mean second best import from the Japanese NPB League since Shohei Ohtani. That would of course be his WBC teammate, Masataka Yoshida of the Boston Red Sox.
Yoshida was signed by the Red Sox this past off-season and instantly became a fantasy-relevant name. We all got our first glimpse of Yoshida in this year's World Baseball Classic. There, he finished with a slash line of .409/.531/.727 with two bombs and drove in 13 runs across 22 at-bats.
The question remained if his game would transition to the major leagues. We are now in May and it is safe to say that his talents have shown no issues transitioning to major league pitching.
MASATAKA YOSHIDA WITH ANOTHER BOMB AND A 14-GAME HITTING STREAK!! pic.twitter.com/qGPNnj1UoY
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) May 4, 2023
Through his first 29 games for Boston, Yoshida is slashing .321/.403/.536 with a 155 wRC+. He has six home runs, 22 runs scored, 24 runs batted in, and two stolen bases. His six home runs rank as the fifth most among all qualified outfielders and his 155 wRC+ ranks as the 9th best among all qualified outfielders.
He currently has a 16-game hitting streak and has a hit in 21 of his first 29 games. This also includes 13 multi-hit games. He has a very advanced approach at the plate as he is currently walking more than striking out (13BB:11K).
While I do acknowledge that this is a very small sample size. All of the advanced metrics only further solidify that his electric start is not a fluke. Most, if not all, rank in the top 10% of the league.
Furthermore, Yoshida is not just another rookie fresh up from his time in the minor leagues. He was also a very successful hitter in the NPB. In his seven seasons in the NPB, he has a career slash line of .327/.421/.539 with 133 HR and more walks than strikeouts.
As it currently stands everyone who didn't select him at the 1.01 in your rookie/supplemental draft is having severe regret right now. Cure that regret by buying Yoshida where ever possible.
Embed from Getty Images
Sell
Patrick Wisdom, 3B, Chicago Cubs
Every time I recommend selling a Chicago Cub player, a little piece of me dies inside. With all jokes aside. As a die-hard Cubs fan it pains me to see one of the team's top contributors being exiled to fantasy irrelevance.
That is exactly what is happening to Patrick Wisdom. Wisdom loves to hit long balls. He currently has 11 HR through his first 32 games played. Which is good enough for a 34% HR/ FB rate. That ranks as the second-best among all qualified hitters and best among all third basemen.
He is also coming off back-to-back 25+ home run seasons. He has a total of 64 long shots since 2021 and that is the 9th most among all third basemen with at least 1,000 plate appearances.
Now for the bad. There are several reasons worth considering when selling Wisdom. First of all, is his approach at the plate. Wisdom has always been a power-over-hit bat profile. He strikeouts a ton, (career 37K%) while he also hits for a low average. He has never had a batting average over .265 and has a career .219 batting average.
That's fine he must get on base at a high rate, right? Wrong. Wisdom has a career of .304 on-base percentage, has never had an on-base rate higher than .365, and has even seen an OBP below .300 in several seasons.
Wisdom suffers severely against breaking-ball pitches. So far in 2023, he has a 42% whiff rate and a 31% put-away rate when facing breaking pitches.
Furthermore, the Cubs are starting to transition to a younger lineup and are getting their younger players such as Matt Mervis and Christopher Morel more at-bats, which likely means Wisdom will be pushed to a platoon or bench bat and limit his production. I would be looking to sell Patrick Wisdom where ever possible.
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