At this point, you can't even complain about bad luck with injuries to your Fantasy Baseball roster, because chances are, every single team in your league is dealing with so many injuries. It's been nonstop, and what makes it worse is that it seems like hitters are bearing the brunt of it so far -- and they're supposed to be the safe ones.
We're hoping Mike Trout can avoid being the latest to land on the IL after he left Monday's game with a calf injury suffered while running the bases. As of Monday night, he's being evaluated and the Angels hope to have an update on his status Tuesday, but it wouldn't be a surprise if he did end up having to go on the IL. That's just how this season has gone, and he would join, among others: Ketel Marte, Luis Robert, Eloy Jimenez, Joey Votto, Corey Seager, Cody Bellinger, Starling Marte, Christian Yelich, Byron Buxton, Giancarlo Stanton, Michael Conforto, Jeff McNeil, Ke'Bryan Hayes, George Springer and Carson Kelly. And that's not the full list.
Finding success in this landscape has been about having the good fortune to avoid the major injuries, but it's also about managing your roster well enough to overcome them when they do hit. Hopefully Trout avoids a lengthy absence, but if he is forced to miss time, that's just one more hole to fill. Here are some of the top waiver-wire targets to consider if you do need help.
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I wouldn't put Adell or Brandon Marsh at the top of your list for potential waiver-wire adds just yet, but you shouldn't definitely keep both names at the front of your mind in the coming days. The Angels already seemed an outfielder short before Trout's injury -- Taylor Ward is probably not a starting-caliber player -- and if Trout has to miss more than, say, a week, they have to consider calling up one of the their two top outfield prospects in Triple-A. My guess is Adell would be first in line, given that he has more experience at the higher levels, including a (admittedly not-great) stint in the majors last season. Adell is the potential five-category star, but he's striking out 42% of the time in his first 11 games this season, so they might not want to call him up until he heats up. Marsh has plenty of believers, but his minor-league track record isn't quite as appealing -- especially the 22 homers in 271 games. There are some scouts who see latent power there, but he wouldn't be quite as much of a priority as Adell, who has hit .294 with a per-150-game-pace of 25 homers and 21 steals. Keep an eye on this one.
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The Mets did call up Khalil Lee after Conforto and McNeil were placed on the IL Monday, and though he didn't start Monday, he did get into the game after Kevin Pillar left following a hit-by-pitch. Lee is incredibly toolsy, but hasn't figured out how to put those tools into play at the plate. He hit .260/.357/.369 in 158 games at Double-A with 10 homers, and if he can just be passable as a hitter, he might just be a must-add option in category-based leagues, because Khalil can fly. He struggled with his base-stealing efficiency early on but swiped 53 bases at an 81.5% success rate in 2019. There's 30-plus steal potential here if the bat plays, and Lee should get something close to everyday at-bats for at least the next few weeks. He's worth adding in any Roto league deeper than 14 teams right now.
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Since being moved to the bullpen full time in early May, Fulmer has appeared in six games, throwing eight innings without allowing an earned run while striking out eight and walking just one. And, more importantly, he's been used in plenty of high-leverage situations, including picking up his third save Monday against the Mariners. Gregory Soto worked the eighth in this one after Fulmer bailed him out for his previous save. Fulmer also got the win in his previous outing, coming in for the top of the ninth in a tie game, so he's sure being used like a closer lately. The Tigers won't have a ton of opportunities, but if Fulmer is the closer, he'll be worth adding in all category-based leagues where saves matter.
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Though Rogers is the priority if you need a closer in the short term, as he picked up his fifth save Monday. It was his second in as many days and third in the past five games for the Giants, who have backed away from Jake McGee of late. Rogers won't get many strikeouts, but he's got a 2.34 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 69.1 innings so far in his three seasons, and the Giants have generated a ton of save opportunities, so if he's Gabe Kapler's primary guy, he could be an excellent source of saves.
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I'm not sure why Calhoun's roster rate remains so low, but if you're worried he might not be worth using in those shallower three-outfield leagues, he's pretty close to a top-30 outfielder for myself, Scott White and Frank Stampfl in our rankings. He hit his fifth homer Monday, this one off Gerrit Cole. It pushed his season line to .287/.350/.479 and he's played at a 30-homer pace since the start of 2018 now. At the top of the Rangers lineup, Calhoun could be a legitimate four-category contributor moving forward.
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