Top fantasy baseball takeaways from Week 2 (July 27th - August 2nd)

Welcome back, baseball! And welcome to the Roto Recap. For long-time readers, this is the new version of the Roto Report! I'm very excited to be doing this weekly now with a focus on the best-of-the-best and the worst-of-the-worst. I'll also throw in some advice on what to do with these breakouts and slumps. Let's take a look at the highlights from week 2 of the 2020 season.

Hitters

Dansby Swanson - .346, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 6 R, 3 SB

Swanson (80% owned) continues his hot start. The Braves shortstop has been the top player in fantasy so far. He needs to be owned and started everywhere.

Teoscar Hernandez - .375, 4 HR, 5 RBI, 5 R, 1 SB

Hernandez (53% owned) is getting scooped up everywhere after crushing four homers this past week. The concern is, he only had six hits total. Hernandez is a streaky bat, but has a ton of power upside. Add him while he's hot, but don't be surprised when the cold streak comes.

Here’s a quick look at the standouts from the weekend to scoop up off the waiver wire:

Colin Moran - .227, 4 HR, 6 RBI, 5 R

Trent Grisham - .250, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 8 R, 2 SB

Mike Yastrzemski - .381, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 9 R, 1 SB

Donovan Solano - .571, 1 HR, 10 RBI, 4 R

J.P. Crawford - .333, 4 RBI, 9 R, 2 SB

Moran (52% owned) has had a heck of start to 2020. Like Hernandez though, Moran’s home run rate is unsustainable. Moran hit four homers over the past seven days—on just five total hits. He plays in a pitcher’s park and the track record is not working in his favor.

Grisham (55% owned) is a preseason favorite of mine and needs to be higher owned. He has prospect pedigree and a much higher ceiling compared to the other hot starters like Hernandez and Moran.

Yastrzemski (70% owned) and Solano (44% owned) had huge weeks, helping the Giants score runs aplenty. They get to travel to Coors Field this week. I'm all in on that.

Crawford is hitting leadoff for the Mariners now and is getting some steals and runs for it. The former top-five prospect has had a tough time breaking out in the bigs. The skills are there, though. He has a great K/BB ratio throughout the minors. If this translates, he should be a big contributor in runs scored.

Pitchers

Tyler Chatwood - 6.2 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 11 K, Win

Another week, another Cubs pitcher taking home best-of-the-week honors. Chatwood (60% owned) took his first start of 2020 (6 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 8 K) and did even better in start two. The upside for Chatwood has always been there, but his control was always off. After a 19 K to 4 BB start, it looks like he's finally figured it out. He gets the Royals this week. Own and start him everywhere you can.

Zach Plesac - 8 IP, 0 ER, 3 H, 11 K

Aaron Civale (1-1) - 12 IP, 5 ER, 12 H, 1 BB 18 K

Plesac (66% owned) and Civale (60% owned) are hot adds after great Week 2 stat-lines. Cleveland is a great place for pitchers, especially given the weak matchups they face in the AL and NL Central. I did not see this much strikeout upside with this pair, but the same can be said for the likes of Shane Bieber and Mike Clevinger before they broke out.

Luke Weaver (0-2) - 7.1 IP, 12 ER, 14 H, 5 BB, 11 K

Weaver (59% owned) has been dreadful over his first two starts in 2020. After showing promise in 2019, Weaver was a solid sleeper SP in drafts. Now, he might not be worth a roster spot. He takes on the Padres this Friday. I'm benching him for now, but I'd drop him in shallow leagues.