Fantasy: 3 players to target in a trade
Every Tuesday, we examine three players you should consider targeting by trade in your fantasy league. Analysis based on standard 10-team, 5x5 formats.
With the MLB's trade deadline coming on Friday, contending teams are making their moves to bolster their rosters for a playoff run while struggling teams are selling their roster players and hoarding prospects to gear up for the future.
Fantasy owners are under the same pressure with the second half of the baseball season underway. Here are three players to target with the dog days of summer ahead:
Cameron Maybin, OF, Atlanta Braves
A player most coveted for his speed in the past, Maybin has revitalized his career with his best major-league season at the plate with a slash line of .280/.344/.396.
The 28-year-old only played 109 games combined the last two seasons due to injury troubles as a member of the San Diego Padres. The Braves acquired the outfielder in the trade that sent Melvin Upton Jr. and Craig Kimbrel to San Diego.
Maybin is still a threat to steal bases with 17 so far this season, on pace to finish between his 2012 (26) and 2013 (40) campaigns. The Braves are unlikely to move the outfielder at the deadline meaning he should get ample opportunity to keep up his career numbers in the batter's box.
Chris Heston, SP, San Francisco Giants
On June 9, Heston became the 22nd rookie to pitch a no-hitter since 1900 and has proved his performance against the New York Mets was no fluke since that date, sporting a 5-1 record.
Despite his success, the Giants pitcher is still owned in under 70 percent of Yahoo leagues despite allowing less than four earned runs over his last nine starts.
His 3.14 ERA is solid but, if you take his two starts at Coors Field out of the equation (he allowed 12 earned runs combined in those starts), it would sit at an impressive 2.50. The right-hander likely wouldn't come cheap but there's no reason to believe his performance will dip in the second half.
Edwin Encarnacion, 1B, Toronto Blue Jays
Putting up his worst batting line since 2009 (.234/.333/.451), Encarnacion is still on pace for 30 home runs and will have a chance to knock in a lot more runs down the stretch.
Already the highest-scoring offense in baseball, the Blue Jays added to the arsenal Tuesday trading for Troy Tulowitzki of the Colorado Rockies. With another potential big bat to put in front of him, an Encarnacion hot streak in the second half will make him a must-have for fantasy teams.
He is slumping of late with only one home run and a single multi-hit game in his last 10 games which could make it the perfect time to buy low on the first baseman, as a turnaround seems inevitable for the two-time All-Star.