MLB Spring Training 2024 is wrapping up and MLB injury news has piled up. Lucas Giolito underwent elbow surgery, Justin Verlander (shoulder) is beginning the season on the injured list and Gerrit Cole (elbow) is out at least two months. With just a few days remaining until 2024 MLB Opening Day on March 28, managers everywhere are trying to keep an eye out for players with questionable injury histories. Having missed 249 games over the last three seasons, Angels outfielder Mike Trout certainly qualifies despite the fact that he’s still one of the best in baseball when healthy.
Trout will also have to deal with no longer getting protection from Shohei Ohtani in the lineup after Ohtani signed a $700 million contract to join the Dodgers this offseason. With a reliable set of 2024 Fantasy baseball rankings you can figure out exactly how to handle Trout and who some of the other potential 2024 Fantasy baseball busts might be. Before finalizing your 2024 Fantasy baseball draft prep, be sure to see the 2024 Fantasy baseball rankings and cheat sheets from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
Last season, SportsLine’s Projection Model identified several top Fantasy baseball sleepers, breakouts and busts, including Blue Jays outfielder Daulton Varsho.
Varsho set new career highs in doubles (23), triples (3), home runs (27), RBI (74) and stolen bases (16) in 2022 and Fantasy baseball managers were predicting he’d take another step forward in 2023, drafting him 73rd overall on average. However, the model saw some holes in his game and predicted him as a 2023 Fantasy baseball bust who wouldn’t live up to his Fantasy baseball ADP.
The result: Varsho’s OPS dropped from .745 to .674 and he also saw drops in home runs (20) and RBI (61), while failing to take advantage of the new baserunning rules (16 steals again). Anybody who followed the model’s advice and avoided Varsho in their Fantasy baseball drafts avoided a major headache.
The SportsLine model is engineered by the same people who powered projections for all three major Fantasy sites. And that same group is sharing its 2024 Fantasy baseball rankings and cheat sheets over at SportsLine, helping you find Fantasy baseball sleepers, breakouts and busts long before your competition. Their cheat sheets, available for leagues on many major sites, are updated multiple times every day.
Any time more MLB news comes out about MLB free agency signings or Fantasy baseball injuries, the team at SportsLine updates its projections. Go to SportsLine now to see these proven Fantasy baseball cheat sheets.
Top 2024 Fantasy baseball busts
One of the Fantasy baseball busts 2024 the model is fading: Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz. The 22-year-old has been one of the most high-profile prospects in baseball over the last few seasons and made his debut on June 6 last season. Less than a month before his debut, the shortstop hit three balls with an exit velocity of over 116 mph in the same game in the minor leagues, highlighted by a 118.8 mph double. The legend of De La Cruz only grew from there before reaching Cincinnati.
He has a rare combination of size and speed. The 6-foot-5 infielder stole 35 bases and added 13 home runs over 98 games as a rookie. There’s a lot to be excited about, but the hype has raised his ADP to a near-irresponsible level. De La Cruz is going ahead of established shortstops such as Xander Bogaerts, J.P Crawford and Dansby Swanson in 2024 Fantasy baseball drafts. Those three veterans all had a higher OPS than De La Cruz last season and the model suggests avoiding getting swept up in the hype of the exciting young shortstop in 2024 Fantasy baseball drafts.
Another of the 2024 Fantasy baseball busts the model projects won’t live up to their ADP: Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman. The AL Rookie of the Year runner-up in 2022, Rutschman made his first AL all-star team in 2023 and earned Silver Slugger honors after slashing .277/.374/.435 with 20 home runs and 80 RBI last season. He’s one of the game’s brightest young stars and the Orioles are trying to get the most out of his elite plate approach by using him as a designated hitter on his catching off days.
However, Rutschman’s offensive upside is limited by the cavernous confines of Camden Yards, which made significant dimension changes in 2022. There has only been one player to reach 30 home runs since and the model ranks Rutschman behind catchers like Salvador Perez and Sean Murphy who are being drafted at least eight rounds later on average. See more busts at SportsLine.
How to find proven 2024 Fantasy baseball rankings
SportsLine’s model is also fading a surprising starting pitcher who is coming off the board in the third round on average in early 2024 Fantasy baseball drafts. The model is predicting this ace suffers a setback and finishes outside the top 15 at his position. Avoiding him until later on could be the difference between winning your league or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.
So which 2024 Fantasy baseball busts should you avoid in your upcoming drafts? Visit SportsLine now to get 2024 Fantasy baseball rankings for every single position, all from the model that predicted Daulton Varsho’s falloff in 2023, and find out.
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