Whether you're in need of an injury fill-in or just a hot-hand play, Scott White has you covered with 10 sleeper hitters for the upcoming scoring period, all rostered in less than 80 percent of CBS Sports leagues. They're not must-starts by any estimation, but they're often the best you'll find off the waiver wire.
All information is up to date as of late Sunday.
Sleeper hitters for Week 23 (Aug. 24-30)
Zack Gelof 3B ATH Athletics • #20 • Age: 26 Matchups MIN3, BAL3 Rostered 77% A couple of IL stints have undermined Zack Gelof's breakout season, but he hasn't been fazed for the most part, hitting three home runs in his first six games back from his latest stint earlier this month. A road trip has slowed him down more recently, but the Athletics are headed back home in Week 23, where Gelof is batting .311 with a .945 OPS. They also happen to have the third-best hitter schedule.
Trent Grisham CF NYY N.Y. Yankees • #12 • Age: 29 Matchups HOU3, BOS4 Rostered 71% Trent Grisham's actual stats have lagged behind his expected ones all season, but he's finally begun to close the gap, batting .300 (15 for 50) with six homers in his past 13 games. He's been great at home all year, batting .267 with a .924 OPS, and that's where the Yankees play all seven of their games this week while boasting the fifth-best hitter schedule.
George Lombard Jr. SS NYY N.Y. Yankees • #96 • Age: 21 Matchups HOU3, BOS4 Rostered 71% What makes the Yankees' schedule this week so favorable for hitters? Well, some of the pitchers on it include Ethan Pecko, Hayden Wesneski, Patrick Sandoval and whatever the Red Sox dig up for their doubleheader Saturday. Recent call-up George Lombard is off to a strong start, showing premium on-base skills with a touch of power and speed.
Nolan Arenado 3B ARI Arizona • #28 • Age: 35 Matchups CHC3, @SF4 Rostered 70% Nolan Arenado was originally on this list for Week 22 as well but ended up being removed because of an intercostal injury. He's avoided the IL, though, collecting multiple hits in his return to the lineup Wednesday, and has 12 homers with an .882 OPS in his past 39 games. The Diamondbacks would probably have the sixth-best hitter schedule for this week if I were to rank that far, with their four-game series against the Giants being particularly inviting.
Bryce Eldridge DH SF San Francisco • #8 • Age: 21 Matchups CIN3, ARI4 Rostered 62% Speaking of the Giants, their young slugger Bryce Eldridge continues to make high-quality contact and has begun to see some results again with three homers in his past 11 games. Hopefully, that's a good omen entering a week in which they have the fourth-best hitter schedule, with their four-game slate against the Diamondbacks being especially favorable.
Henry Bolte CF ATH Athletics • #33 • Age: 23 Matchups MIN3, BAL3 Rostered 36% Strikeouts and ground balls have held Henry Bolte back as a rookie, but he's enjoying his finest month by far, batting .325 (27 for 83) with three homers and two steals in August. Like most Athletics hitters, he fares much better at home, batting .313 with an .801 OPS there, and that's where they're scheduled to play all six of their games this week.
Lawrence Butler RF ATH Athletics • #4 • Age: 26 Matchups MIN3, BAL3 Rostered 60% Likewise, Lawrence Butler has a batting average 50 points higher and an OPS 230 points higher at home than on the road, but lately, it hasn't mattered where he's playing. He's batting .289 (26 for 90) with six homers and three steals in his past 25 games. In addition to all the home games, the Athletics have the third-best hitter schedule this week.
Abimelec Ortiz 1B WAS Washington • #81 • Age: 24 Matchups COL4, MIA3 Rostered 42% Abimelec Ortiz didn't do much with his righty-heavy slate in Week 22, but fortunately, he has another in Week 23 with only one lefty on the schedule. The platoon concern is the biggest one for a rookie who has already shown he can throttle the ball, and I expect him to get back to throttling it with this week's No. 1 hitter slate.
Christian Encarnacion-Strand 3B BAL Baltimore • #32 • Age: 26 Matchups @STL3, @ATH3 Rostered 21% After some fits and starts, Christian Encarnacion-Strand is back to playing virtually every day for the Orioles and is producing enough to take advantage of the second-best hitter schedule. Having four lefties on it doesn't hurt, seeing as he's batting .286 with a 1.016 OPS against lefties.
Coby Mayo 3B BAL Baltimore • #16 • Age: 24 Matchups @STL3, @ATH3 Rostered 18% Coby Mayo should likewise benefit from all the lefties on the schedule this week, given that he's batting .306 with a 1.105 OPS against them, with 13 of his 17 home runs. The one hesitation is that he and Encarnacion-Strand tend to cannibalize each other's at-bats, and the recent return of Samuel Basallo from the IL has complicated that picture further by taking some DH at-bats away. Presumably, though, Basallo will spend most of his time at catcher this week. Best hitter matchups for Week 23
1. Nationals COL4, MIA3 2. Orioles @STL3, @ATH3 3. Athletics MIN3, BAL3 4. Giants CIN3, ARI4 5. Yankees HOU3, BOS4
Worst hitter matchups for Week 23
1. Angels CLE3, PHI3 2. Tigers TB3, LAD3 3. Rangers @CHW3, @MIL3 4. Mariners PHI3, @TOR3 5. Padres PIT3, @TB3
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