Fantasy Baseball Buy Low Trade Candidates: Francisco Lindor, Ha-Seong Kim, Chris Bassitt and More

A few weeks back, I discussed some buy low and sell high fantasy baseball trade candidates. It was pretty well received, so we're back with another installment in week eight of the season.

We’ll cover some buy low hitters and pitchers in this story and then talk about some sell high candidates tomorrow. I’ll purposefully stay away from any buy low players I discussed a couple weeks back.

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Hitters to Buy Low

Jorge Polanco Fantasy Outlook

Let’s discuss Polanco first. He was drafted around pick 240 on average, so this is more aimed at fantasy owners in deeper leagues.

In 41 games, Polanco has a .192 average and .298 OBP. He’s posted seven extra-base hits (including five home runs) among his 28 total hits. Polanco has 13 RBIs, 15 runs scored, one stolen base, 21 walks and 53 strikeouts this season.

Polanco is a career .266 hitter and has a career .333 OBP. He’s 30 years old, but instead of entering his best seasons yet, his production has fallen way off. That could be related to this being his first season in Seattle after spending 10 years in Minnesota. Whatever the case is, Polanco is only owned in about 24% of leagues.

It’s highly unlikely that he’s going to hit this poorly all season, and while he isn’t the type of player that can carry a fantasy team, he’s one that can be a serviceable starter and provide you with a decent amount of value. 

Acquire him now and stash him on your bench if you aren’t comfortable starting him. He shouldn’t cost much in a trade, and fantasy owners are probably ready to bail on him.

Corbin Carroll Fantasy Outlook

I really wanted to hold off on having Carroll in this story, but he continues to struggle, so it’s time to include him here.

He’s got a .193 average and .284 OBP across 42 games this season. Carroll has just six extra-base hits (two homers) among his 31 total hits. He’s also got 14 RBIs, 18 runs scored, eight steals, 19 walks and 31 strikeouts.

Every time I write about Carroll, I’m encouraged by his strikeout number. He’s not striking out a ton, and that tells me he’s putting the ball in play at least. In time, the 23-year-old will get things going at the plate. He’d have to get extremely hot for several months to reach last year’s numbers, but even the thought of getting several weeks of that elite fantasy production should be enough for a fantasy owner to take a gamble on him.

I still think Carroll would cost a decent amount in a trade, but fantasy owners are far more likely to make a move now than if you’d asked them at the start of the season. I like trading for Carroll a touch more if my roster was in good shape and could still survive after losing a couple players. See if you can package a pair of primarily fantasy bench options of yours for Carroll and reap the rewards later in the season.

Francisco Lindor Fantasy Outlook

Lindor was a top-40 pick on average in fantasy drafts this season. He’s struggled most of the season.

In 42 games, Lindor has a .200 average and .276 OBP. He’s got 15 extra-base hits (seven homers), 21 RBIs and 24 runs scored. Lindor also has six stolen bases, 15 walks and 27 strikeouts to his name.

Lindor is a career. 272 hitter and has a career .339 OBP. He’s regressed in recent seasons, but not even close to the numbers he’s currently putting up.

Even if he can get back to around a .250 average, you’ll be in solid shape. He’s on pace for a good amount of homers, runs and RBIs, and an uptick in average should also increase that pace.

Take a gamble on Lindor. He won’t be free in a trade, but he also won’t cost an arm and a leg. He’s playable now still because of the homer numbers, and once he heats up at the plate, Lindor could help guide your fantasy team to greatness.

Ha-Seong Kim Fantasy Outlook

A ton of fantasy owners were high on Kim coming into the season. He was drafted around pick 100.

Kim had been pretty consistent over the past two seasons, but has really seen his numbers plummet this season. In 46 games, Kim has a .204 average and .324 OBP - over the previous two seasons, Kim had a .256 average and .338 OBP. 

You can see that his OBP is not far off that pace, so if he can bump his average even to his career mark of .241, Kim would be a great fantasy option. He’s got 11 extra-base hits (five homers) among his 32 total hits, drove in 21 runs, scored 22 runs, stole eight bases, walked 26 times and struck out on 33 occasions.

You can probably see that these aren’t that bad of numbers, but the average is deceiving to fantasy owners. You can probably acquire Kim for a reasonable price, and once he gets going at the plate, he’ll be an everyday starter and really strong fantasy option.

Pitchers to Buy Low

Chris Bassitt Fantasy Outlook

Let’s now dive into some pitchers, starting with Bassitt. The 35-year-old Toronto pitcher was drafted around pick 90 this season.

Bassitt is just 3-5 this season, with a rough 5.06 earned run average. He’s struck out 40 batters over 42 2/3 innings, while walking 20 already. Last season, Bassitt was averaging the same amount of strikeouts per nine innings, but 1.5 fewer walks per nine.

He’s regressed a bit in his ERA over the past several years, but nobody expected it to jump this high. He’s had some better starts of late, but his inconsistency should help you acquire him for much less than his value at the start of the season.

See if you can come up with a decent offer and try acquiring one of the best fantasy pitchers from a season ago. It might be a move that puts you over the top at the end of the season.

Pablo Lopez Fantasy Outlook

Lopez was a top-30 pick, which explains why he’s in this story despite not too ugly numbers so far.

Lopez is 4-3 with a 3.93 ERA so far this season. He’s struck out 58 batters over 50 1/3 innings. Lopez has seen his strikeouts per nine number drop from 10.9 to 10.4 from a season ago, while his ERA is nearly 0.30 higher so far.

Lopez is about on line with his career ERA, so while improvement in that department might not come, that’s not where the value lies. We’re talking about a top-30 fantasy pick, and a pitcher that will finish with more strikeouts than innings pitched. 

The whole point of buying low is to try and capitalize on a slow start from a player, and while it’s not super noticeable with Lopez, I think you’d be able to get him for less value than a top-30 pick. See if you can drum up an offer including a pitcher of yours that has gotten off to a hot start, but doesn’t have nearly the track record that Lopez has.

Nestor Cortes Fantasy Outlook

Cortes is another pitcher that doesn’t have terrible numbers, but certainly has produced better in his career. Cortes went around pick 200 in fantasy drafts this season.

In nine starts so far, Cortes is 1-4 with a 4.02 ERA. He’s struck out 51 batters in 53 2/3 innings, while walking only 11. 

Cortes was great in 2021 and 2022 before a rough go of things in 2023. His career ERA of 3.84 isn’t much lower than his current mark, but the combined 2.61 mark from the 2021-22 seasons should still be in the minds of fantasy owners. Cortes is walking less batters than in any point in his career, and while his strikeout numbers are solid, there’s also room for improvement based on his career marks.

There’s probably not a ton of value to be gained in a trade for Cortes, but even the thought of him potentially being able to regain a little of that form from a couple seasons ago is enough for me to take a chance on him. At the very least, you have a starter that eats a good amount of innings and strikes out plenty of batters every five days.