Fantasy Baseball Sell High Trade Candidates: Ryan McMahon, Seth Lugo, Jon Gray and More

After covering some buy low fantasy baseball candidates yesterday, it’s time to discuss some sell high options.

We covered some sell high options back in the fifth week of the fantasy season, and we’ll avoid any players who appeared in that story.

Explore the best in-season tool to manage lineup/start decisions including waiver pickups, projections, trade suggestions, trade value charts, rest of season rankings, power rankings, and tons more with Fantasy Assistant. Use our fantasy baseball trade analyzer and trade value charts to break down trade scenarios and weekly projections to find the best fantasy options.

Hitters to Sell High

Jeremy Pena Fantasy Outlook

Pena is a bit of a throwback player. He has a great average and doesn’t strike out much, but doesn’t provide a ton of power.

In 44 games this season, Pena is one of the league’s top hitters with his .327 average. He’s getting on base at a .367 clip. In his first two MLB seasons, Pena had a .259 average and .307 OBP.

Pena has 55 total hits, 11 of which are extra-base hits. At four home runs, he’s on pace to top his home run total of 10 from last season, but fall quite a bit short of the 22 homers he hit in 2022. Pena also has 17 RBIs, 27 runs scored, six steals, seven walks and 25 strikeouts this season.

Overall, Pena has been about as good as a fantasy owner could have expected. However, looking at his current average and the marks he posted the past two seasons, I’m having a hard time believing he can keep up the torrid pace at the plate, so that makes him a sell high option for me. See if you can add a bigger power threat - a player who has a much lower average, but can make up that figure with some homers and RBIs.

Jurickson Profar Fantasy Outlook

Profar isn’t even inside the top-400 players on the FantasySP Average Draft Position page. He went from undrafted to owned in just about every league, and he’s played well enough where you should be able to pretty easily trade him (despite him being added off waivers earlier in the season). That’s not something that happens all that often.

Profar has a .322 average and .412 OBP across 46 games played this season. He’s collected 15 extra-base hits (seven homers) among his 49 total hits. Profar has 29 RBIs, 24 runs scored, three stolen bases, 23 walks and 25 strikeouts.

He played well in 14 games with the Padres last season, but in a true full season, Profar’s best average was .254. Regression is coming at some point, even if he easily is able to top his career mark (which I expect him to do).

Because Profar was likely a waiver wire addition early in the season, you likely aren’t going to get a massive return in a trade involving him, but at the same time, you might be able to net yourself an everyday fantasy starter (or two). 

This is a move I’d be more comfortable making if my fantasy team was solid already and could replace Profar even without a player coming back. Maybe Profar can land you a much-needed pitcher, or a position player at a spot you are currently lacking at. I’m not sure Profar’s trade value will be any higher than it is now, so dangle his name out there and see what kind of offers come in.

Ryan McMahon Fantasy Outlook

It pains me to put McMahon on this list because he was a player I really liked coming into the season, but his current numbers just don’t seem sustainable.

In 43 games, McMahon has a .304 average and .384 OBP. He’s got 15 extra-base hits (six homers) among his 49 total hits. McMahon has 22 RBIs, 19 runs, 22 walks and 52 strikeouts.

Those are pretty solid all-around numbers, but nowhere near his career averages. McMahon has a career .247 average and .327 OBP, so I expect some regression here soon.

McMahon was drafted around pick 240, and was another big-time waiver wire pickup early in the season. He’s got more value in deeper leagues, but there’s a bunch of fantasy owners out there that could use his hitting, and that high average is going to appeal to anyone. 

At least toss his name out there and see what kind of offers trickle in. Like in the case with Profar, McMahon might be able to net you a batter at a position of need, or maybe a reliable starting pitcher. If you don’t like the offers that come in, just ride with McMahon for as long as you can.

Pitchers to Sell High

Seth Lugo Fantasy Outlook

Lugo is enjoying a career season so far with Kansas City.

Across nine starts, Lugo is 6-1 with a 1.66 earned run average. He’s struck out 48 batters over 59 2/3 innings. 

Compared to last year, Lugo’s strikeout per nine inning mark is down 1.4, so there’s actually a little room for improvement in that department. But, his ERA is way better than the 3.57 mark he posted last year with the Padres. He’s got a career 3.34 ERA, and I expect his ERA to drop considerably as the season rolls along.

Still, Lugo’s numbers now are very hard to ignore, and he’s coming off arguably his best start of the year. That means his trade value is as high as it’s been all season, and he might be able to help you add some really good fantasy pieces.

Lugo also went around pick 240 in fantasy drafts, but being a pitcher, he should be more valuable than McMahon right now. If you need more pitching, see if you can get two arms for Lugo. He could also probably net you an everyday starter at a non-pitching position. 

Again, if you don’t like the return, simply keep Lugo and hope that he can at least be an average starting option every time he’s on the hill.

Jon Gray Fantasy Outlook

Gray went around pick 200 in fantasy drafts, but is performing more like a top-50 pick.

In 10 games pitched (nine starts), Gray has a 2-1 record and 2.08 ERA. He’s struck out 52 batters in 52 innings. Gray has a career 4.35 ERA and a 4.05 ERA in his first two full seasons in Texas.

Gray won’t pitch quite as well as he has so far this season, but like in the case with any pitcher sporting this good an ERA, fantasy owners are willing to make deals for them. Along with an average or below average ERA in his career, durability has been a theme of Gray’s career, so that’s another reason why I want to sell high.

He should net you a decent pitcher or two in return, or maybe a couple batters if you’d rather go that route. Unlike some of these other players we’ve discussed, Gray is a player I’d prioritize moving - I just don’t trust him the same way I do the other players.

Yusei Kikuchi Fantasy Outlook

The final player I’d like to discuss is Toronto’s Kikuchi. He was drafted around pick 190.

In his nine starts so far, Kikuchi is 2-3, but with a 2.60 ERA. He’s struck out 55 batters over 52 innings. 

Kikuchi has a career ERA of 4.55 in six seasons. He had a 3.86 ERA last season, so while he might not drop to his career mark, regression is likely coming soon for the Blue Jays’ starter.

While most fantasy owners expect some falloff with Kikuchi, you still should be able to trade him away for a decent return. He won’t get the return that Lugo or even Gray get, but you can probably still get a startable SP or everyday starting hitter.