Fantasy Baseball Week 18 Drops: Ozzie Albies, Rece Hinds, Ben Rice and Evan Phillips

Discussing some of the most-dropped fantasy players in the 18th week of the MLB season.

After looking at some of the most-added fantasy baseball players on Monday, it’s time to go over some drop candidates.

We’ll focus mostly on hitters, although a reliever makes our story today. These players are all taken from the most dropped section of the waiver trends tab, which can be found on any MLB page on FantasySP.

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Ozzie Albies Fantasy Outlook

Albies is a big-time name in the MLB and in fantasy baseball, but after recently getting injured, it makes sense that he’s here. He’s seen his own percentage drop from about 100% to 89% now.

Albies suffered a left wrist fracture and is expected to miss at least eight weeks. That puts him on track to return sometime in mid-September.

Albies has appeared in 90 games so far this season. He has a .258 average and .310 on-base percentage. Albies also has 28 doubles, one triple and eight home runs among his 93 total hits, along with 46 RBIs, 47 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 24 walks and 61 strikeouts.

It’s been a bit of a down season for Albies, and the injury isn’t going to help matters. Depending how your league’s playoffs are structured, Albies might not be back before your team’s fantasy season comes to a close.

So when looking at Albies and considering whether or not to drop him, you need to take your overall fantasy team into consideration. If your fantasy team is sitting good and can compete for the title without Albies playing the next couple months, then you could stash him on the end of your bench and potentially get him back in the semifinal or championship round.

If your fantasy team is a middling one, you’ll likely need Albies’ roster spot to chase a playoff spot. He’s a big enough fantasy name that I think several fantasy owners would trade for him and then stash him, so I’d put him on the trade block before outright dropping him. If no trade offers come around, then drop Albies and try to find yourself some immediate help, probably at second base.

Nacho Alvarez Jr. was the player called up to replace Albies on the active roster. He was part of the waiver wire story on Monday and batted second in his MLB debut. Alvarez is a player to keep an eye on, especially if he sticks in the top half of the lineup. 

Rece Hinds Fantasy Outlook

Hinds has been one of the hotter hitters in the MLB of late, but a couple down games have fantasy owners bailing on him already. He got up to nearly 75% owned, but is back down to 67% now.

In nine MLB games so far, Hinds has 12 hits, including five home runs, four doubles and a triple. He’s got 11 RBIs, seven runs scored, two stolen bases, one walk and 10 strikeouts.

In his past three games, Hinds has just one hit (a double). He’s got no RBIs or runs scored, no walks and three strikeouts.

Hinds wasn’t going to remain scorching hot all season, but at the same time, I think it’s a touch premature to be dropping him. He was fantastic to start his MLB career, and now MLB pitchers have adjusted to him a bit. It’s now Hinds’ turn to adjust things, and depending on if he can or not, that’s how I’d approach him as a fantasy player.

With the pop he showed in his first few MLB games, I’m giving Hinds at least the rest of the week before moving on from him. He was one of the league’s top hitters for a short stretch, and I’m not going to bail on a player with that potential after just a couple down games.

Give him the rest of the week, or at least through Friday to see if he can get things going again. If he’s still struggling at that point, then you can move on from Hinds, but I’m not ready to make that call just yet.

Ben Rice Fantasy Outlook

Rice was another popular fantasy hitter over the past few weeks. He’s cooled off at the plate, and his own percentage has gone from nearly 75% to 69% now.

Rice has about a month’s worth of MLB games under his belt now. In 28 contests, Rice has a .200 average and .297 OBP. He has six homers and four doubles among his 19 total hits, along with 19 RBIs, 12 runs scored, 14 walks and 30 strikeouts.

Rice hasn’t homered in his past four games, and has just one hit (a double) in that span. He’s failed to drive in a run, scored twice, walked on three occasions and struck out nine times over that short timeframe.

Almost all of Rice’s fantasy value comes from his power. If he isn’t homering or driving in runs, he’s not a great fantasy asset because he has a low average and a good amount of strikeouts.

While Rice isn’t the greatest fantasy asset now, there’s a pretty decent chance that he gets hot again this season, so he’s a player to keep an eye on if you want to drop him now.

I’m most comfortable dropping Rice in standard leagues, but holding him in deep leagues or dynasties. When he’s hot at the plate, get him into your starting lineup. When he’s cold, like he is now, simply stash him on your bench. A hitter who is in the lineup everyday and has some power like Rice is simply too valuable to drop in deeper leagues.

Evan Phillips Fantasy Outlook

We don’t usually cover fantasy relievers in drop articles, but Phillips is a big enough name to go over.

The Dodgers’ closer at the start of the season has since lost that role. He’s struggled to shut down opponents of late and isn’t always being given closing opportunities. His own percentage has dropped to 86 after being above 90 most of the season.

In 33 appearances overall this season, Phillips has a 2-0 record and 3.77 earned run average. He has 14 saves and 34 strikeouts over 31 innings pitched.

Phillips has a career 3.44 ERA and has been at 2.05 or lower in his past two seasons with the Dodgers, so this season is certainly a step back for him. Of his 33 appearances, only 22 times has he finished a game, meaning he isn’t always serving as the closer, or even pitching in high-leverage situations.

Since his last outing in June, Phillips has a 11.05 ERA across 7 1/3 innings pitched and eight appearances. He’s allowed 10 runs (nine earned) on 12 hits and three walks, while striking out eight. Phillips has allowed four home runs over that span.

Those are not great numbers for any reliever, and you definitely should not trust him as a fantasy option right now. He’s allowed runs in six of his last eight outings, and has lost the closer role to Daniel Hudson now.

There’s a chance Phillips never gets the closer role back, and I’d say he needs to be dropped in most standard leagues right now. You could stash him on your bench in a deeper format, but if he isn’t closing games, that’s kind of a wasted roster spot. 

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