Michael Busch DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch had a big day at the dish on Saturday, going 4-for-6 with a homer, four runs scored, and three RBI. The Cubs demolished the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday afternoon, and Busch played a big part in that. The 27-year-old sophomore is off to a nice start this season, hitting .300 with a .926 OPS. If he can continue to build on last year, Busch should be a decent fantasy option in all formats. His only issue right now is that he isn't quite playing every day, but with more games like Saturday's that should figure itself out quickly.

Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch connected on his first home run of the season on Monday night against the Athletics. He finished 3-for-6 with two runs scored, a hit-by-pitch, and four RBI. The Cubs cleanup hitter got the 18-run onslaught started early with a two-run blast to right-center in the first inning off of Joey Estes. The 27-year-old has been locked in as the Cubs' cleanup hitter in the early going this season and has gone 7-for-24 (.292) with a .363 wOBA. He should continue to put up good run-production numbers as long as Chicago's offense is clicking on all cylinders. He hit 21 home runs in 152 games last season with a .336 wOBA, and he looks to be on roughly the same trajectory in the early part of the season.

Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Sunday's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The left-handed slugger will get the day off against southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez. Busch is 4-for-17 through the first five games of the season, so maybe a day off will help him get back on track. Justin Turner will take over at first base and bat cleanup against Rodriguez on Sunday. Turner probably won't have regular fantasy value in a bench role, but could be worth a look as streaming option on Sunday.