Prediction Strike Fantasy Baseball Spotlight: Manny Machado and MJ Melendez

We’re three weeks into the MLB season now, and we continue to see lively baseballs with offenses popping off and pitchers struggling. It could get even more rough for pitchers in those hot summer months. Though it looks like we’re heading for another record season offensively, there will likely be shifts the other way as pitchers get even more accustomed to the new rules and the pitch clock. Pitching is far from dead, though we need to set our aggregate bar a bit lower – particularly in relation to the 2022 season.

With Prediction Strike, we can buy and sell players stocks much like the actual stock market, and in doing so we are able to create portfolios. However, unlike DFS or sports betting, these can also be long-term investments. Considering that long-term angle, we can take advantage of some of the things unique to baseball, such as players changing teams at an incredibly high rate over the offseason and hundreds of exciting prospects, some of whom may even make big impacts in the MLB this season. But with the increased size of MLB rosters and players who receive regular playing time, we get increased opportunities to find some overlooked diamonds in the rough. 

Here are a couple of names to consider over at Prediction Strike.

Prediction Strike Pick: Manny Machado, San Diego Padres

Manny Machado and the Padres are off a slow start offensively. Machado has just one home run and an ISO below .100 through his first 20 games. His barrel rate is a measly 3.3%, far below his 10% mark over the last couple of seasons. Machado also has a surprisingly high ground ball rate of 47.5% where his career rate has been closer to 41%. At the same time, it’s hard to imagine a 30-year-old Machado being “dust,” and we can safely summarize this as a slow start. Thankfully, this Padres offense will receive a much-needed shot in the arm with the return of Fernando Tatis Jr. off his long suspension. Tatis and Juan Soto will hit 1-2 in front of Machado and hopefully all will be right in the baseball world. The Padres visit the Diamondbacks this weekend and should really get things going next week with a series with the Chicago Cubs in Wrigley Field. Machado’s Prediction Strike price is 16.5% over the last week (down to $4.62) and this presents a fantastic buying opportunity for one of the league’s premier hitters in a dream lineup slot for the remainder of the season.

Prediction Strike Pick: MJ Melendez, Kansas City Royals

MJ Melendez impressed mightily as a rookie last season, hitting 18 homers with a 12.4% walk rate in a little over 500 plate appearances. Melendez started the season off as the Royals leadoff man but has now moved to a more comfortable and better run-producing spot, hitting second behind Bobby Witt Jr. against right-handed pitching. Melendez is off to a slow start at the plate with just one dinger and a .1156/.257/.266 slash line through 17 games. But Melendez has been hitting the ball hard. His 62.5% hard hit rate is third best and his 17.5% barrel rate ranks top-20 among qualified MLB hitters. He also has a large discrepancy between his slugging percentage (.266) and his expected rate (.522). Melendez is striking out in about one-third of his at-bats but should be able to decrease that down to the 23-26% range over time. His price per share at Prediction Strike is just $0.72 and is down nearly 16% over the past week. Good things are on the horizon for the second-year man, and we should see his share price climb a few dollars over the next few weeks.