Thursday's Fantasy Baseball Drop Candidates Include Big Names Like Austin Wells and Felix Bautista

We just did a fantasy baseball drop story on Wednesday, but there's another crop of players worth discussing today, so let's go over some more possible drops.

We won't include anyone from drop stories on Wednesday or Monday. Here are some fantasy waiver wire adds (pitchers, hitters and streaming pitchers).

More droppable player data can be located on the waiver wire trends most dropped tab, which can be found on any fantasy baseball page here at FantasySP. 

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.

Should You Drop Will Benson?

Benson is at 45% rostered right now. He was at 8% back on Sunday, but his number has stabilized and started to slowly go down now.

Why? Benson hasn't started in back-to-back games, which lines up with the Reds facing left-handed pitchers. He only got into one of those games, and was plunked by a pitch. Benson then was caught stealing.

Benson was a monster waiver wire add earlier this week after a red-hot stretch at the plate. Between May 13-19, he had 11 total knocks, including five homers and two doubles. Benson had 10 RBIs, a stolen base, six runs scored, three walks and five strikeouts in that span.

When writing about him earlier this week, I warned everyone to be wary of adding Benson in too many leagues. He was never going to stay as hot as he had been for the rest of the season, or even for much longer. I didn't even factor in that he might not start against lefties.

Only starting against righties limits his fantasy outlook a good bit. He's still an OK deep-league option, but when his numbers regress, he's probably going to be dropped in a bunch of leagues.

It's crazy how much a fantasy player's outlook can shift in the span of a week. Benson might have already topped out with his own percentage, but he's still one to watch in case he keeps raking when he's back in the lineup.

Should You Drop Austin Wells?

Wells is down to 67% rostered - he was at 72% on Sunday.

For the season, Wells has a .200 average and .269 OBP. He has eight doubles and homers, along with a triple, among his 28 total hits though, and he's also posted 28 RBIs, two stolen bases, 16 runs scored, 12 walks and 37 strikeouts.

His 41 games played (out of 48) is a good mark for a fantasy catcher option. Wells' average and OBP are not great, but his run production and power numbers put him on the fantasy map. Him being a Yankee definitely adds a few percent to his overall marks too.

Wells has struggled at the plate of late though, with just one hit over the past six games and 16 plate appearances. He has two walks, a run scored, no RBIs and nine strikeouts in that span.

He's been hitting seventh or eighth of late, which is a lot different than first, which he was doing earlier in the season. Wells' fantasy outlook is not as bright from a lower spot in the order, even if his RBI chances are up.

Wells is still a top-10 fantasy catcher this season, so I'd do my best to keep hanging on to him. He should improve his average and OBP as the season moves along.

For now, I'd bench Wells and look to a hotter-hitting catcher. He's too valuable to move on from completely right now - only after a week or more of struggles would I actually drop Wells.

Should You Drop Nick Martinez?

Martinez is at 58% rostered - he was at 63% on Tuesday for his last start.

He was good in that start, allowing a run on four hits and two walks over six innings. Martinez struck out three Pirates in that game, and was stuck with the loss after the Reds didn't score.

Martinez has made 10 starts on the season. He's 2-5, but with a 3.43 earned run average. Martinez has allowed 23 runs (22 earned) on 53 hits and 13 walks, while striking out 43 batters.

He pitched to a 3.10 ERA across 16 starts and 42 games last season. A little regression this season should be expected with him being a full-time starter, but his current 3.43 ERA is still very good.

His win-loss record is hurt by the bad team he's on. Martinez's strikeouts per nine innings are actually above his career mark, while his walks are down. His 1.15 WHIP is also better than his 1.31 career mark.

Martinez hasn't allowed over three runs in any of his past seven starts now. He's covered 41 1/3 innings in those outings, allowing 12 runs (11 earned) on 37 hits and nine walks, while striking out 28.

His strikeout work of late isn't the best, but he's eating enough innings and limiting runs really well. The Reds are somehow 2-5 in those games, which is really dropping his fantasy value.

Martinez might face the Royals and Cubs in his next couple starts. With how he's pitched of late, Martinez should be trusted in that KC start in most leagues. The start against the Cubs is tougher, but I'd still be at least willing to start him in deeper leagues for that start.

I hate that good pitchers get overlooked in fantasy when their teams are bad. Martinez really should be rostered in just about every fantasy league, but he's a deep-league option who can be streamed in standard leagues against average or weaker-hitting teams because of the Reds' shortcomings.

Assess your team and see if Martinez is a better option than someone else you're rostering. He could also be traded to a contender later in the season, so that's something to keep in mind.

Should You Drop Andy Pages?

Pages is rostered in 73% of leagues - he was over 75% earlier this week.

He has just two hits over the past five games and 20 plate appearances, and those were both in one game. Pages has a homer among the hits, three RBIs, no walks, a run scored and 10 punchouts in that span.

Pages was looking like a daily fantasy starter in all leagues before that. His season-long numbers are still pretty solid despite the recent struggles. Across 46 games and 184 plate appearances, Pages has a .269 average, .321 OBP, 46 total hits (nine homers, six doubles and a triple), 27 RBIs, five stolen bases, 23 runs scored, 10 walks and 42 punchouts.

He's batting between fourth-sixth for a stacked Dodgers' lineup, and being in that lineup is enough reason to keep rostering someone. Pages is at a stacked fantasy position though, so cold streaks will lead to him being dropped.

I still like the idea of holding Pages in all leagues, even if you have to bench him for the time being. If you need that roster spot to be good to be competitive though, then that's when I'd drop him and stream the hottest fantasy bat you can find.

Pages might just be a deep-league option with standard league streaming value here and there all season. I'm a bit higher on him, but that could also change if these cold stretches keep popping up.

Should You Drop Felix Bautista?

We'll end with a closer. Bautista is down to 89% rostered - he was at nearly 93% on Sunday.

He has allowed at least one run in four straight games, which obviously is never a good thing for a reliever, especially a top-end closer. Bautista has a loss and blown save in that span. He's allowed five runs on five hits and five walks, while striking out just three.

Bautista has a 4.30 ERA over 14 2/3 innings on the season now. He's given up seven runs on 10 hits and 11 walks, while striking out 17. Bautista has an 0-1 record and seven saves.

The Orioles' struggles of late aren't helping his cause, but Bautista is being dropped more because of his struggles on the mound. I think he's already rostered in too many leagues, so I'm actually a fan of dropping him.

Unless Baltimore gets things turned around, or Bautista is traded to a contender, I think he's actually a better deep-league fantasy asset. His big name and strikeout numbers will have him rostered in 75% of leagues or more all season probably though. I'm not that high on him though, and it wouldn't be crazy for more standard league owners to drop him right now.