Jameson Taillon and Ryan O'Hearn Among Wednesday's Fantasy Baseball Drop Candidates

It's time for another fantasy baseball drop candidate story. 

We won't cover anyone who appeared in Monday's drop story. Also be sure to check out today's stories on waiver wire hitters, streaming options and rankings for all starting 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 Jameson Taillon?

Taillon is rostered in 87% of fantasy leagues right now.

He was a drop candidate last week after a rough start, and turned in another bad start on Tuesday. Taillon gave up eight runs on eight hits and two walks over four innings against the Cardinals, while striking out three batters.

Taillon allowed five runs on eight hits and a walk over four innings against the Brewers in the start before that. He had a 3.48 earned run average before these past two starts, but now sits with a 4.47 ERA on the season.

He's made 16 starts so far, going 7-5 and covering 90 2/3 innings. Taillon has allowed 46 runs (45 earned) on 81 hits and 19 walks, while striking out 70 batters. He's been battered by home runs, allowing 21 already (that matches last year's total, and that was over 165 1/3 innings).

His next two probable starts are likely to come against the Astros and Cardinals. We just saw what the Cardinals can do to him, and the Astros are a better offense than them.

Frankly, Taillon is not a very good fantasy option until he proves otherwise. I still think he's worth rostering in deeper leagues, but he shouldn't be rostered in most standard leagues. I'd treat him as a streaming option in standard leagues until he gets back on track.

Should You Drop Ryan O'Hearn?

O'Hearn is down to 57% rostered after a 2.6% dropoff today.

He's got a .304 average and .385 on-base percentage over 66 games so far this season. O'Hearn has nine doubles and 11 homers among his 69 total hits, along with 30 RBIs and runs scored, 26 walks and 43 strikeouts - he's also stolen three bases.

Those are solid numbers overall, and he's been solid over the past seven games, with a .286 average and .375 OBP, so I'm not sure if I understand why he's being dropped. O'Hearn's .220 average and .273 OBP over the past 15 games would be more reason to drop him, but O'Hearn seems to be on the rise, not trending down.

Him being eligible at first base and the corner outfield spots is a nice boost for his fantasy value. O'Hearn has started three times over the past five games for the Orioles, sitting against two left-handed starting pitchers. That's another downside to O'Hearn's fantasy outlook.

I still like rostering O'Hearn in all deeper redraft leagues, and a few standard leagues, so I'm not in favor of dropping him based on his current own percentage.

I get dropping him if you have another position of need, but there's not many waiver wire bats I'd prefer on my team over O'Hearn.

Should You Drop Shane Smith?

Smith is rostered in 43% of leagues after a 7.9% dropoff.

He's made 15 starts this season, and he sits today with a 3-5 record and 3.38 ERA. Smith has worked 74 2/3 innings, allowing 36 runs (28 earned) on 63 hits and 32 walks, while punching out 68.

Smith has struggled over his past two starts though. He allowed six runs (five earned) over 4 1/3 innings against the Cardinals on June 17, then allowed five runs over just two innings against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday.

His ERA has jumped from 2.37 to 3.38 over his past two starts. Smith's low-inning total makes those rough starts even worse too.

His next couple starts are pretty favorable ones. Smith will likely face the Giants next, then the Rockies after that. He's a good deep-league option, at least, for those games, that is, if you can get over his recent results.

Much like Taillon though, fantasy owners are going to have a hard time trusting Smith after what he's done in his past two starts. I think he'll bounce back here soon, but would only be comfortable starting him in deeper leagues.

He's not on a good team, and that makes it easier to drop Smith in some deeper leagues. If I needed to stream pitchers in order to give myself the best chance to win this week, then I'd drop Smith. But if my fantasy team was solid, I'd do my best to hold on to Smith for at least one more start.

Should You Drop Chad Patrick?

Patrick was dropped in 6.1% of leagues and sits at 51% overall now. 

Patrick is in the running for NL Rookie of the Year, but has struggled of late as well. He's made 16 starts over 17 total appearances. Patrick is 3-7, but with a 3.72 ERA over 84 2/3 innings.

Patrick has allowed 35 runs on 85 hits and 27 walks, while striking out 85 batters. He has five quality starts so far.

He's allowed at least four runs in three straight starts, facing the Braves, Cubs and Pirates in that span. Patrick has worked five innings in all those games, and kept fantasy relevance with 22 strikeouts over that stretch.

It's great to see the punchouts, but his ERA has jumped from 2.84 to 3.72 over that three-start stretch. Patrick is starting to look like a pretty average fantasy starting pitcher option.

If he sticks in the rotation, his next probable starts could come against the Rockies and Marlins, which are about as favorable of starts as a pitcher can get over two games. 

For that reason, I'd do what I could to keep rostering Patrick in deeper redraft leagues. He'll be a good option in those leagues for those outings.

Patrick will also be a standard league streaming option, but many won't trust him after his recent struggles, much like the situations for Taillon and Smith.

Should You Drop Jorge Polanco?

Polanco is down to 44% owned after a 4% dropoff today.

He's got a .252 average and .303 OBP over 65 games this season. Polanco has nine doubles and 11 homers among his 55 total knocks, along with 36 RBIs, 26 runs scored, 14 walks, three stolen bases and 32 strikeouts.

He's played first, second and third base so far this season, but has most often appeared as the team's designated hitter. Polanco has started three of the team's past five games, hitting cleanup in every start.

Polanco  has a .174 average and .259 OBP over his past seven games. His numbers over his past 15 games mirror his season numbers.

He's been a streaky hitter this season, and now is one of his colder stretches at the plate. During these stretches, he's tough to start in any leagues, and is dropped in all standard leagues and some deeper setups as well.

He shouldn't be dropped in all deeper leagues, but I agree with some deep-league owners moving on from him in exchange for hot-hitting players. Polanco is likely to heat up again several times this season, at which point he can be added back in most deeper leagues, and even be rostered in some standard leagues.

He's a better deep-league option though, so don't be afraid to move on from him during his cold stretches.