Fantasy Baseball Hitters Trending Down Over the Past Week: Marcell Ozuna, Jackson Merrill and More

We just went over some fantasy baseball hitters on the rise over the past several days, and now are going to check out hitters trending in the wrong direction.

We'll again be using stats from July 2-7. We'll keep the focus on notable fantasy hitters for this article.

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Fewest Hits

Atlanta's Marcell Ozuna, Chicago Cubs' Ian Happ and Matt Shaw, Pittsburgh's Bryan Reynolds and St. Louis' Masyn Winn and Victor Scott II all finished with just one hit over the timeframe we are using.

Ozuna singled for his lone hit, while also having no RBIs or runs scored. He walked four times and struck out on three occasions. Ozuna has struggled for most of this season and is down to 90% rostered now. He's worth keeping tabs on in case his bat heats up, but he'll continue to be dropped if his struggles at the plate persist.

Happ made the hitters trending up story because he walked seven times, but one hit isn't great for his fantasy outlook either. He doubled for his lone hit, while also tallying two RBIs, a run scored and three strikeouts. Happ is slightly trending down and sits at 95% overall right now. It could be a time to buy low on Happ.

Shaw's hit was a single, and he also walked just once. He had three runs scored, an RBI and stolen base and one strikeout too. Shaw is way down to 29% rostered and could be headed toward another demotion if his bat doesn't heat up soon.

Reynolds hit a single for his only hit. He also had a walk, no RBIs or runs scored and nine strikeouts last week. Reynolds' own percentage is down to 76%, and it should probably be lower than that given his season-long struggles. 

Winn singled for his lone hit, and he also walked just once. He failed to drive in a run or score and also struck out four times. Winn is trending down and is now rostered in 52% of leagues. It's a time to possibly buy low on him in deeper leagues. He should also be tracked for possibly re-adding in standard leagues if his bat gets going again.

Scott singled for his only hit as well. He walked once, didn't have any RBIs or runs scored and also struck out three times. Scott is down to 26% rostered and doesn't have a ton of trade value, unless you are swapping struggling fantasy hitters.

Most Strikeouts

Detroit's Riley Greene struck out 14 times over 29 plate appearances in the timeframe we are using. He made the hitters trending up story after slugging homers for three of his four hits last week. Greene had nine RBIs, three runs scored and walks along with all those strikeouts. Greene is a possible sell-high candidate if you are sick of all his strikeouts.

Philadelphia's Bryce Harper, Arizona's Eugenio Suarez and San Diego's Jackson Merrill all struck out 10 times.

Harper singled for all four of his hits. He also had no RBIs, just one run scored and three walks. Harper is still owned in all fantasy leagues, but he might start being dropped if his bat doesn't get going. That makes him a buy-low trade candidate in my eyes, because he's been a top-end fantasy hitter for most of his career.

Suarez tallied five hits, including two home runs and a double, while also having five RBIs, two runs scored and a walk. Suarez is owned in all fantasy leagues, and like Greene, could be a sell-high candidate if you are over all his strikeouts.

Merrill posted three hits (all singles) and walked three times over the timeframe we are using. He had three RBIs and two runs scored as well. Merrill has had a disappointing fantasy season between some injuries and poor stretches at the plate. I still believe in him, and would call him another buy-low candidate, especially now that he's being dropped a bit (he's at 97% rostered still).

Lowest OBPs

Reynolds had the lowest on-base percentage (.100) among qualified hitters. Shaw was second at .105.

Pittsburgh's Ke'Bryan Hayes got on base at a .125 clip, as did Winn. Hayes had two singles for his only hits, and failed to walk. He also had a run scored, no RBIs, a stolen base and six strikeouts. Hayes had been getting some fantasy attention before the past week, but is trending back down and is at just 10% rostered.

Colorado's Jordan Beck had a .136 OBP, while New York Yankees' Anthony Volpe was at a .143 mark. Pittsburgh's Andrew McCutchen was on base at just a .150 clip.

Beck had three hits and no walks. He doubled among the hits, while also tallying three RBIs, a run scored and stolen base and six strikeouts. Beck is slightly trending down and sits at 27% owned - he'll continue to drop if he produces similar weeks going forward.

Volpe had three hits, including a homer, and no walks over the timeframe we are using. He had four RBIs and runs scored though, along with a stolen base and five strikeouts. Volpe still did enough to be a decent fantasy asset last week, but that hasn't stopped fantasy owners from dropping him. He's down to 71% rostered, and has pretty much lost his trade value in standard leagues.

McCutchen tallied two hits (both singles) and a walk over the past week. He had no RBIs or runs scored in that stretch, along with seven strikeouts. McCutchen is rostered in just 3% of leagues, but actually is probably a bit overlooked in fantasy leagues. More poor results like last week won't help his cause.

Other Hitters Trending Down

Among some of the notable qualified hitters, several had no runs scored, including Seattle's J.P. Crawford (32% rostered), San Diego's Luis Arraez (96%), Texas' Adolis Garcia (63%) and Baltimore's Gunnar Henderson (100%).

Crawford still had seven hits, including two doubles, and a walk. He failed to drive in a run and struck out twice.

Arraez had nine hits, all singles, and three walks, so he was still on base plenty. He had three RBIs, a stolen base and just two strikeouts as well.

Garcia singled for all four of his hits, but failed to walk. He drove in a run and struck out three times.

Henderson tallied three hits, including two doubles, and failed to walk. He had no RBIs as well, along with five strikeouts.

Los Angeles Angels' Jorge Soler (15%) had a .167 average and nine strikeouts. He had a double and homer among his three hits, along with two runs scored, an RBI and two walks.

Colorado's Ryan McMahon (22%) had a .136 average and eight punchouts. He doubled among his three hits, while also having a run scored and RBI and two walks.

Seattle's Julio Rodriguez (100%) had a .105 average and eight strikeouts. He doubled and singled for his lone hits, while also posting two walks and stolen bases and one RBI and run scored.

Baltimore's Colton Cowser (48%) had a .125 average along with eight strikeouts. He had a double and homer for his lone hits, along with two RBIs and a run scored and walk.

Atlanta's Michael Harris II (71%) posted a .167 average, struck out four times and grounded into two double plays. He had singles for all three of his hits, and failed to walk. Harris also had no RBIs and just one run scored, along with one stolen base.