Monday's Fantasy Baseball Drop Candidates: Emmanuel Clase, Alejandro Kirk and More

After looking at waiver wire options based on most adds and then projections, let's now go over some fantasy baseball drop candidates.

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 Emmanuel Clase?

I was going to hold the drop story until Tuesday, but the news on Clase made me change my mind. He's on the non-disciplinary paid leave list as the MLB investigates possible sports betting.

Clase is owned in nearly every fantasy league right now. The leave is expected to last through August 31, so there's a timetable for his possible return. That makes this a tricky situation to navigate for a fantasy baseball owner.

He's regressed from a top-tier 2024 season. Clase is 5-3 with 24 saves, five blown saves and a hold across 48 appearances this season. He has covered 47 1/3 innings, allowing 20 runs (17 earned) on 46 hits and 12 walks, while also striking out 47 batters.

His 3.23 earned run average is still good, but it's way worse than the 0.61 mark he had in 2024. It's even noticeably higher than his career 1.88 ERA.

He's probably a bit overvalued in fantasy leagues, but he was still worth rostering in all leagues. Now that he's not going to be pitching, it begs the question if you should be dropping him.

Some leagues will allow you to stash a player in Clase's situation on IR or in a suspended spot, but other leagues don't have those spots. Some might need that roster spot to remain competitive, so it makes sense to drop Clase in some cases.

I'd first try to trade Clase away. You won't get a lot because of the uncertainty of the situation, but you might get something better than you'll find on the waiver wire.

Most leagues start their fantasy playoffs in August or early September, so if your team can get by without Clase, then I'd suggest to just stash him at the end of your bench. If you can't afford to do that, move on now (by trading or dropping him) and fight and claw as best you can without Clase.

He'll get a nice fantasy ownership boost as he nears that August 31 date, so keep on top of things and add him when you can afford to.

You Should Drop Grant Holmes

I changed the header of this section, as there's no doubt in my mind what you should be doing with Holmes.

He's now on the 60-day injured list with an elbow injury. Holmes is likely to miss the remainder of the season as a result, so redraft owners can safely move on from him. Dynasty/keeper owners who can stash him in an IR spot should do that instead of dropping him.

Holmes appeared in 22 games this season, making 21 starts. He went 4-9 with a 3.99 ERA over 115 innings. Holmes allowed 52 runs (51 earned) on 100 hits and 54 walks, and he struck out 123 batters.

The Braves will have to contend without another one of their pitchers. Every single member of the starting rotation from the start of the season is now on the injured list.

Should You Drop Alejandro Kirk?

Let's keep with the theme of possibly dropping players due to factors outside poor play by discussing Kirk. He's on the seven-day concussion list.

Kirk is rostered in 61% of leagues right now, and that will drop for a bit before he's added back in some leagues.

He has a .304 average and .361 on-base percentage this season across 88 games and 346 plate appearances. Losing him is a massive blow to the red-hot Blue Jays, and the fantasy owners that rostered him.

Among his 95 hits, Kirk had 13 doubles and seven home runs. He also had 47 RBIs, 27 runs scored, 29 walks and 34 strikeouts. There's not elite numbers in there, but his high average and OBP were enough to get Kirk into most fantasy leagues.

I think he was underrated and totally flying under the radar of some fantasy owners. He was a top-10 fantasy catcher on the season, but was being treated as a deep-league keeper and possible standard league streaming option.

There's no use adding him while he's on the seven-day IL, but as his return nears, I'd suggest for standard league owners, and deep-league owners, to pick Kirk up.

Don't knock him for his lack of power, but instead utilize him and his strong average and OBP. He's produced like a top-end fantasy catcher, so treat him like one.

Should You Drop Kris Bubic?

Another injured player here in Bubic. He hit the 15-day injured list with a left rotator cuff strain. It's not known how long the injury will keep Bubic out for yet.

He's been stellar this season, sporting a 2.55 ERA over 20 starts and 116 1/3 innings. Bubic is 8-7 and has 116 strikeouts along the way. He's allowed 38 runs (33 earned) on 98 hits and 39 walks.

Bubic has allowed at least three runs in three of his past four starts, and only gone at least six innings once in that span. He is nearing a career high in innings pitched, and those top inning marks came in 2021 and 2022, so it's been a bit since Bubic has covered that many frames.

He's down to 92% rostered after being near 100% over the past month. I'd expect that number to continue to drop as the news of his placement on the IL gets out.

I'd do my best to keep him rostered in all formats, but again, we don't know a timeline for his return, and you might need that roster spot in order to keep competing. You need to assess your own fantasy team and make the call on whether or not to roster him going forward.

Before I dropped Bubic though, I'd try to trade him away first. You'll get better value in a trade than you'll find on the waiver wire.

If Bubic gets dropped in your league, keep an eye on his status and start picking him back up as his return nears.

Should You Drop Marcell Ozuna?

Ozuna is down to 73% owned - he was at 95% a month ago, so it's been a pretty steady drop since then.

Across 95 games and 400 plate appearances this season, Ozuna has a .232 average and .358 OBP. He's a career .270 hitter with a .336 OBP, so despite his low average, he's still getting on base more than enough to provide some fantasy value.

He has 76 total hits, including 11 doubles and 13 home runs. Ozuna also has 42 RBIs, 37 runs scored, 65 walks and 92 strikeouts. Most of those numbers are down from past seasons, and down noticeably at that.

It doesn't help that he's likely only eligible at designated hitter in your fantasy leagues, so unless you actually have a DH spot, you are likely burning a utility spot on him. That's hard to do when a hitter isn't performing well, and that's why he's being dropped.

I think Ozuna is still rostered in too many leagues, even despite his high OBP, and low own percentage compared to past seasons. Ozuna should really only be a deep-league fantasy asset at this point.

Some fantasy owners might be holding out hope that he gets dealt to a better team at the deadline, thus improving his fantasy outlook, but I'd only do that if my roster could remain competitive without Ozuna, and probably if I could bench him.

If he's not dealt before the deadline, I'd expect Ozuna's own percentage to keep falling. He's worth keeping an eye on in case his bat ever gets going, but after this much of the season has passed, I'm not holding my breath.