Welcome to the last week of May! Summer is almost upon us! Unfortunately, we in the fantasy baseball world were rocked with the news of Ronald Acuna and his injury. For those that haven’t yet heard, Acuna completely tore his left knee ACL in Sunday’s game against the Pirates. He is out for the season. Certainly, there is no replacing a player like Acuna, who is one of the best, if not the best, players in baseball. Even with his slow start in 2024, that statement remains true. However, all managers must come up with a plan to fill his open roster spot. Where do we turn? No worries, as that is where this Fantasy Baseball Ronald Acuna Replacements edition will help, as much as it can be done, to ease the burden.

First, since Acuna is an outfielder, only those players who qualify to play the position will be considered. Second, in a sincere effort to locate players that are actually available, only those that are 10 percent or lower on ESPN platforms will get the call. With all of that out of the way, let’s begin the search.

Option One: Jake Meyers, Houston Astros, 6.3% Rostered

Strangely, the first player up for consideration, Jake Meyers, is one of the most available players on the wire. Strange, indeed, considering that in his last ten games, Meyers has hits in eight of them. Included in that stretch are four games with at least two hits. Further, he has scored a run in three of his last four.

In 45 2024 games, Meyers is hitting .293-6-21 with 34 hits and 15 runs. Additionally, he has a .369/.526 slash line. Even more impressive, his OPS+ is a stellar 156. His advanced batting stats are also excellent: .326 BAbip, .233 ISO, 18.3 K% and a 8.4 BB%. All of those advanced stats Meyers has put up are better than the league average.

Certainly, the Astros have been a disappointment to this point. However, they have begun to heat up. As of this writing, they are in third place in the A.L. West, 4.5 games behind the Mariners. Not long ago, they couldn’t see first place with binoculars. At home, Houston is one of the best offenses in baseball, ranking fourth. On the road, they are middle of the road (15th).

With those types of hitters around him, Meyers will have plenty of opportunities to continue to generate run production for himself. Clearly, any fantasy manager that picks him up with surely benefit from the move. If you are one of the unfortunate ones that lost Acuna, act today before a rival adds Meyers. Certainly, some astute managers will notice his ability and go get him. Don’t be left in the dust.

Option Two: Alec Burleson, St. Louis Cardinals, 6.6% Rostered

When it comes to players underneath the radar this season, Alec Burleson takes a back seat to no one. Rostered in less than seven percent of ESPN leagues, Burleson has been tearing up the baseball, especially lately. As of Monday morning, he is hitting a robust .421 in his last seven days. On Saturday and Sunday against the Cubs, Burleson had two hits and scored a run in each game.

Impressive? No doubt. However, consider that in his last ten games, Burleson has had two of more hits in seven, including four straight. Hot doesn’t begin to describe an onslaught like that. For the season, Burleson is hitting .309-5-17 with a .338/.460 slash line along with 43 hits and 14 runs. Additionally, he has a .339 BAbip, .151 ISO, a 15.1 K% and a 4.1 BB%. The K% is seven percent lower than the league average. True, you would like to see him double his walk rate, but if that is all there is to complain about, Burleson is in excellent shape.

Like the Astros, the Cardinals were a train wreck to start the year, Like Houston, though, they have righted the ship, winning nine of their last 11. The best news, however, comes last, at least for this week. St. louis is scheduled to play in the hit factories that are the home stadiums of the Reds and Phillies. Burleson should fill right at home. Also qualified as a DH, Burleson receives a high recommendation on this Fantasy Baseball Ronald Acuna Replacements edition.

Option Three: Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Toronto Blue Jays, 2.3% Rostered

 Simply stated, this next player was a complete surprise that he would be included. However, when it comes to hot, few, if any, players can compare. His name? Isiah Kiner-Falefa, now with Toronto. Before I get any deeper into this, let me be clear: I’m not saying that this is a season long roster add. If that turns out to be the case, great. I’m not expecting it, though. For the short term, at the very least, Kiner-Falefa is a quality add from the waiver wire.

How did I come to that conclusion? Look at what he’s done over his last five games. In that span, Kiner-Falefa has hits in each contest, four of them of the two-hit variety. In the last seven days, he is hitting .346-2-2, with a SB, a double and five runs scored. Before that stretch, he was fantasy irrelevant, as he was in an 0-20 slump. Fortunately, he hit his way out of the trenches in a big way.

For the year, Kiner-Falefa is hitting .270-4-14, with 3 SBs, 40 hits and 16 runs. Further, he has a .314/.405 slash line along with 25 Ks and nine BBs. His advance stats check in at .300 BAbip, .135 ISO, 15.6 K% and a 5.6 BB%. For the most part, Toronto’s offense has been asleep at the wheel this year, but appear to be waking up. In their last seven games, the Blue Jays have scored nine or more runs four times.

 As is often the case, the schedule is an important factor. Over the next three games, Toronto plays at Chicago. Only one team in the majors has a worse team ERA at home than the White Sox. For the weekend, the Blue Jays will journey into Pittsburgh. The Pirates sport a mid level team ERA at home, so the going will be more difficult for the them there. Even so, at least they aren’t facing a team at the top of the pitching pyramid ERA wise in the next week.

Lastly, Kiner-Falefa qualifies as at second and third, as well as the outfield. As always, versatility increases one’s value. He sports that versatility in spades. As that is the case, for the time being at least, Kiner-Falefa has made himself a quality add candidate in the near term. If you’ve lost Acuna and the top two candidates aren’t available, take a chance on Kiner-Falefa. Who knows where it could lead?

Obviously, there are other candidates, but as games are getting ready to start, I want to get this out to the masses as soon as possible.

The Final Word

Thank you for joining me for this Fantasy Baseball Ronald Acuna Replacements edition! As always. debate and discussion are highly encouraged. Agree or disagree with anything in the article? Let’s talk about it.

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