FABL Roster Moves June 2021
Today is the first day of June, which means we’re in the heart of Gemini season. We’re also fast approaching the amount of MLB games that were played in the entirety of the 2020 season, which COVID cut down to about 37% of baseball’s normal schedule. With this new page on the calendar, it’s time to scour the waiver wire of the Fantasy Astrology Baseball League and add players that were left off their signs’ rosters to start the year. When I went through this exercise last month, I uncovered some star-level performers – let’s see what June has to offer!
Aquarius gains the top-scoring free agent batter in Pavin Smith (532 points / 10.6 points-per-game) of the Diamondbacks. He’ll step into an outfield spot for the injured Max Kepler. I mentioned this in my latest MLB The Show 21 recap video, but Aquarius was left without a single option at third base due to Ke’Bryan Hayes’s injury, and the release of his real-life backup on the Pirates Todd Frazier. I’m currently looking into the implications of having multiple players with the same sign on the same MLB roster – spoiler alert: I suspect it differs depending on the sign. But for the Water Bearers, Jon Berti of the Marlins is the top hot corner option, having just regained third base eligibility at the end of April.
My home sign Cancer gets some much-needed outfield help in another Arizona utility player Josh Rojas (501 / 10.2), who’s also eligible for both middle infield spots, and Tyler O’Neill (500 / 14.7) of the Cardinals. This might not be as pressing an issue with Cody Bellinger coming off the injured list, but with Austin Hays and Ramon Laureano hurt, you can always use depth. Speaking of depth, infielder Josh Harrison (393 / 10.1) is also eligible to join the Crabs roster, but they’re strong at his positions of second and third base. Seth Brown and Josh Naylor are yet more un-rostered Cancer outfielders, but they’ll probably remain in the free agent pool for now.
Aries can add slugging Rays catcher Mike Zunino, but with Buster Posey and Will (D.) Smith already on the roster, Zunino has DH upside, at best. It’s also worth mentioning Michael A. Taylor, since the Rams have a rather weak outfield picture, but he’s got the numbers of a Major League backup rather than a fantasy star. Pisces has access to a couple of free agents who fill out all four infield spots between them: Josh Fuentes (1B, 3B) and Niko Goodrum (2B, SS). Libra is in a similar spot with Brad Miller (3B, OF) and Jonathan Schoop (2B, 1B) available. Leo also has an option at the corners with Rays slugger Yandy Diaz, but they’ll need to dig pretty deep to find someone to fill in for their middle infield injuries: Aledmys Diaz at second and Kevin Newman at shortstop.
Sagittarius once again gets the top available pitcher with Luis (H.) Garcia (512 / 51.2) of the Astros. Yusmeiro Petit made last month’s version of this list, but he’s still available – middle relievers are generally too risky to take up a roster spot if there’s a potential closer or starter available. Pisces has the same dilemma with Andrew Kittredge (503 / 27.9), whose unorthodox usage by the Rays makes him hard to pin down: he has 18 total appearances, with 2 starts, and also 2 saves. Speaking of Rays pitchers, Josh Fleming has an impressive PPG average of 53.8, but that’s over four starts and five relief appearances, so it’s unclear whether Taurus should use a rotation spot on him.
Moving down the line to more traditional starters, Austin Gomber, John Gant, and Cole Irvin have emerged as viable options for the Rockies, Cardinals, and Athletics, respectively. In FABL terms, their good starts benefit Sagittarius, Leo, and Aquarius, although the latter has really struggled recently, with a negative point total over the last two weeks. As far as relief pitching goes, the free agent with the most saves is Keynan Middleton, who should help solidify the Virgo bullpen.
I’m taking a break from my year-by-year FABL history project, but next time I’ll take a look back at how far we’ve come from a big picture perspective. Instead of looking at one team at a time, I’m zooming way out to see how the years compare to each other, with special charts every five-year increment.