HG
– Injuries
continue to play havoc with fantasy pitchers as Noah Syndergaard and
Cole Hamels will be out a minimum of 8 weeks. Corey Kluber, Ian
Kennedy, Jameson Taillon, James Paxton and Felix Hernandez will be
out likely for close to a month. Met’s righty Matt Harvey was
suspended for three games giving rise to questions to his level of
commitment to the team. Throw in nagging injuries to Mike Trout and
Bryce Harper and owners have been busy, A) taking aspirin, and B)
combing over the waiver wire.

Waiver Claims

Cody
Bellinger 1B/OF Dodgers –
Bellinger was thought to be an injured
replacement for the Dodgers but his hitting has changed LA’s mind.
The lefty is batting 342 with 4 homers, 9 runs knocked in in his
first ten big leagues game. The highly touted Bellinger is now
playing first with Adrian Gonzalez out on the DL giving the kid
plenty of chances to shine.

Marwin
Gonzalez 1B/3B/OF Astros –
Gonzalez has gone homer happy with 5
dingers, 12 RBI, 8 runs scored and 8 hits in 17 at bats. The
multi-purpose utility player is now up to 9 long balls with 21 runs
knocked making Marwin Gonzalez well-worth playing while he is this
hot at the plate.

Starlin
Castro 2B Yankees – Castro is off to
his best start to a season since 2010 hitting 367 as he currently is
on a nine-hitting streak. The former Cub has 17 hits over this span
and has smacked 5 long balls to go with 16 runs knocked in and 18
runs scored.

Kevin
Pillar OF Blue Jays – Pillar
is off a good start batting 314 with 4 homers, 9 RBI, 15 runs scored
and 3 stolen bases. The young outfielder has still has not hit his
prime meaning Pillar should continue to get better and is producing
at a representative level making him fantasy worthy.

Michael
Conforto OF Mets – Conforto
has got a chance to play daily with all the Met’s injuries and is
off a very hot start batting 351 at lead off with an on base of 427.
The young southpaw has also hit 7 long balls, driven in 18 runs,
scored 16 along with one stolen base making Conforto a must add for
the rest of the season.

Ivan
Nova SP Pirates – Nova continues to be
impressive to date with just one outing where he has allowed more
than three earned runs, he allowed four, and has a shiny 2.14 ERA and
WHIP of 0.88. With two starts for week five the former Yankee makes
for a nice plug and play option for owners needing more pitching
options.

Lance
Lynn SP Cardinals – Lynn
by far has been the best of the lot of St. Louis starters this year
with four straight wins covering 25 innings and 22 K’s. The veteran
Red Bird is sporting an ERA of 2.04, WHIP of 1.08 and just two earned
allowed over his last four starts.

Jesse
Hahn SP A’s – Hahn
has gotten off to an impressive start this year with six consecutive
starts of no more than three earned runs per outing and an ERA of
3.03. The former Padre has also punched out 30 batters in 35 innings
to go with a WHIP of 1.21. Hahn is a serviceable option with all the
injuries besetting starters league wide.

Derek
Holland SP White Sox – Holland
was expected to compete for the fifth starter spot for the Pale Hose
this spring but has been terribly impressive thus far under the
guidance of pitching coach Don Cooper. The former Ranger has given up
just 8 earned runs in 35.1 innings for a 2.02 ERA with six straight
starts of two earned runs or less allowed. With any run support
Holland could be 6-0 and with 30 K’s in 35 frames.

Eduardo
Rodriguez SP Red Sox – Rodriguez has
hurled three straight quality outings for a Red Sox team hit with
injuries to David Price and Steven Wright. The young lefty has
allowed 4 earned runs in 18 innings over his last three trips to the
bump. For the 2017 campaign Rodriguez has struck out 37 batters
covering 29.1 frames and makes for a nice injury fill in.