Mike Zunino (C, SEA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues

OWNED IN: 19% of Yahoo! Leagues

ANALYSIS: Mike Zunino has had an absolutely torrid month of June, and his stock is continuing to skyrocket in the wake of his power surge. Zunino has slashed .366/.435/.902(!) over his last 12 games with seven home runs, 16 RBI and nine runs scored. He is up to .256 on the season with nine home runs and 30 RBI. His .383 BABIP is almost guaranteed to come down, but the power is real and anytime you can grab a catcher with legit power like Zunino has, you have to snap him up.

The biggest concern for Zunino is strikeouts, and there have been plenty of those. The 26-year-old has struck out 67 times this season, good for a ridiculously high 39% K-rate. Also concerning is his walk rate, which climbed up to 11% last season but has fallen back down to 6% in 2017. The BABIP drop will hurt Zunino’s batting average, and his lack of walks will hurt him in OBP leagues as well.

However, his 41.1 hard-hit rate and 25.6 line drive rate are both career highs, and while his 23.7 HR/FB rate may be a bit unsustainable there is no reason to believe Zunino cannot approach 25 home runs on the season, which all but guarantees he will finish as a top-15 fantasy catcher this season. He should be owned in 12-team leagues and beyond, and is worth a look in standard formats at least while he is on his current hot streak.