Brandon Crawford (SS, SF) - Week 7 Waiver Wire Pickups

3 years ago by Doug Goldring

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BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues

ROSTERED IN: 22% of leagues

ANALYSIS: Brandon Crawford has been in the major leagues for a long time - this is his 11th season - and by that point in a player's career, there aren't usually too many surprises. But Crawford has been an exception so far this year, as through 107 plate appearances and 31 games, Crawford has a career-high .245 ISO, a career-high .479 SLG, a career-high .343 xwOBA, and a career-high 118 wRC+. Put simply, Crawford is demolishing the ball, and he and his seven home runs have been a big reason the Giants are in first place in the super-competitive NL West.

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Statcast suggests that these power numbers are wholly deserved, as Crawford's xSLG is right in line with his SLG, and he has an xHR number of 6.9, also just in line with the actual production thus far. Crawford could be well on his way to setting a new career-high in home runs, topping the 21 he hit in 2015, which was also the only time in his career he topped even 14 dingers.

Crawford also has stolen three bases in three attempts, putting him on track to breeze by his previous career-high of seven steals in 2016. If there's one weakness in Crawford's game thus far, it's been his .234 batting average, but a BABIP of .242, 52 points below his career average, suggests that number should rise in the coming months. Crawford should be an add in all leagues at least 12 teams deep, as there's no reason not to ride the shortstop's power wave.

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