Jesse Winker (OF, CIN) - Week 22 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Dynasty Leagues

OWNED IN: 5% of leagues

ANALYSIS: Cincinnati Reds outfielder Jesse Winker is purely a play in dynasty or keeper leagues, so stop reading now if you are in a full re-draft league. That being said, Winker is the dictionary definition of a professional hitter, and the 334 plate appearances he put down in 2018 have done nothing but confirm that label. A .299/.405/.431 line is borderline elite in OBP leagues, and he is one of the few players in the majors to walk more than he struck out.

It’s easy to think of Winker as a finished product, but the 25-year-old is still developing his ability to produce lift and pop. He drives the ball at the point of contact extremely well, evidenced by a 24% line-drive rate, which is a 7.5% improvement from last season. Winker is also proficient at spreading the ball to all fields, and best of all is able to barrel the ball well, shown in a 43.9% hard hit rate on contact.

Basically, the only thing missing from a superstar profile is power, but there are a lot of reasons to think that the power will come. Winker has shown pop at times, with seven homers and a .231 ISO in 137 plate appearances in 2017, and he may have gotten a bit unlucky in 2018 with just an 8.9% HR/FB rate. If you can put the barrel on the ball and produce lift, which Winker absolutely can, then it is reasonable that his HR/FB rate should rise above such a pedestrian level. If that rate regresses to something more like 12%, then Winker should be close to 15 homers. A little luck, and 20 is in reach. That is a fantasy monster, and one who you should be looking to snare in dynasty.