Fantasy managers comb the waiver wire every week, every day, searching for that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, that one player who will be more than just a fad for the week.
They are looking for a breakout star, like Logan Webb in 2021 or veteran slugger Brandon Drury in 2022.
Could the Giants’ Luis Matos be that guy?
Matos was recalled from Triple-A on May 12 after Michael Conforto was placed on the disabled list with a hamstring injury. The same day Matos arrived in San Francisco was also his final day in center field as John Hoo Lee injured his shoulder and subsequently underwent season-ending surgery.
In his first 11 games, Matos batted .311 with two homers, 18 RBIs, six runs scored and an .837 OPS. In five games from May 13-18, he batted .455 with two homers, 16 RBIs, no strikeouts and an 1.318 OPS. He had three or more RBIs in three of those games, one with five and one with six (and in two consecutive games).
Matos entered the weekend with more RBIs through 46 at-bats than 2023 NL Rookie of the Year Corbin Carroll (16-for-188), 2022 AL Rookie of the Year Julio Rodriguez (14-for-202) and reigning NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. (12-for-182).
So why is Matos, who has a batting average of .250, two home runs, and 14 RBIs? (Yes, he has more already this year) With a .661 OPS in 76 games in 2023, he was the top addition in ESPN leagues this week.
Among players with at least 40 plate appearances this month, Matos ranked eighth in RBIs entering the weekend (17), tying him with William Conteras, Aaron Judge and Vinny Pasquantino, all of whom had at least 35 plate appearances.
Obviously, this pace is not sustainable — if it were, he’d be on the roster of far more than 20 percent of teams in the league — but is there any justification for adding him as a valuable team member?
Matos primarily bats at the top or middle of the Giants’ lineup (a plus considering he’s getting an opportunity to play every day). Ton Contact rate. He entered the week with a 92.2 percent contact rate, sixth-best in the major leagues this month, and a 100 percent Z-contact rate, the percentage of pitches hit by hitters in the strike zone.
Among players with at least 40 plate appearances this season, Matos has the lowest strikeout rate (4.3%) with just two strikeouts in 46 at-bats, which mirrors his performance in the minor leagues, where he struck out just 11.9% of his batters in 357 games.
Matos certainly has the power (he hit 49 home runs in the minor leagues, 15 of which came in 2021), but his average exit velocity (87.1 mph) isn’t eye-catching, but he’s hitting the ball hard with some pull and getting the ball off the ground (all pluses) at this point.
Matos has decent speed but has yet to steal a base this season. He’s played five seasons in the minor leagues and had three major league steals last year. Unfortunately, his leg strength is limited. The Giants have allowed the fewest stolen bases this season, and their 0.50 stolen bases per game is the second-lowest in the major leagues.
No matter how well Matos has played since establishing himself in the Giants lineup, he’s not going to be the league champion you dream of, but he’s good enough to be on your roster and fill in for a struggling or injured player without hurting your team.
big hit
Ryan McMahon, 2B/3B, Rockies
His 10-game hitting streak was ended Thursday, but over his past 11 games he had a .333 batting average with four home runs, 10 RBIs, 11 runs scored and a .985 OPS.
Luis Gil SP, Yankees
He has won six of his last seven games (including a five-game winning streak) to post a 6-0 record with a 1.52 ERA, 50 strikeouts and a .146 batting average.
Michael Garcia, 3B, Royals
He entered Friday on a 10-game hitting streak, batting .364 with one home run, eight RBIs, 11 runs scored and four stolen bases for a .969 OPS.
Chris Sale SP, Braves
During that span, he has won six straight games with a 1.15 ERA, a 50-3 strikeout/walk ratio and an opponent batting average of .181. In his last three starts, he has not allowed an earned run and has struck out 28 batters.
BIn case of strikeout
Justin Steele SP, Cubs
Not only has he lost two straight games, but in his past three starts he has allowed 15 earned runs, 18 hits (six of which were home runs) and opponents batting .273.
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Justin Turner, 3B, Blue Jays
In his first 13 games this month, he struck out just six times but was just four hits in 48 at-bats (.083), with one RBI and a .258 OPS.
Bryce Miller SP, Mariners
He has allowed 11 home runs this season, second-most in the major leagues, and six this month, going 0-3 with a 5.79 ERA.
Tyler O’Neill, outfielder, Red Sox
In his first 18 games this month, he batted .167 with 30 strikeouts, and his average improved from .320 on April 30 to .248 by the end of the week.
Check your swing
— Nestor Cortes is listed in 52.2 percent of ESPN leagues, but that may be because he’s only useful 50 percent of the time. In six starts at Yankee Stadium, the left-hander is 3-1 with a 1.12 ERA, 40-5 strikeout record, 0.719 WHIP and .170 opponent batting average. In five starts outside the Bronx, he’s 0-3 with a 6.75 ERA, 1.618 WHIP and .293 opponent batting average.
Evan Carter‘His miserable season has only gotten worse this month. Through his first 15 games in May, he was 7-for-46 (.152) with no home runs, 4 RBI, 5 runs scored, 15 strikeouts and a .437 OPS. Coming into Friday’s game, he had just 2 hits in his previous 31 at-bats.
— Matt Chapman has 19 hits in 51 at-bats (.373 batting average) with four home runs, 13 RBIs, 15 runs scored and two stolen bases for a 1.183 OPS in his last 13 games, improving his batting average from .204 on May 7 to .249 through Friday.
— Miami’s Jesus Luzardo went 2-1 with a 0.92 ERA, a 19-1 strikeout-walk ratio and a .174 batting average in his first three starts since returning from the disabled list.
Yu Darvish Entering Friday’s start against the Yankees, he hadn’t allowed an earned run in his past four starts, going 4-0 with a .124 batting average, 3-for-24 strikeout-to-walk ratio and a .315 OPS in that span.
— Texas’ Nathaniel Lowe in the past 12 games this month He had just six hits in 43 at-bats (all singles and one home run), struck out 17 times and had an OPS of .464 during that time.
— Ellie de la Cruz in Cincinnati He’s played in 50 games this season — roughly half the number he’s played in 2023 — and has already stolen 31 bases. Last year, he had 35.
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