Sorare Ranks Update #16 - July 20th, 2023
Second half blues? Not up in here!
The latter half of the season is often difficult.
Not because there is a lack of information, storylines to monitor, or baseball to physically watch.
No, in my experience the difficulty simply comes from the length of the season. We are multiple months in with the All-Star game and Home Run Derby now behind us, yet playoffs are still a ways off.
Many casual managers might check out here, and who can blame them, the season is long and life is busy.
But you? Reading this? Right now? No way.
This is where you can make your team better by leaps and bounds.
When nobody is watching, you can snag players on the cheap. Players that might help you win now, or players that are nearing a healthy return and will provide points for years to come.
This is where the magic happens.
Rankings
Pro tip: click or tap the top of any given column to sort the data. You can also search for a given player using the “Search in table” box.
Players with negative numbers in the “+/-” column are “Values”, while players with positive numbers in that column are considered “Overvalues.” Lastly, if the google doc was your best friend, you can still find it right here.
Please note: based on how the pricing data is pulled, some players have blanks in their +/-. This will improve over time as more and more cards continue to hit the market for each player and more data flows to the provider.
10 Value Candidates
10 (mostly) new targets for value-driven managers.
Brandon Woodruff - MIL - SP
SoRank: 40 | Implied Rank: 154 | -114 slot differential
Occupying the first spot two weeks in a row is Brandon Woodruff, who continues to near his return to big league action. Price sits at almost its lowest, yet the timeline to return is shorter with each passing week,
Vinnie Pasquantino - KC - 1B/DH
SoRank: 58 | Implied Rank: 200 | -142 slot differential
He’s out with a long-term injury right now, but Vinnie P is one of the most exciting young first basemen in the game, and can finally be had at a discount. I am looking to stack him with teammate Bobby Witt for the next decade.
Max Scherzer - NYM - SP
SoRank: 85 | Implied Rank: 170 | -85 slot differential
I’m expecting ace-caliber stuff from Scherzer for the remainder of this season and at least the next year. Sounds pretty appealing at this price point.
Miguel Vargas - LAD - 2B
SoRank: 92 | Implied Rank: 162 | -70 slot differential
A prospect heralded for his plus hit tool gets sent back to the minors for a bit more seasoning and people lose their minds. What a wonderful time to buy-in.
Luis Severino - NYY - SP
SoRank: 105 | Implied Rank: 384 | -279 slot differential
According to Lance Brozdowski of Lance’s Pitcher Notes, Severino’s stuff has been on the rebound. Young talented pitcher for a significant discount on a team that should win more than it has. Neato.
David Bednar - PIT - RP
SoRank: 107 | Implied Rank: 237 | -130 slot differential
Alexis Diaz owners take note, Bednar was the hottest closer on the planet there for a few weeks. Injuries have cleared out the Pirates three top bats, making save chances more sparse, but the talent remains and those bats are starting to near returns. I don’t often tout snagging a closer for the long term, but here we are.
Lucas Giolito - CWS - OF
SoRank: 120 | Implied Rank: 210 | -90 slot differential
I was already a Giolito truther, and now with talks of him being linked to the Dodgers this trade season I am even more in. He’s got the stuff, and the Dodgers have proven they can help their pitchers maximize performance.
Ian Happ - CHC - OF/DH
SoRank: 139 | Implied Rank: 213 | -74 slot differential
Happ was featured in Value+ last week alongside teammate Seiya Suzuki. Both project for improved second halves. Happ can provide strong value for your OF slot/
Bret Baty - NYM - 3B
SoRank: 145 | Implied Rank: 224 | -79 slot differential
Post-hype rookie sleeper, hooray!! Rookie development isn’t a linear process, and Baty was a favorite of mine coming into the season. He can finally be snagged on the cheap since he didn’t immediately dazzle.
Ezequiel Tovar - COL - SS
SoRank: 148 | Implied Rank: 215 | -67 slot differential
ANOTHER ROOKIE. Tovar is playing everyday SS for the Rockies, gets a great home park, and has recently begun showing he can handle big-league pitching well. Plus, he’s super young!
10 Overvalued Candidates
10 new faces to consider parting ways with over the latter half of the season.
Kyle Schwarber - PHI - OF/DH
SoRank: 86 | Implied Rank: 44 | 42 slot differential
I’m old enough to remember when Schwarb was a great value. No longer. Just goes to show how fluid card value is, since his ROS expectation hasn’t really moved. My verdict here is you simply missed your shot to buy in for cheap, the entry point now is painful.
Christian Yelich - MIL - OF/DH
SoRank: 98 | Implied Rank: 46 | 52 slot differential
Not my boy, Yeli! I’m definitely not saying you need to sell here, Yelich has just been hot and his value has really risen as a result.
Blake Snell - SD - SP
SoRank: 117 | Implied Rank: 74 | 43 slot differential
Snell has pitched amazingly of late, we’ve just also seen extended cold/wild streaks out of him. I’m fine if managers want to cash in on some gains here.
CJ Abrams - WSH - 2B/SS
SoRank: 165 | Implied Rank: 84 | 81 slot differential
A lot of the fantasy space has been calling Abrams “Sneaky Good” for the second half. But when enough people say it, it stops being sneaky. I think we’ve reached that point and then some.
Whit Merrifield - TOR - 2B/OF
SoRank: 249 | Implied Rank: 182 | 67 slot differential
That’s All-Star Whit Merrifield to you, buster. It’s been a good rebound season, just like the ranks had projected. I just like the exit point now.
Charlie Morton - ATL - SP
SoRank: 255 | Implied Rank: 222 | 33 slot differential
He’s not a screamin’ overvalue, but this is worth considering simply due to his age (39). Morton is an effective spot starter, but can return a bit of value for managers looking to go shopping.
Bryan De La Cruz - MIA - OF
SoRank: 268 | Implied Rank: 153 | 115 slot differential
This could be a case of a worthy buy high, but I wanted to mention it. De La Cruz has been very solid this season and is now being valued around a top 150 asset. He was a popular breakout candidate coming into the season, and we might be seeing it. For Sorare, since I am not building a MIA stack, I’d be looking to swap/sell high here.
Alexis Diaz - CIN - RP
SoRank: 269 | Implied Rank: 49 | 220 slot differential
Diaz is awesome, and the Reds are lighting the world on fire with their young talent, but a word of warning. Diaz currently sits as the 3rd highest priced RP, behind only Spencer Strider RP cards and Felix Bautista. There are other exceptional closers for much lower prices.
Ha-seong Kim - SD - 3B/SS
SoRank: 291 | Implied Rank: 129 | 162 slot differential
I think people just really love this guy. Plus he is on a great team. I think he’s very solid, but has now found himself in overvalue territory compared to others that could be had at his price.
Justin Turner- CHC - SP
SoRank: 295 | Implied Rank: 126 | 169 slot differential
Couldn’t resist. He keeps getting more expensive!
Quick final note - look out for the value+ graphic for the week, set to drop Friday morning!
I shifted it back by a day so I can give you the most up-to-the-minute reporting on who is in/out, and how strong their matchups truly are.
Going forward, be sure to look for two value+ graphics per week for the remainder of the season, one on Monday and one on Friday. Cheers!
That’s a wrap on the rankings, values, and overvalues for the week!
I would be deeply grateful if you could share these ranks with a friend, then (if you like) trot over to Twitter and toss me a follow. Or Threads, if that is your jam now.
It may sound silly, but it is huge for helping this newsletter grow 🙌
Good luck out there this week managers!
Lemme see those W’s as you take down tournaments!