It's playoff time in nearly every head-to-head points format, so there's no time to waste with expected stats or stashes. Now is the time to maximize the potential of your team and bring home a league championship.
Accordingly, the goal of this article will be simple: identify widely available players that are set up for success in the final few weeks of the fantasy season.
Hitters
David Peralta, OF 
– 11% Yahoo, 9% CBS
Peralta's usefulness is admittedly narrowed even further by format because he's in the lineup strictly against right-handed pitching. That limits his utility to daily lineup leagues and is a potential option to stream on and off the roster throughout matchups.
After getting those caveats out of the way, it's time to highlight the positives. Since July 2, Peralta has hit .305 with a .350 on-base percentage. His six home runs and two stolen bases limit the excitement for him in roto leagues, but he has a solid 6.6 percent walk rate paired with only a 19 percent strikeout rate -- making him well-suited for points. Putting that all together, Peralta has averaged 3.1 fantasy points per game (CBS scoring) across the last four weeks. The return of Fernando Tatis could ultimately end Peralta's run, but production right now is the key and Tatis' return is not imminent.
Andrew Benintendi, OF 
– 13% CBS
There are several reasons to dismiss Benintendi without a second thought. Overall, he remains a relatively unproductive player and he plays
It's playoff time in nearly every head-to-head points format, so there's no time to waste with expected stats or stashes. Now is the time to maximize the potential of your team and bring home a league championship.
Accordingly, the goal of this article will be simple: identify widely available players that are set up for success in the final few weeks of the fantasy season.
Hitters
David Peralta, OF – 11% Yahoo, 9% CBS
Peralta's usefulness is admittedly narrowed even further by format because he's in the lineup strictly against right-handed pitching. That limits his utility to daily lineup leagues and is a potential option to stream on and off the roster throughout matchups.
After getting those caveats out of the way, it's time to highlight the positives. Since July 2, Peralta has hit .305 with a .350 on-base percentage. His six home runs and two stolen bases limit the excitement for him in roto leagues, but he has a solid 6.6 percent walk rate paired with only a 19 percent strikeout rate -- making him well-suited for points. Putting that all together, Peralta has averaged 3.1 fantasy points per game (CBS scoring) across the last four weeks. The return of Fernando Tatis could ultimately end Peralta's run, but production right now is the key and Tatis' return is not imminent.
Andrew Benintendi, OF – 13% CBS
There are several reasons to dismiss Benintendi without a second thought. Overall, he remains a relatively unproductive player and he plays on one of the worst offensive teams in the history of baseball. However, he's very quietly hit six home runs in August while posting a .377 wOBA. Hitting in a key spot in the order in the White Sox lineup is worth relatively little compared to the Dodgers or Yankees (or even a mediocre team), but Benintendi has been locked into the third spot in the order for the last three weeks.
Parker Meadows, OF 
- 29% CBS, 11% Yahoo
Meadows finally got a second chance in the majors this season with a promotion in early August. Unlike what we saw earlier in the season, he's taken advantage with key numbers such as a .362 OBP and 10 extra-base hits in 19 games. He also has 14 runs scored and five stolen bases, meaning he's providing points in every way possible. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, his strikeout rate is only 16.3 percent since being recalled. In his first sample this season, that mark was 35.1 percent.
Jonah Bride, 1B 
– 18% CBS
Bride has had the chance to be a regular in the lineup after the Marlins tore down their roster at the trade deadline. The chances of this being a hot run in a small sample are very high, but Bride has scored 24.5, 22 and 20 fantasy points in the last three full weeks. This is strictly a play to roster a hot hand.
Whit Merrifield 
, 2B/OF – 22% CBS, 17% Yahoo
Merrifield is a well-known fantasy option due to his days in Kansas City, but he's doing his best to turn back the clock. He's taken over at second base in Atlanta with Ozzie Albies (wrist) sidelined and since July 31, Merrifield has painted a points league masterpiece. He has a .402 on-base percentage and only a 17.4 percent strikeout rate. The power is less impressive, but four steals and 17 runs scored in 26 games more than makes up for that. Albies isn't likely to be back until mid-September at the earliest, so Merrifield has some time to keep this run going.
Pitchers
Gavin Williams, SP 
– 64% CBS, 42% Yahoo
Unlike the players we've highlighted to this point, Williams isn't at a peak point in his production. He has a 4.99 ERA and 1.41 WHIP this season, which began July 1 after he overcame a shoulder injury. Williams has also averaged only 5.9 points per game, which isn't particularly helpful.
While there is some projection required to put everything together, Williams' skills are still strong. In particular, his 24.9 percent strikeout rate carries significant value in points leagues. It takes a leap of faith, but if some of his more luck-based metrics normalize (particularly a 68.5 LOB%), he could have a big close to the season. His remaining schedule is a mixed bag, as he matches up with the Pirates and Rays in the next two weeks but also the Dodgers. At the very least, Williams is a good buy-low option this offseason.
Nick Martinez, SP/RP 
– 21% CBS, 23% Yahoo
Martinez has struggled as a starter for most of this season, but he has a few factors in his favor. The Reds' rotation is decimated with five starters currently on the injured list, so the team has basically no choice but to give him an opportunity to work more as a traditional starter. To dive a bit further on that, Martinez has piggybacked his last two starts, but both came before Nick Lodolo (finger) landed on the injured list, so I'd anticipate that Martinez gets stretched out further.
Martinez also struggled as a starter for most of the season, instead doing well in relief. In three traditional starts earlier in August though, he posted a 16:0 K:BB while allowing only three earned runs across 18 innings.
Joey Estes, SP 
– 16% CBS
Oakland has some interesting pitching pieces emerging, highlighted by Osvaldo Bido and JP Sears. Estes may be joining that list. He's had a great stretch of run prevention throughout August, never allowing more than three earned runs in any of his five starts. Estes isn't a prolific option for strikeouts, but he also has limited walks during his successful stretch (four walks in 29.2 innings). Even with an inflated homer rate, he's been able to mitigate the damage to primarily solo shots as a result of that control.
Wins would be a reasonable concern, but Estes has earned six in only 19 appearances this season. In a full year, that's around a 10-win clip which isn't much to complain about for a waiver pickup/streamer.
Andrew Heaney, SP/RP – 55 CBS%, 30% Yahoo
Heaney is a known commodity at this point and the most consistent thing about him is his inconsistency. On the other hand, he's another SP/RP option and his schedule is what draws me in for the last few weeks. He projects to draw the Yankees his next time out, which should deflate his roster rates, but then lines up for the Angels and Mariners twice. That should take him through the conclusion of most points league seasons and features some of the most strikeout-prone teams in the league.
