2024 Fantasy Baseball trade values chart shows potential Matt McLain replacements

The trade values chart aims to help you make the best value trades you can

The Fantasy Baseball season hasn't even started and you've probably got some holes to fill in your lineup if you've already drafted. It happens every April, but it feels like we've had an especially tough spring in terms of injuries so far. Among just starting-caliber Fantasy options injured in the past week or so, we've got Eury Perez, TJ Friedl, Josh Lowe, and Gerrit Cole all expected to start the season on the IL, and it's starting to look like Matt McLain will join them after he suffered a shoulder injury Tuesday. 

In fact, it might be a lot longer than just an "opens the season on the IL" kind of injury for McLain. McLain had an MRI taken Wednesday that showed a vague, but ominous sounding, "something," per reports, and the Reds are considering their options. To be clear, Opening Day has not been ruled out yet, but surgery is also "considered an option" per one report ... which doesn't give us very much to go on!

McLain has had a lot of trouble staying healthy already this spring, with his start to spring delayed by an oblique injury that lingered from last season and kept him out of games until last week. However, he was still mostly being drafted as a top-100 pick throughout the spring, but that's definitely going to change after this latest news. I've moved him down to the 150 range of my rankings as we wait for updates on his status, and his upside could still make him worth drafting there even if he does end up having to miss time.

But if you've already drafted, you need to make alternate plans, just in case. If you had McLain slotted into a 2B, SS, or MI spot, you were probably expecting him to be a big part of your lineup in 2024, and he still may be; but there's also a real chance you don't get anything from him at all at this point. So, let's try to find some low-priced replacement options in the middle infield to consider buying low on before the season starts before we get to my preseason trade values charts for both Roto and H2H. 

You know, just in case. 

Five cheap Matt McLain replacements to consider

1. Jackson Holliday, SS, Orioles -- If you want to aim for comparable upside to McLain, Holliday is where you should start, and one positive about him not making the Opening Day roster is, if you've got the flexibility to stash, he won't cost very much at all! It's disappointing that Holliday isn't opening the season on the roster, but with Orioles GM Mike Elias saying he's "very, very close," I still think there's a decent chance Holliday beats McLain to an MLB game. 
2. Jonathan India, 2B, Reds -- You can also look for India's teammate, who has gone from having significant playing time concerns to potentially playing every day at second base if McLain is out; if McLain is fine, India should still play plenty between first base, third base, and the outfield. I have concerns about his lingering plantar fasciitis injury, but India's 150-game pace last season was pretty terrific: 21 homers, 18 steals, and 175 combined runs and RBI. It's not what you dreamed of from McLain, but it could be a terrific replacement. 
3. Brandon Lowe, 2B, Rays -- Lowe won't run as much as McLain would have, so if you were counting on speed from that roster spot, he might not be the best choice. But Lowe had a bounceback season in 2023, and is still averaging 34 homers, 188 runs-plus-RBI, and even eight steals per-162 games for his career. He might be the best power hitter at second base besides Mookie Betts, and nobody seems to value him that way. 
4. Trevor Story, SS, Red Sox -- I'm expecting Story to be better than the past couple of seasons, but even if he isn't, he should be a serviceable McLain replacement. In 137 games since signing with the Red Sox, Story has provided 19 homers and 23 steals with 145 combined runs and RBI. If he improves on his .227 average in that span, he's going to be a steal. 
5. Gavin Lux, 2B, Dodgers -- There's been a lot of consternation around Lux being moved off shortstop by the Dodgers, but you could actually view it as a positive thing for his Fantasy value: The Dodgers are willing to move Betts to shortstop to keep Lux's bat in the lineup. He hasn't done much in the majors since being a top prospect, but Lux apparently saw a significant increase in bat speed last offseason before a season-ending ACL tear, and he has five-category upside for what might be a basement-level price if you try to trade for him. He's the longest shot here -- I actually feel very good about the other four being starting-caliber options -- but there's some upside here if you don't have many trade candidates to shop with. 

H2H Trade Values Chart

Rank	Player	Value	Eligible
1	Ronald Acuna	53	OF
2	Jose Ramirez	43	3B-DH
3	Juan Soto	43	OF
4	Kyle Tucker	43	OF
5	Mookie Betts	43	2B-OF
6	Corbin Carroll	43	OF
7	Aaron Judge	43	DH-OF
8	Freddie Freeman	43	1B
9	Yordan Alvarez	43	DH-OF
10	Fernando Tatis	43	OF
11	Spencer Strider	43	SP
12	Julio Rodriguez	37	OF
13	Bobby Witt	36	SS
14	Shohei Ohtani	36	DH-SP
15	Corey Seager	35	SS
16	Corbin Burnes	35	SP
17	Bryce Harper	35	1B-DH
18	Matt Olson	35	1B
19	Pete Alonso	28	1B
20	Trea Turner	25	SS
21	Marcus Semien	25	2B
22	Tarik Skubal	24	SP
23	Aaron Nola	24	SP
24	Zac Gallen	24	SP
25	George Kirby	24	SP
26	Austin Riley	24	3B
27	Ozzie Albies	24	2B
28	Vladimir Guerrero	24	1B-DH
29	Francisco Lindor	24	SS
30	Jose Altuve	24	2B
31	Rafael Devers	24	3B
32	Kevin Gausman	24	SP
33	Pablo Lopez	24	SP
34	Framber Valdez	24	SP
35	Luis Castillo	24	SP
36	Gunnar Henderson	24	3B-SS
37	Zack Wheeler	24	SP
38	Bo Bichette	23	SS
39	C.J. Abrams	21	SS
40	Logan Webb	21	SP
41	Logan Gilbert	21	SP
42	Elly De La Cruz	21	3B-SS
43	Alex Bregman	21	3B
44	Randy Arozarena	19	OF
45	Adolis Garcia	19	OF
46	Mike Trout	19	OF
47	Zach Eflin	19	SP
48	Christian Yelich	19	DH-OF
49	Tyler Glasnow	19	SP
50	Luis Robert	19	OF
51	Nico Hoerner	19	2B-SS
52	Michael Harris	19	OF
53	Cole Ragans	19	RP-SP
54	Yoshinobu Yamamoto	19	SP
55	Cody Bellinger	18	1B-OF
56	Royce Lewis	18	3B
57	Oneil Cruz	18	SS
58	Manny Machado	18	3B-DH
59	Kyle Schwarber	18	DH-OF
60	Nolan Jones	17	OF
61	Max Fried	16	SP
62	Blake Snell	15	SP
63	J.T. Realmuto	15	C
64	Paul Goldschmidt	15	1B-DH
65	Josh Hader	15	RP
66	Will Smith	15	C
67	Grayson Rodriguez	15	SP
68	Emmanuel Clase	15	RP
69	Seiya Suzuki	15	OF
70	Jazz Chisholm	15	OF
71	Tanner Bibee	15	SP
72	Edwin Diaz	15	RP
73	Jesus Luzardo	15	SP
74	Nolan Arenado	15	3B
75	Justin Steele	15	SP
76	Max Muncy	15	3B
77	Joe Musgrove	15	SP
78	Freddy Peralta	15	SP
79	Adley Rutschman	15	C-DH
80	Bobby Miller	15	SP
81	Xander Bogaerts	15	SS
82	Nick Castellanos	15	OF
83	Yandy Diaz	15	1B
84	Dylan Cease	15	SP
85	Bryan Reynolds	15	OF
86	William Contreras	15	C-DH
87	Riley Greene	15	OF
88	Christian Walker	15	1B
89	Wyatt Langford	15	OF
90	Ketel Marte	15	2B
91	Triston Casas	15	1B
92	Ha-seong Kim	14	2B-3B-SS
93	Andres Gimenez	14	2B
94	Luis Arraez	14	2B
95	Chris Bassitt	14	SP
96	Ian Happ	14	OF
97	Josh Naylor	14	1B-DH
98	Raisel Iglesias	14	RP
99	Jose Berrios	14	SP
100	Vinnie Pasquantino	14	1B
101	Gleyber Torres	14	2B
102	Spencer Torkelson	14	1B
103	Bryson Stott	14	2B
104	Sonny Gray	14	SP
105	Camilo Doval	14	RP
106	Anthony Santander	14	DH-OF
107	Yainer Diaz	14	C-DH
108	Evan Carter	14	OF
109	George Springer	14	DH-OF
110	Josh Jung	14	3B
111	David Bednar	13	RP
112	Bailey Ober	13	SP
113	Paul Sewald	13	RP
114	Shane Bieber	13	SP
115	Chris Sale	13	SP
116	Dansby Swanson	13	SS
117	Jordan Walker	13	OF
118	Hunter Greene	13	SP
119	Alexis Diaz	13	RP
120	Jordan Romano	13	RP
121	Marcell Ozuna	12	DH
122	Ryan Helsley	12	RP
123	Carlos Rodon	12	SP
124	Thairo Estrada	12	2B-SS
125	Ke'Bryan Hayes	12	3B
126	Spencer Steer	12	1B-3B-OF
127	Jackson Chourio	12	OF
128	Merrill Kelly	12	SP
129	Andres Munoz	12	RP
130	Teoscar Hernandez	11	DH-OF
131	Christian Encarnacion-Strand	11	1B-DH
132	Joe Ryan	10	SP
133	Zack Gelof	10	2B
134	Pete Fairbanks	9	RP
135	Jhoan Duran	9	RP
136	Alec Bohm	8	1B-3B
137	Joshua Lowe	8	DH-OF
138	Walker Buehler	8	SP
139	Gavin Williams	8	SP
140	Kodai Senga	8	SP
141	Jorge Soler	8	DH-OF
142	Clay Holmes	8	RP
143	Jarren Duran	8	OF
144	Mitch Keller	8	SP
145	Evan Phillips	8	RP
146	Gerrit Cole	8	SP
147	Steven Kwan	8	OF
148	Salvador Perez	7	1B-C-DH
149	Tanner Scott	7	RP
150	Jordan Montgomery	7	SP
151	Masataka Yoshida	7	DH-OF
152	Cal Raleigh	7	C
153	Justin Verlander	7	SP
154	Francisco Alvarez	6	C
155	Michael King	6	RP-SP
156	Adbert Alzolay	6	RP
157	Sean Murphy	6	C
158	Willson Contreras	6	C-DH
159	Brandon Nimmo	6	OF
160	Jake Burger	6	3B-DH
161	Matt McLain	5	2B-SS
162	Isaac Paredes	5	1B-3B
163	Shota Imanaga	5	SP
164	Kenley Jansen	5	RP
165	Bo Naylor	5	C
166	Yu Darvish	5	SP
167	Logan O'Hoppe	5	C
168	Rhys Hoskins	5	1B
169	Henry Davis	5	OF
170	Mitch Garver	5	C-DH
171	Gabriel Moreno	5	C
172	Craig Kimbrel	5	RP
173	Cristian Javier	5	SP
174	Keibert Ruiz	5	C
175	Bryce Miller	5	SP
176	Willy Adames	5	SS
177	Hunter Brown	5	SP
178	Nick Pivetta	5	RP-SP
179	Chas McCormick	4	OF
180	Cedric Mullins	4	OF
181	Byron Buxton	4	DH
182	Trevor Story	4	SS
183	James Outman	4	OF
184	Eduardo Rodriguez	4	SP
185	Anthony Volpe	4	SS
186	Nathan Eovaldi	4	SP
187	Jackson Holliday	4	SS
188	Joel Payamps	3	RP
189	Carlos Estevez	3	RP
190	Ryan McMahon	3	2B-3B
191	Ryan Pepiot	3	RP
192	Lane Thomas	3	OF
193	Alex Lange	3	RP
194	Brandon Pfaadt	3	SP
195	Carlos Correa	3	SS
196	Jose Leclerc	3	RP
197	Aaron Civale	3	SP
198	Charlie Morton	3	SP
199	J.D. Martinez	3	DH
200	Jonathan India	3	2B
201	Jeremy Pena	3	SS
202	Ryan Mountcastle	3	1B-DH
203	Gavin Stone	3	SP
204	Jackson Merrill	3	SS
205	Jung-Hoo Lee	3	OF
206	Taylor Ward	3	OF
207	Luis Severino	3	SP
208	Maikel Garcia	3	3B
209	A.J. Puk	3	RP
210	Jose Alvarado	3	RP
211	Max Scherzer	3	SP
212	Andrew Vaughn	3	1B
213	Bryan Woo	3	SP
214	J.P. Crawford	3	SS
215	Tommy Edman	3	2B-OF-SS
216	Jonah Heim	3	C
217	Brandon Lowe	3	2B
218	Kerry Carpenter	3	DH-OF
219	Edouard Julien	3	2B-DH
220	Justin Turner	3	1B-DH
221	Josh Bell	3	1B-DH
222	Reid Detmers	3	SP
223	Yusei Kikuchi	3	SP
224	Jeimer Candelario	3	1B-3B
225	Christopher Morel	3	DH-OF
226	Daulton Varsho	3	OF
227	Ezequiel Tovar	3	SS
228	Eloy Jimenez	3	DH
229	Nolan Gorman	3	2B-DH

Roto Trade Values Chart

Rank	Player	Value	Eligible
1	Ronald Acuna	55	OF
2	Julio Rodriguez	42	OF
3	Bobby Witt	41	SS
4	Corbin Carroll	38	OF
5	Fernando Tatis	38	OF
6	Mookie Betts	38	2B-OF
7	Juan Soto	34	OF
8	Kyle Tucker	34	OF
9	Spencer Strider	34	SP
10	Freddie Freeman	34	1B
11	Aaron Judge	33	DH-OF
12	Shohei Ohtani	33	DH-SP
13	Jose Ramirez	33	3B-DH
14	Yordan Alvarez	33	DH-OF
15	Trea Turner	33	SS
16	Corbin Burnes	30	SP
17	Matt Olson	30	1B
18	Austin Riley	29	3B
19	Bryce Harper	29	1B-DH
20	Rafael Devers	28	3B
21	Pete Alonso	28	1B
22	Francisco Lindor	27	SS
23	Marcus Semien	26	2B
24	Ozzie Albies	26	2B
25	Zack Wheeler	26	SP
26	Vladimir Guerrero	25	1B-DH
27	Gunnar Henderson	24	3B-SS
28	Bo Bichette	23	SS
29	Luis Castillo	23	SP
30	Luis Robert	23	OF
31	Elly De La Cruz	23	3B-SS
32	Pablo Lopez	23	SP
33	Michael Harris	23	OF
34	Jose Altuve	23	2B
35	Corey Seager	23	SS
36	Randy Arozarena	22	OF
37	Aaron Nola	21	SP
38	Tarik Skubal	21	SP
39	Tyler Glasnow	21	SP
40	Zac Gallen	21	SP
41	Yoshinobu Yamamoto	21	SP
42	Kevin Gausman	21	SP
43	Adolis Garcia	21	OF
44	Framber Valdez	21	SP
45	Nico Hoerner	20	2B-SS
46	C.J. Abrams	20	SS
47	George Kirby	20	SP
48	Max Fried	20	SP
49	Logan Gilbert	20	SP
50	Logan Webb	20	SP
51	Royce Lewis	19	3B
52	Jazz Chisholm	18	OF
53	Mike Trout	18	OF
54	Nolan Jones	18	OF
55	Kyle Schwarber	18	DH-OF
56	Christian Yelich	18	DH-OF
57	Josh Naylor	15	1B-DH
58	Josh Jung	15	3B
59	Adley Rutschman	15	C-DH
60	Manny Machado	15	3B-DH
61	Justin Steele	15	SP
62	Yainer Diaz	15	C-DH
63	Xander Bogaerts	15	SS
64	Jackson Chourio	15	OF
65	Joshua Lowe	15	DH-OF
66	Nolan Arenado	15	3B
67	Raisel Iglesias	15	RP
68	David Bednar	15	RP
69	Bryson Stott	15	2B
70	Freddy Peralta	15	SP
71	Gleyber Torres	15	2B
72	George Springer	15	DH-OF
73	Dylan Cease	15	SP
74	Bryan Reynolds	15	OF
75	Paul Sewald	15	RP
76	Blake Snell	15	SP
77	Emmanuel Clase	15	RP
78	Grayson Rodriguez	15	SP
79	Jesus Luzardo	15	SP
80	Cole Ragans	15	RP-SP
81	Andres Munoz	15	RP
82	Anthony Santander	15	DH-OF
83	Ketel Marte	15	2B
84	Oneil Cruz	15	SS
85	Edwin Diaz	15	RP
86	J.T. Realmuto	15	C
87	Will Smith	15	C
88	Andres Gimenez	15	2B
89	Bobby Miller	15	SP
90	Tanner Bibee	15	SP
91	Cody Bellinger	15	1B-OF
92	Spencer Torkelson	15	1B
93	Riley Greene	15	OF
94	Ha-seong Kim	15	2B-3B-SS
95	Josh Hader	15	RP
96	Nick Castellanos	15	OF
97	Christian Walker	15	1B
98	Camilo Doval	15	RP
99	Paul Goldschmidt	15	1B-DH
100	Seiya Suzuki	15	OF
101	Triston Casas	15	1B
102	Jordan Walker	15	OF
103	William Contreras	15	C-DH
104	Joe Musgrove	15	SP
105	Alex Bregman	15	3B
106	Zach Eflin	15	SP
107	Yandy Diaz	15	1B
108	Dansby Swanson	15	SS
109	Wyatt Langford	14	OF
110	Evan Carter	14	OF
111	Jordan Romano	14	RP
112	Alexis Diaz	14	RP
113	Teoscar Hernandez	13	DH-OF
114	Vinnie Pasquantino	13	1B
115	Hunter Greene	13	SP
116	Pete Fairbanks	13	RP
117	Chris Sale	13	SP
118	Evan Phillips	13	RP
119	Ryan Helsley	13	RP
120	Jhoan Duran	13	RP
121	Clay Holmes	13	RP
122	Cal Raleigh	13	C
123	Spencer Steer	13	1B-3B-OF
124	Luis Arraez	13	2B
125	Christian Encarnacion-Strand	12	1B-DH
126	Zack Gelof	12	2B
127	Marcell Ozuna	11	DH
128	Kenley Jansen	10	RP
129	Ian Happ	9	OF
130	Esteury Ruiz	9	OF
131	Thairo Estrada	8	2B-SS
132	Sean Murphy	8	C
133	Mitch Garver	8	C-DH
134	Jackson Holliday	8	SS
135	Francisco Alvarez	8	C
136	Chris Bassitt	8	SP
137	Tanner Scott	8	RP
138	Carlos Rodon	8	SP
139	Willson Contreras	8	C-DH
140	Sonny Gray	7	SP
141	Keibert Ruiz	7	C
142	Trevor Story	7	SS
143	Gerrit Cole	7	SP
144	Rhys Hoskins	7	1B
145	Isaac Paredes	7	1B-3B
146	Jake Burger	7	3B-DH
147	Joe Ryan	7	SP
148	Justin Verlander	7	SP
149	Jonah Heim	7	C
150	Craig Kimbrel	7	RP
151	Gabriel Moreno	7	C
152	Anthony Volpe	7	SS
153	Jarren Duran	7	OF
154	Alec Bohm	7	1B-3B
155	Matt McLain	7	2B-SS
156	Merrill Kelly	7	SP
157	Jorge Soler	7	DH-OF
158	Salvador Perez	7	1B-C-DH
159	Max Muncy	7	3B
160	Willy Adames	7	SS
161	Ke'Bryan Hayes	7	3B
162	Bailey Ober	7	SP
163	Logan O'Hoppe	7	C
164	Adbert Alzolay	7	RP
165	Walker Buehler	7	SP
166	Kodai Senga	7	SP
167	Steven Kwan	6	OF
168	Masataka Yoshida	6	DH-OF
169	Shane Bieber	6	SP
170	Jose Berrios	6	SP
171	Bryan Woo	6	SP
172	Chas McCormick	6	OF
173	Cedric Mullins	6	OF
174	Eduardo Rodriguez	6	SP
175	Shota Imanaga	6	SP
176	Brandon Nimmo	6	OF
177	Mitch Keller	6	SP
178	Christopher Morel	5	DH-OF
179	Nolan Gorman	5	2B-DH
180	Eloy Jimenez	5	DH
181	Lane Thomas	5	OF
182	Byron Buxton	5	DH
183	Bo Naylor	5	C
184	Yu Darvish	5	SP
185	Gavin Williams	5	SP
186	Jordan Montgomery	5	SP
187	Michael King	5	RP-SP
188	Daulton Varsho	5	OF
189	Jose Alvarado	4	RP
190	Bryce Miller	4	SP
191	Cristian Javier	4	SP
192	Jung-Hoo Lee	4	OF
193	Kerry Carpenter	4	DH-OF
194	Taylor Ward	4	OF
195	Nathan Eovaldi	4	SP
196	James Outman	4	OF
197	Hunter Brown	4	SP
198	Colt Keith	3	3B
199	Carlos Correa	3	SS
200	Brandon Drury	3	1B-2B
201	Aaron Civale	3	SP
202	TJ Friedl	3	OF
203	Nick Pivetta	3	RP-SP
204	Carlos Estevez	3	RP
205	Joel Payamps	3	RP
206	Luis Campusano	3	C
207	Alex Lange	3	RP
208	Tommy Edman	3	2B-OF-SS
209	Anthony Rizzo	3	1B
210	Ezequiel Tovar	3	SS
211	Jeimer Candelario	3	1B-3B
212	Matt Chapman	3	3B
213	Jose Leclerc	3	RP
214	Nate Lowe	3	1B
215	Ryan McMahon	3	2B-3B
216	Henry Davis	3	OF
217	Starling Marte	3	OF
218	Lourdes Gurriel	3	DH-OF
219	Ryan Mountcastle	3	1B-DH
220	Lars Nootbaar	3	OF
221	Jackson Merrill	3	SS
222	Max Scherzer	2	SP
223	Justin Turner	2	1B-DH
224	Andrew Vaughn	2	1B
225	A.J. Puk	2	RP
226	Max Kepler	2	OF
227	Brandon Pfaadt	2	SP
228	Ryan Pepiot	2	RP
229	Jack Suwinski	2	OF
230	Andrew Abbott	2	SP
231	Robert Suarez	2	RP
232	Yennier Cano	2	RP
233	Jorge Polanco	2	2B
234	Jeremy Pena	2	SS
235	Reid Detmers	2	SP
236	Tyler O'Neill	2	OF
237	Nestor Cortes	2	SP
238	Jarred Kelenic	2	OF
239	Josh Bell	2	1B-DH
240	Yusei Kikuchi	2	SP
241	Braxton Garrett	2	SP
242	Luis Severino	2	SP
243	Maikel Garcia	2	3B
244	Mason Miller	2	SP
245	Danny Jansen	2	C
246	Kutter Crawford	2	SP
247	Bryan De La Cruz	2	OF
248	J.D. Martinez	2	DH
249	Luis Rengifo	2	2B-3B-OF-SS
250	Nick Lodolo	2	SP
251	Jonathan India	2	2B
252	Kenta Maeda	2	SP
253	Kyle Bradish	2	SP
254	Kyle Finnegan	2	RP
255	Tyler Stephenson	2	C-DH
256	Charlie Morton	2	SP