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Zack Greinke is with the Houston Astros: Now what?

In a late MLB Trade Deadline bombshell, the World Series-contending Houston Astros acquired starting pitcher Zack Greinke from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for a package of prospects. Stunningly, the Astros now sport arguably the best three-headed monster in baseball at the top of their pitching rotation. Greinke (2.90 ERA, 0.95 WHIP) joins Gerrit Cole (league-leader in strikeouts) and the ageless Justin Verlander to form a most formidable rotation.

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But what does this all mean for Greinke’s fantasy value? Well, fantasy baseball expert Dalton Del Don thinks that while Greinke is moving to a better team overall and should be receiving better run support, there are some reasons to believe that his fantasy value won’t rise exponentially.

First off, Arizona possesses arguably the league’s best defense, which has helped their former pitcher immensely this season. Also, Greinke will have to deal with the DH in the American League going forward. Fantasy gamers rostering Greinke shouldn’t expect a huge jump in value, according to Dalton, considering that Greinke is already a top-flight asset.

Some other big moves on the Trade Deadline included Nicholas Castellanos moving to the Chicago Cubs (Dalton says it’s a clear lineup upgrade), but also Franmil Reyes is a name who gets a sneaky upgrade moving to Cleveland. He gets a big boost getting away from Petco Park, and he moves from the crowded San Diego outfield to an open DH spot in Cleveland. His OF-eligibility will remain in fantasy and the move to DH should keep Reyes and his powerful bat healthy.