The fantasy baseball gods can be cruel. Those who invested in Jonathan Schoop, Rougned Odor, or Elvis Andrus know this all too well. Tim Beckham owners might feel the same way, though being ‘forced’ to remove the .179 BA from an active lineup may very well be an act of statistical mercy. The waiver wire crumbs left in the middle infield pool leave little hope. There is at least one band-aid that might stop the bleeding.
I fell in love with Gleyber Torres during spring training in 2017 when I saw the promising prospect effortlessly flick a deep homer to the opposite field. I’ve been waiting for his arrival ever since. The Yankees number nine hitter is available in 23% of NFBC 15 team leagues. Yes, you want him on your roster. The question is, will it be worth the king’s ransom it will cost to acquire his services? You’ll get good plate discipline, pitch recognition, batting average, and gap power, and the rookie will get on base, but at the bottom of the lineup. I think the power will come in time, but how long will it take? I was twice as excited about Javier Baez’ scintillating bat speed back in 2014; his star took four years to finally arise. Think of Torres as a rich man’s Asdrubal Cabrera with a higher ceiling and bid accordingly.
Small sample size, but the early returns on Aledmys Diaz and J.P. Crawford are not good. Crawford had retooled his swing utilizing Kevin Long’s famous ‘net drill’ or ‘home run drill’ as some players have dubbed it. The short-term results were impressive. The Phillies rookie was not only leaving the yard, but also depositing those fly balls in upper decks. Time will tell but that appears to have been a flash-in-the-pan, and serves as a caveat when considering hot streaks from the dregs on the NFBC free agent wire.
Enter Daniel Robertson, who arrived at spring training with the usual serving of clichés: best shape of his life, lost weight, stronger, etc. None of the hype translates into much production early on, but the youngster has heated up of late. Nothing in his profile portends much of a breakout, but Robertson has improved his plate discipline, and coupled with his pitch recognition, this has resulted in an excellent BB/K ratio. Tampa’s hottest hitting infielder is driving the ball with more power than I’ve seen him previously, but it’s been off of fastballs in the meat of the plate, or off speed stuff with little movement. Tropicana field isn’t exactly a hitters haven, the Rays lineup has plenty of holes (Tampa has been hot, but I am not convinced it is real yet), and Robertson’s career high in Homers above High-A ball is five in one season. If you’re desperate to fill a hole, he’s worth a token bid to ride while hot.
After that, you’re left with mostly fantasy scrubs. Some possible one-week fill-ins based on schedule: Jose Iglesias and Dixon Machado both get seven games against the Rays and the Royals pitching staffs. Brandon Crawford will travel to SunTrust Park next weekend, which should boost the left-handed hitter’s power. Miguel Rojas will visit Great American Smallpark with a chance to feed on the Cincinnati Reds starters and their weak bullpen. If you have room you could stream for a couple/few weeks playing matchups, then pickup and hold Dustin Pedroia or Adalberto Mondesi until the Red Sox keytone star returns to the lineup or the Royals speed merchant replaces the weak hitting Alcides Escobar.
Other positions to consider:
Tyler Austin, 1B Yankees: Historically has struggled versus righties making him subject to a platoon, but has slashed .268/.659/.977 against them in a small sample this year.
Rajai Davis, OF Indians: Probably just a one-week stopgap if you need a small boost in stolen bases. The man who almost spoiled the World Series for the Cubbies has been relegated to the short side of a platoon, starting mostly just against left handed pitching. Cleveland has eight games this week, with five of them against southpaws.
Tyler Flowers, C Braves: Activated this weekend and worth a look if you are hurting at your second catcher spot.
Follow Greg @Liquidhippo.
