A list of the players that are truly undervalued in fantasy baseball that you should consider picking up.
There will be no Pablo Sandoval's or Justin Upton's on this list-players that everyone is calling underrated so therefore...they are no longer underrated and have become overrated in fact.
CATCHER:
Kelly Shoppach (CLE)- (Available in 58% of leagues)
Will get plenty of opportunities to catch and he hit 21 HRs last season.
Jared Saltalamacchia (TEX)- (Available in 63% of leagues)
Everyone is so high on Taylor Teagarden this year that Salty has been sort of pushed to the side. He's still very young and talented so he could break out at any time.
Jesus Flores (WAS)- (Available in 93% of leagues)
Not a ton of people are familiar with him but he has produced pretty well in his 170 career big league games. He won't win you any leagues single handidly, but if one of your catchers gets injured or is struggling, have him on your radar.
FIRST BASE:
Adam LaRoche (PIT)-(Available in 60% of leagues)
Sure, he always starts out slow, but after his month or so of being far below average, he can really contribute-as evidenced by the 25 home runs he hit last season.
Todd Helton (COL)- (Available in 82% of leagues)
Did you not see the Spring he had this year? I'll be the first to tell you that spring stats are meaningless...most of the time, but I think they can be a strong indicator of someone who had a down year due to injury will perform in the upcoming season. He could be a major upgrade as your backup 1B.
SECOND BASE:
Mark Teahan (KC)- (Available in 83% of leagues)
A 27 year old who has had a couple of off years after posting a very solid 2006 campaign is a player that I would normally keep an eye on anyway. Throw in the fact that he is now moving to 2B and also has eligibility at 1B, 3B, and OF...this player could really help you out.
Ronnie Belliard (WAS)- (Available in 97% of leagues)
In 297 ABs last year, he hit 11 homers and batted .287. He is the Nationals starting second baseman. He has additional eligibility at 1B and 3B. If you are in need of some position flexibility and potential for a solid season at a shallow position, Belliard is your man.
THIRD BASE:
Chase Headley (SD)- (Available in 88% of leagues)
In about half a season's worth of ABs, he hit 9 HRs and drove in 38 runs. Now those aren't exactly what you would call starter caliber numbers, but provided you have little depth at either 3B or OF, you should seriously consider picking up Headley.
Scott Rolen (TOR)- (Available in 94% of leagues)
Yes, he more than likely will go down with some sort of injury in a month or two, but if your current third-baseman is out, A-rod and Glaus owners, you could pick Rolen up for a very solid stretch of games before the inevitable injury comes his way.
SHORTSTOP:
Jason Bartlett (TB)- (Available in 94% of leagues)
There is no real reason to own Bartlett, unless your team is in absolute dire need of steals and the shelf is completely barren of shortstops-if thats the case, then feel free picking him up.
OUTFIELD:
Adam Lind (TOR)- (Available in 56% of leagues)
But that number is probably plummeting in a hurry, and rightfully so. This kid (he's only 25) has a good makeup at the plate and has real big league power on his 6-1 215 lb frame. Drop one of your backup outfielders for this kid, you'll be glad you did.
Luke Scott (BAL)- (Available in 94% of leagues)
If your team is very average-heavy and needs a slight boost in the HR category, pick up Scott. Don't be alarmed when your team BA goes down slightly, thats to be expected with a career .226 (and sliding) hitter, but he still has solid pop in that bat.
Randy Winn (SF)- (Available in 80% of leagues)
Of the free-agent OFs, he is as close to the anti-LukeScott as you can really get. The power has all but left the bat of this 34 year old, but he is very crafty on the base paths and a solid batting average guy. Expect a .300 average and 20 or so steals with a dozen HRs tops.
David DeJesus (KC)- (Available in 84% of leagues)
A .300 hitter that reached double digit steals and homeruns, moving back to a much more natural position. Sign me up.
Andruw Jones (TEX)- (Available in 97% of leagues)
If any Ranger outfielder or DH not named Josh Hamilton should struggle out of the gate, Jones-who is in much better shape than he's been in years-would be first in line to step in and take those ABs. If he can get to 400 at-bats, I could see him hitting about 20 HRs with a .250 to .270 BA.
Rotoworld Fantasy Sports News
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Top under the radar players (Hitters)
Labels:
baseball,
fantasy,
fantasy baseball,
free agents,
MLB,
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