He has thrown 69.2 innings over 10 starts and 15 appearances with a 2.45 ERA, pitches in one of the best pitchers parks in baseball, and yet is owned in just 8% of Yahoo! leagues. So what gives, why isn’t anyone owning Eric Stults?
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Andrelton Simmons is slated to return to the Braves within the first week or so of September, which should be a big boost for the team down the stretch run but likely will not be that big of a boost to your fantasy team during that same stretch. Simmons is an extremely talented player, but expecting him to perform for the final three weeks of the season as he did during his first 33 games in the majors is unwise.
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There is one huge flaw that is keeping Danny Espinosa from reaching the upper echelon of middle infielders in fantasy baseball, an enormous strikeout rate. While the strikeout rate is unlikely to come down, Espinosa can still be a rather useful fantasy player. His dual eligibility at both middle infield spots makes him extra valuable, but it is nice to see that we can pretty much expect what type of player he is for the foreseeable future.
The Braves have gotten some stellar performances from a few unlikely places the past few weeks, Paul Maholm and Kris Medlen. With a rotation that was expected to be among the deepest in the league, the fact that Medlen and Maholm are in the rotation to begin with is a surprise, but it is an even bigger surprise that they are performing as well as they have. I documented Maholm’s success and potential future success in Atlanta yesterday, so today I will look at where I believe Medlen fits into the Braves plans.
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In his three starts with Atlanta, Paul Maholm has allowed just four runs and gone at least seven innings in every start. Each of the runs he has allowed has been via the home run, with only one being more than a solo shot. Obviously this will change, but Maholm certainly looks like he is fitting well in the Braves rotation.
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Mike Minor’s 4.95 ERA certainly does not look impressive, neither does his league leading 23 home runs allowed. What does look impressive is his 3.15 ERA over his past 11 starts, and it certainly looks like he has started to turn a corner.
I wrote over at Capitol Avenue Club about Minor’s increased usage of his breaking balls, and how he also succeeded last year when he upped the frequency of his slider and curveball. Last year, when he decided to rely more heavily on the breaking balls he finished the season with a 3.83 ERA over nine starts with a 51-15 strikeout-to-walk ratio. This year, his ERA over his past 11 starts — when he upped his combined breaking ball frequency to 26.7% from 22.9% he has posted the aforementioned 3.15 ERA with a 53-25 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
With the real trade deadline passing and the likelihood of closers changing roles for any other reason than poor performance or injury at its season-long low point, looking ahead to the future for dynasty and keeper leagues is an overlooked focus point as the season ends. Some leagues still have not hit their trade deadline, so looking to acquire or hold onto certain players who are currently competing for roles next year has its advantages.
With the trade of Jonathan Broxton, Greg Holland has now been announced as the Royals’ closer for the remainder of the year, barring significant struggles in the role. With the announcement coming yesterday, Holland is most likely already rostered in meaningful fantasy leagues, so grabbing him is probably not possible at this point. Rather than simply say to acquire him, I’ll try and figure out whether Holland should succeed or struggle as a closer and how valuable he should be for the rest of the year.
Jayson Werth is expected to return to the Nationals as early as Tuesday of next week, which is certainly good news for those who held onto Werth throughout his long stint on the disabled list. Werth netted just 113 plate appearances before breaking his wrist, but he was actually looking quite promising in his second season in Washington. With his expected return, he seems like a good buy opportunity before he rejoins his team.
Felix Doubront is owned in just 39% of Yahoo! leagues, which seems excessively low given his performance in his first season as a major league starting pitcher. While the 4.24 ERA is not incredibly impressive, Doubront has struck out 22.5% of batters faced, averaging just under a strikeout per inning.