During the spring of 2011, John Jaso was near the top of a number of sleeper lists for fantasy catchers. His outstanding walk rate won him a place both in the heart of Rays manager Joe Maddon and at the top of the Tampa lineup in 2010. The general consensus was that this potential late-round selection was going to be a beast in the ways on-base percentage, runs scored and maybe even swipe a few more bases than the average backstop. But after posting a .224/.296/.449 slash line with a barely-average 5.8-percent walk rate during the first month of the 2011 season, as well as showing almost no improvement the month after, the experiment quickly came to an end. It was back to the bottom of the order and on several occasions, the bench. Read the rest of this entry »

On Monday, I took a look at the hitter BABIP leaders and tried to determine how sustainable those marks were for 2013. Today, I will check in on the bottom dwellers in the metric. This could be your initial list of undervalued hitters in next year’s fantasy drafts.

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While Buster Posey’s .424 average after the All Star break is unbelievably impressive and Joe Mauer’s return from injury oblivion will certainly warrant consideration for AL Comeback Player of the Year, the biggest story coming from behind the dish this season has to be A.J. Pierzynski’s career year.  At the ripe old age of 35, the 15-year veteran is enjoying his finest season as a major leaguer and is boosting fantasy teams everywhere with some very unexpected numbers.  And given his preseason ADP, there’s no question that he is providing one of the biggest return values at the catcher position. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s time to put those personal feelings aside and do what you have to do to make that final push. So what if these guys stunk it up for most of the season and caused you nothing but grief and aggravation. Put the past behind you and focus on what they are doing right now, because with either of these guys in your lineup, you’re sure to see a nice offensive boost from what has been somewhat of a disappointing season for most backstops. Read the rest of this entry »

Not sure if the other writers are updating the tiers for their positions, but there seems to be enough significant movement among the catchers, that I though a post with an updated set of tiers was worthwhile.  Taking into consideration past performance, ROS expectations and even a bit of keeper value, here’s a look at how the catching tiers look for the month of August and possibly even the remainder of the season. Read the rest of this entry »

The trade deadline opens up a host of playing time opportunities for dumping teams and that is a great thing for deep league owners. Instead of combing through an assortment of 5th outfielders and 3rd string catchers, you now have a chance of adding a young hitter who may surprise. Here are a pair for your consideration.

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With the non-waiver trade deadline coming up tonight, the flurry of deals we’ve seen, the rash of injuries lately, not to mention your fantasy league’s trade deadline, it’s not easy to keep tabs on each and every player.  Sometimes things just fall through the cracks.  And since the catching position, all to often, goes unwatched and unnoticed unless you’re having blatant issues at the position, perhaps a general update piece will be helpful. Read the rest of this entry »

As the calendar gets ready to flip to August, it’s time for those of you that have fallen out of contention in your keeper league to start making plans for the 2013 season.  You’re probably sitting on a number of players that can help the contenders in your league make that final push for a championship, so it’s time to turn those guys into a little something for your efforts this year.  The catcher position is not usually long for guys you’re dying to protect from year to year, but that doesn’t mean you can’t grab yourself some quality options for cheap that can be fruitful components to next year’s championship squad. Read the rest of this entry »

Let’s start the week with an up-and-coming young catcher and a veteran reliever hanging on by the skin of his teeth…

Salvador Perez | C | Royals | Owned: 39% Yahoo!

A trendy breakout pick for 2012, Perez’s season debut was delayed because of a knee injury. He returned to the Royals late last month and has hit .350/.373/.600 (.408 wOBA and 160 wRC+) in 83 plate appearances, building on last season’s .331/.361/.473 (.361 wOBA and 127 wRC+) performance. In a whopping 241 big league plate appearances, Perez owns a .338/.365/.518 batting line (.377 wOBA and 160 wRC+).

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With the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline approaching, you should be looking into possible MLB trade scenarios that could have a direct impact on your fantasy roster.  Maybe you own the player on the move, maybe you own a guy who is about to start losing playing time, or maybe you own a guy who will say bye-bye to a teammate and land some extra PT. Whatever the case may be, your league’s trade deadline is rapidly approaching as well, so staying alert and showing some foresight could help you land some much-need production from a relatively soft position. Read the rest of this entry »