Rajai Davis & Chipper Jones: Waiver Wire

Let’s kick off the week with an outfielder and an infielder…

Rajai Davis | OF | Blue Jays | Owned: 13% Yahoo! and 16.0% ESPN

This probably isn’t the best time to suggest grabbing Davis for your outfield — he’s currently mired in an ugly 0-for-23 slide (27 total plate appearances) with more ground ball double plays (three) than walks (two). He’s only struck out six times during the slump, so he’s not completely lost at the plate just yet. Rajai’s season batting line is down to .243/.300/.376 after sitting at a much more respectable .273/.324/.412 prior to this slump.

The 31-year-old Davis rode the pine yesterday but has taken over as Toronto’s everyday left fielder in recent weeks. He’s stolen 23 bases in 30 chances (77% success rate) on the year and 15 in 20 chances (75%) since getting the everyday job 39 team games ago. That’s where his fantasy value lies, in his legs, and we’re starting to reach that part of the season when you have to consider taking a hit in one scoring category — in Davis’ case, power and likely batting average — to boost another if you’ve fallen behind.

Chipper Jones | 3B | Braves | Owned: 32% Yahoo! and 38.0% ESPN

Now 40 years old, Chipper may be one of the most frustrating players to own in fantasy simply because you have no idea if he’s going to be in the lineup on given day. He’s no stranger to the DL because of his bad knees — two DL stints this year and four since the start of 2010 — and he regularly gets time off to rest. When he’s on the field, he produces though. Chipper owns a .317/.393/.489 batting line seven homers and more walks (24) than strikeouts (21) in 211 plate appearances this season, his final one as a big leaguer.

Jones’ playing time is too unpredictable to use him as an everyday third base option, but I’ve been using him as part of a rotating UTIL setup in our staff ottoneu leagues. For all intents and purposes, his 149.8 ottoneu points per 100 plate appearances rate is identical to Prince Fielder‘s (148.3) and Curtis Granderson’s (148.6). Chipper definitely provides high-end production when actually on the field, so grab him and take advantage if you’re willing to watch the lineups on a day-to-day basis.