Rey Fuentes & Jace Peterson: Deep League Wire

As usual, injuries have thrust players we typically ignore in most fantasy leagues into more active roles, which is usually the theme of these player recommendations.

Rey Fuentes | OF ARI | CBS 1% Owned

A.J. Pollock just hit the DL yesterday with a groin strain, though it’s the least severe variety. However, the assumption is the team intends to be careful here not to rush him back, which should give the likely playing time beneficiary at least two weeks of short-term value. The biggest beneficiary could very well be Fuentes, who’s no longer much of a prospect at age 26, but the Diamondbacks other option is Gregor Blanco, who is a known quantity.

Fuentes hasn’t fared well during his short time in the Majors, striking out nearly 32% of the time over 85 plate appearances. Oh, and he has posted a ridiculous 27.3% IFFB% and pathetic 13.5% Hard%. But, strikeouts were never an issue in the minors, while he has displayed a bit of pop, along with excellent speed. The speed is really the draw here, as he had already swiped nine bases in nine attempts at Triple-A before the call, putting him on a near 38 steal pace over 600 plate appearances…if he was never caught.

He has always posted inflated BABIP marks in the minors, and has nearly always hit grounders at a 50%+ clip. That’s a man who knows what type of hitter he is as he takes advantage of his speed, rather than knock weakly hit fly balls that are doing to find outfield gloves more often than not. With the potential to steal a couple of bases over the next few weeks, he’s the perfect type of player to scoop up in a deep league.

Jace Peterson | 2B ATL | 1% Owned

Peterson was once a solid Padres prospect, but so far he has failed to hit at the big league level, as he sports a lowly .289 career wOBA. With starting third baseman Adonis Garcia hitting the DL with Achilles tendinitis, Peterson should get first crack at hot corner at-bats. Unless of course they deem Rio Ruiz ready, the team’s 25th best prospect, but a .342 Triple-A wOBA isn’t screaming promotion, nor is the ugly nine walks versus 37 strikeouts.

So it’s up to Peterson to hit enough to hold down the job for now. He has been able to hold onto last season’s walk rate gains, and now he’s comfortably above the league average, and no doubt way above the second base average. His O-Swing% sits at a tiny 13.8%, which is easily the lowest among those who have recorded at least 70 plate appearances. That’s pretty impressive. So the discipline is there, but it hasn’t led to results.

The problem is he simply hasn’t hit many line drives, which partially explains his below average .283 BABIP. His 11.5% mark ranks fifth worst among that same group of hitters. He hasn’t had problems hitting liners in the past, so this is probably a short-term fluke. Outside the potential for an improved batting average though, he brings a Placido Polancoian touch of speed and power. You know, that kind of combination that bores fantasy owners to death, but is worth more than you think. It’s not a lot, of course, but it’s not nothing.

Peterson won’t stand out in any particular category, but he could contribute enough smidgens to be worth rostering in your deep league for as long as he remains in the starting lineup.