Archive for Outfielders

When making waiver wire moves at this point in the year, you like to have some sort of comforting reassurance that you know what you’re getting when you pick a guy up. With all the unproven commodities arriving in September, sifting through the names can be aggravating at times because you aren’t quite sure how they’ll perform or how much playing time they’ll even get. That’s why I like to stick with what I know and one of the things I know is that you’re simply not going to find that five-tool fantasy dreamboat that you and everyone else craves. Could you catch lightning in a bottle with a random pick-up? Sure. But your odds of that are probably as good as hitting a lotto jackpot and being able to move out of your mom’s basement and into a command center of your own. Most players that you find available right now have some sort of flaw but are more than capable of contributing in some fashion because they are seeing consistent playing time and have proven where they are most capable. Like these, for example… Read the rest of this entry »

This is it. We’re getting real close to the end here. August is nearly finished and then we’re into the home stretch. The waiver wire will start to fill up a little more once we hit September and MLB rosters expand, but for right now it’s a matter of sifting through the rubble and seeing if there’s anyone out there who can help you in some way. There’s really no more time to sit and wait for someone to turn things around. They’re either producing or they’re not and if they aren’t, you need to make a switch fast. Time is running out. Maybe these two can be of some help… Read the rest of this entry »

Per usual, this is the rest-of-season thoughts on the American League outfield. All stats cited are through August 12, 2013.

Tier One
Mike Trout

We’ll be telling our children and grandchildren about how we remember Mike Trout’s first two seasons and hopefully his entire career. Right now he is simply in a class by himself. Trout fills up the stat line and is the ideal fantasy player. He does it all.
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“Argue your limitations, and they will be yours.” — Illusions, Richard Bach

How I wish I had learned that phrase back when I was playing Little League. Defensively, I was rock solid. I could turn the double play from the second base side with ease or I could sit behind the plate for nine innings and call a game with the best of them. Put me in the batter’s box though, and my ineptitude at the plate was depressingly laughable. But rather than work my tail off to become a better hitter, I simply accepted the fact that I was never going to work my way up to the clean-up spot and when the coach said that a walk was as good as a hit, I took it as gospel. The bat barely left my shoulder and I led my team in walks. Of course I took a few cuts from time to time and even found my way on-base via an actual hit, but overall, taking a pitch was my specialty. I was the original Robbie Grossman. Read the rest of this entry »

Two things stand out while highlighting Jake Elmore as the American League outfielder this week. First, it should be noted that Elmore does not yet have outfield eligibility. That is in the works, as Elmore started in left field two days ago — and has four other appearances there — and the Houston Astros plan on keeping him in left field. He does already have shortstop eligibility in Yahoo! (just second base in CBS and ESPN) and given the difference in quantity as well as quality of middle infielders vs. outfielders, it would be wise to play Elmore as your MI even when he does gain OF eligibility.
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After setting the world on fire this past April with a .283/.388/.566 line with five home runs, things have slowed down considerably for Coco Crisp in recent weeks. A quick glance of his batting average doesn’t tell the full story (just as one would expect with batting average) as he repeated his .283 average in May. His May was shortened due to a stint on the disabled list, but for the first eight weeks of his season Crisp looked like a different hitter.

For the first time since 2009 — when he received all of 209 plate appearances — Crisp’s first half walk rate is in double digits, currently at a healthy 11.6%. With already nine home runs on the season he already has more homers this year than in two of the previous three seasons. He’s also managed to trim his strikeout rate down to a tidy 10.6%, the 15th best mark in qualified baseball. In a somewhat recent podcast the present author stated that selling high on Crisp may be a good idea. The question hung in mind of the author and thus Crisp became a subject that required further delving in to.
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In a time where names like Stephen Strasburg, Mike Trout, Bryce Harper and Gerrit Cole are dominating the headlines, rookie hype is making it awfully difficult for fantasy owners to acquire the services of several youngsters who are supposed to be leading us into a new generation of MLB superstars. But occasionally we get lucky and some diamonds-in-the-rough pass through without too much fanfare and linger on your waiver wire until they break out with a big game that lands them on an ESPN or MLB Network highlight reel. Darin Ruf and Sonny Gray may be well-known to the hardcore fantasy players, but without someone standing on a soapbox with a bullhorn, screaming “Pick this guy up now,” both seem to have slipped through the cracks in many leagues. Read the rest of this entry »

Over the past 30 days Leonys Martin has a .367 wOBA, thanks to a .301/.363/.479 line. Yes, his .365 BABIP over the past month has helped, but even Martin’s seasonal line of .289/.340/.457 is nothing to scoff at. This may be the year that the Cuban defector posts his breakout season.

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When Eric Young joins the Mets in Atlanta on Wednesday, a lot more is going to change than just his address and uniform. His playing time, the Mets leadoff situation and, of course, his fantasy ownership percentages are all due for an increase thanks to the trade that sent minor league pitcher Collin McHugh west to Colorado in exchange for the speedy outfielder. Perhaps because he is not a marquee name and all Mets eyes were glued to Zack Wheeler’s debut, the deal fell somewhat under the radar, so if you’re in need of a quick burst of speed and he’s available in your league, then a waiver claim is definitely recommended. Read the rest of this entry »

After posting the all bullish stock watch two weeks ago, now the tables have turned and we’ll focus on the bearish report. This isn’t to say that the players here have no value, just less value than their name or draft position may have once yielded them.

Emilio Bonifacio
After stealing 40 bases in 2011 and 30 last season, Emilio Bonifacio finds himself well off of that pace this year. Last season he appeared in just 64 games but still managed those 30 steals, whereas this year he has already appeared in 54 games and has just seven bags to show for it. His strikeout rate is up, his walk rate is down, and his triple slash is a gruesome .206/.236/.315. A large part of his struggles can be attributed to his .264 BABIP, which is almost 60 points below his .330 career average. That being said, the skepticism comes from seeing Bonifacio strikeout almost once every four plate appearances. His 10.1 SwStr% is a career worst mark and his 35.8% O-Swing% and his 51% Swing% are both the worst since his rookie season.

Bonifacio may be a prime example of a solid utility player being overwhelmed when given a starters playing time. His projections aren’t kind to him either, as ZiPS and Steamer both predict a batting average around .250, 20 runs scored, and 15ish stolen bases the rest of the season. With Jose Reyes playing in simulated games and not terribly far from a rehab assignment and Maicer Izturis and Munenori Kawasaki both looking for playing time in the middle infield, Bonifacio’s grasp on the second base job looks shaky. Bonifacio isn’t largely owned, just 11% ESPN, 17% Yahoo!, and 28% in CBS leagues, but it may be time to call it a day with him.
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