Who You Are Signing: Latest Adds in ottoneu

Every time I log into ottoneu, I check out that little scroll on the home page. You know the one – right at the top, above your teams, below the player search. This banner shows a constant update on the latest players added across all ottoneu leagues and is one of my favorite ottoneu features. It’s like an instant update on who’s hot right now. Or, I guess, who was hot 48 hours ago when these auctions were started.

Well, we are always telling you who is un-owned in most leagues, but today I am going to look at the most recent additions in ottoneu and see who is being added, why, and who you should be targeting. Some of these guys may still be up for auction in your leagues as we speak.

This article looks at the 15 most recently added players. The list actually includes 34 auctions, as some of these 15 players were added more than once. We’ll break them into categories.

The Latest Additions
Fernando Rodney (added once at $2) –
Santiago Casilla (11 times for between $1 and $6)
Heath Hembree (three times for $1, $1, and $3)
Robert Andino (two times for $1 each)
Adam LaRoche ($3)
Jordan Schafer (four times for $1, $2, $3, $3)
A.J. Ellis ($1)
Ruben Tejada (two times for $1 each)
Josh Lindblom ($1)
David Murphy ($1)
Billy Hamilton ($1)
Johnny Damon ($1)
Jose Campos (two times for $1 and $2)
Nolan Reimold (two times for $2 and $3)
Willie Bloomquist ($1)

There is a series of closer/potential closers on this list, which is not a surprise, particularly at this time of year as owners in 5×5 and Points leagues are busy chasing saves. Rodney is a surprising add at this point only because he took over as closer in Tampa over a week ago, and saw a big boost in his ownership numbers at that point. At this point, Rodney is an obvious add in 5×5 leagues, a decent choice in points leagues, and a somewhat speculative add in 4×4 leagues. Without getting credit for saves, Rodney may not provide much value, but in the other two formats, he is a must-own as long as he is closing.

Casilla is clearly the speculative-closer-add-du-jour for ottoneu owners, although I imagine that Sergio Romo only missed this list because he was already owned at a high rate (over 90% across ottoneu leagues). If Casilla (or Romo) is available in your league, he (or he) could be a solid RP add in all three of the formats. Hembree is probably not going to close in the immediate future, but very well may be the closer of the future, and very well may be worth an add today.

While some owners are chasing saves, others are chasing stolen bases. Bloomquist and Schafer are both good sources of speed, and if you are in a 5×5 league, either makes a decent 5th OF (or, in Bloomquist’s case, MI). But if you are counting on big numbers in any other categories, you are likely to be disappointed. Hamilton isn’t in line for MLB time anytime soon, but when he does get to Cincinnati, he’ll provide a bundle of speed (and if he can get on base, he’ll steal bases in bunches).

A number of these guys are solid stopgaps, well worth holding onto for a while, but not for the long-haul. Laroche tempts me every year with his solid-but-not-great numbers, but never proves a viable top 15 1B in fantasy. Tejada and Andino are off to very solid starts, and are currently providing terrific stats for MI. But neither will win your league for you. For a part-time MI option, though, neither will lose your league for you either.

Damon is an interesting case. Despite an odd reverse platoon split in 2011, Damon has always hit righties better than lefites, and steps into an obvious platoon situation with (lefty masher) Shelley Duncan in the Indians left field spot. Looking for a 5th OF that will provide better than expected numbers? A Damon-Duncan platoon will do just that.

And for a quick take on the remainders – I like Reimold and think he could be a decent 5th OF, although the average is going to be unimpressive; Ellis is fine if you need a backup catcher, but I am not rushing out to grab him; Lindlom’s 0.00 ERA looks nice, but a 100% LOB and .133 BABIP will do that – he’s a decent reliever, maybe worth a dollar in 4×4, but probably nowhere else; Campos is an exciting prospect, but awfully far away; Murphy is well worth a look in your OF, as long as you have someone to platoon with him to fill in the 200 PA he won’t get.