It’s hard to believe that the MLB season is 100 games into the 2013 season, but now with the All Star game over fantasy owners have to prepare for their push to the playoffs.
Chances are, any fantasy team that has the likes of Chris Davis, Miguel Cabrera or Max Scherzer is doing pretty well and is primed for fantasy postseason action.
But for teams desperate to make up ground or looking to add that one player who could make a difference between a No. 4 or No. 1 seed. For those teams, it may be smarter to go with an under-the-radar addition. These players will probably pay off, but there’s hardly any chance of a competitor picking up that player.
These are the top 20 under-the-radar fantasy players with the percentage of teams that own them in Yahoo! leagues.
20. Logan Morrison, OF/1B, Miami Marlins (17%)
A Miami Marlins player is never ideal in fantasy, but Morrison has drifted past many owners since he didn’t play in a game until June 9. But since returning to the lineup, he’s been batting .282 with 11 RBI and four home runs. Morrison could make up the most ground in on-base percentage and slugging, as he’s getting on base 37 percent of the time. Morrison has only scored 14 runs through 24 games, but he is playing for the Marlins so that number isn’t going to go up any time soon. But for owners searching for a fill-in waiting for someone to get off the disabled list Morrison isn’t a bad option.
19. Jose Quintana, SP, Chicago White Sox (16%)
For teams who have a depleted pitching staff because of injuries or recent trades, Quintana isn’t a bad option. He struggled out of the gate, but has had a really strong July, throwing 21 innings and only allowing six runs for a 2.57 ERA. He’s also striking out more than one batter per inning and is sporting a WHIP of 0.81. He’s not going to get many wins on the White Sox, but fantasy owners should follow his progress the rest of this month and prepare to pick up the 24-year-old before anyone else does.
18. Chris Carter, OF, Houston Astros (26%)
Like Morrison, Carter is playing on a terrible team but is still putting up pretty decent numbers. Carter isn’t hitting for average, but he has driven in 47 runs and scored 44 himself. Carter is currently fighting an ankle injury, but the All Star break should have given him enough time to recover. The fact that he’s an Astro could drive owners away, but someone who is leading his team in home runs and RBI should be owned in more than 26 percent of leagues.
17. Yunel Escobar, SS, Tampa Bay Rays (16%)
Escobar isn’t excelling in one particular area in 2013, but he is doing a little bit of everything to give himself some fantasy value. The former Atlanta Brave and Toronto Blue Jay has low power numbers but has still driven in 39 runs and scored hit 15 doubles, which are both on pace to be career highs. In AL only leagues when shortstop is a fairly shallow position, Escobar is a solid pickup here.
15. Michael Brantley, OF, Cleveland Indians (42%)
Brantley is a starter on one of the most surprising teams of this season, and is putting up pretty solid numbers. In 91 games, Brantley has scored 46 runs and driven in 48 others. He’s not that good at getting gon base, but he is hitting .279 and has tacked on 10 stolen bases. Brantley may not be an immediate pickup, but if the Indians make a late push to take the pennant from the Detroit Tigers, Brantley’s numbers will probably go up.
14. Mitch Moreland, 1B, Texas Rangers (22%)
Moreland is hitting right in the middle of Texas’s lineup, and has recently gone through a slump after hitting .300 during May and June. So far in July, he has only driven in five runs after having 22 RBI in May and June. Moreland battled the injury bug in June and only played in 13 games which slowed him down from the month of May when he was slugging .630 and was getting on base 35 percent of the time. If he can find what he was doing right in May and bring that back he’ll be snatched up quickly.
13. John Lannan, SP, Philadelphia Phillies (2%)
You’d might expect that someone only owned in 2 percent of leagues would be farther down on this list, but Lannan has had too many quality outings to be pushed down. He got off to a very rough start, holding a 6.14 ERA heading into June, but he has lowered it to 3.76 in his past several starts by only allowing five runs in three starts in July. Lannan isn’t going to be anywhere near double-digit wins on the season but you’ve got to keep an eye on a guy who is only allowing opponents to hit .241 against him this month.
12. Trevor Plouffe, 3B, Minnesota Twins (18%)
Plouffe isn’t blowing anyone away this season, but he is third on the team in batting average and fourth in RBI. Those could make for a decent backup in mixed leagues and makes him even more attractive in AL-only leagues. Plouffe has cooled off since he had a great June, driving in 13 runs in 53 at bats and hitting 3.21. Since then, he’s only hitting .235 but his June numbers were good enough to possibly get some adds as the season draws on.
11. Jedd Gyorko, 2B/3B, San Diego Padres (44%)
Gyorko had garnered some considerable attention in the preseason as a rookie, but interest in him in fantasy leagues cooled off once he was hurt and missed quite a few games rehabbing. But the Padres just called him up again before the All Star game and he’s talented enough that the Padres will find a way to get him in the lineup, most likely at second with Chase Headley healthy. In 63 games this season, Gyorko had driven in 25 runs and scored 36 while hitting .272. In dynasty leagues Gyorko holds even more value at the ripe age of 24, but even in standard mixed leagues he can bring some pop to any lineup in the second half.
10. Drew Smyly, RP, Detroit Tigers (25%)
Poor Smyly. He has a 1.91 ERA and a 0.971 WHIP and no one is noticing. Although when you have Scherzer and Justin Verlander on your pitching staff it’s understandable how that could happen. Smyly isn’t the closer in the Detroit, which obviously hurts his fantasy value, but if you’re in a roto league and you’re deciding to punt saves for the season and go for other categories Smyly’s your man. In 56 innings this season, he’s only given up 12 earned runs. 12! This guy needs to be owned in more than 25 percent of leagues even though he’s not getting saves.
9. Colby Rasmus, OF, Toronto Blue Jays (33%)
Unlike Smyly, Rasmus’s low percent owned is understandable given he has struck out 105 times in 89 games. The 26-year-old got off to a poor start but he caught fire before the All Star break, hitting .375 and driving in 10 runs in nine games. If he can keep up that pace after the break pick him up, he is only one season removed from hitting 23 home runs and hitting 75 RBI.
8. James Loney, 1B, Tampa Bay Rays (54%)
In the modern MLB when teams run a CT scan on a splinter, you’ve got to love a guy who has started in every game this season. His power numbers aren’t very impressive, only hitting nine balls out of the park and slugging below .500, but he is on pace to pass his career-highs in doubles and runs and could challenge his career-high 90 RBI. Loney is hitting .315 in 96 games, so there’s no argument here that we haven’t seen enough out of him yet to warrant a roster spot.
7. Miguel Gonzalez, SP, Baltimore Orioles (32%)
Gonzalez isn’t the only underrated Baltimore starting pitcher, especially with the newly-acquired Scott Feldman, but Gonzalez could really boost a pitching staff that has been depleted by injury. Gonzalez is 7-3 in 16 starts with a 3.46 ERA. That ERA is pretty high, but the wins are nice and his strikeout rate isn’t too bad at 6.8 per nine innings. Gonzalez was a late bloomer, only playing in his second season at age 29, but he’s a staple in Baltimore’s rotation for the rest of this season.
6. Anthony Rendon, 2B, Washinton Nationals (38%)
Before we move on, just for the record, Rendon is higher on this list than Peralta because he’s more likely to be available than Peralta. Even though Peralta is owned far more than Rendon, if Rendon had started at the beginning of 2013 he’d have very similar stats to Peralta. Since coming up to play second base when Danny Espinosa was sent down to the minors, Rendon has scored 22 runs and is hitting .301. If the Nationals decide they’re finally ready to be the team everyone thought they could be at the beginning of the season, Rendon will be the starting second baseman for that team.
5. Jeff Locke, SP, Pittsburgh Pirate (81%)
Locke is owned in a ton of leagues but often is sitting on the bench, and is only a starter in 60 percent of leagues. For those 40 percent of teams who have Locke taking up space on their bench, try to trade for Locke immediately or pick him up if he’s a free agent. The 25-year-old is 8-2 with a 2.15 ERA in 18 starts. Locke’s ERA is currently second in the majors only behind Clayton Kershaw so why shouldn’t this guy be starting every time he’s playing in a game?
4. Jesse Crain, RP, Chicago White Sox (12%)
Say hello to Drew Smyly, Jesse Crain, because you’re both in the same category of under-appreciated relievers just because they’re not closers. Any guy who has played in 38 games and has a 0.74 ERA has to be owned in more than 12 percent of leagues. If you have a DL spot on your roster, stash Crain away since he’ll be there for at least 10 more days with a shoulder injury. Again, the lack of saves will hold him back but if you’re behind in ERA or WHIP Crain should come back healthy and holds major value.
3. Mark Melancon, RP, Pittsburgh Pirates (30%)
Yes, again with the non-closer relief pitchers. Melancon is the set-up man for Jason Grilli who likely won’t be losing his spot as closer any time soon with a 1.99 ERA and 29 saves. But Melancon was just an All Star and still is only owned in 30 percent of leagues. He doesn’t appear in every game, but in leagues that lineups are set per-week rather than every day, Melancon will put up great numbers. If you needed any more convincing, just know that in the 45 games Melancon has appeared in, the Pirates have only lost nine of those games.
2. A.J. Griffin, SP, Oakland Athletics (56%)
Griffin has been pretty inconsistent this season, but when he’s on, he’s on. At first glance, his 3.68 ERA and 1.12 WHIP will scare prospective owners off, but in his past 10 starts, in three of them Griffin didn’t give up a single run. The second-year pitcher is even more valuable in dynasty leagues at only 25, but if you need a jump start to your pitching rotation Griffin can provide a spark if he’s on. Griffin is even more valuable if you’ve been losing strikeouts, since he’s fanning about seven batters per nine innings.
1. Raul Ibanez, OF, Seattle Mariners (65%)
He’s owned in over half of leagues, but his percent owned should be much closer to 85 or 90 percent. The average baseball fan likely has no idea that Ibanez has 24 homeruns and 56 RBI. He’s not going to score a ton of runs since he has never been a speedy guy, but his power this season has been totally unexpected. AL-only, NL-only or mixed leagues, Ibanez should be owned until he shows that his age actually matters, but a .578 slugging percentage says otherwise.