Fantasy

The Tampa Bay Rays acquired catcher Kelly Shoppach from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for a player to be named later, according to Bill Chastain of mlb.com (click here for the article).

Young shortstops are getting a lot of focus these days, but the names generally mentioned are Alcides Escobar and Elvis Andrus.  There’s a third speedster who belongs to be included in that group, the Padres’ Everth Cabrera.

Before we get into too much detail, let’s take a look at his line from last season:

377 At Bats
.255 Batting Average (96 Hits)
2 Home Runs
31 RBI
59 Runs
25 Stolen Bases
.342 On Base Percentage
.361 Slugging Percentage
.328 Batting Average on Balls in Play

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What does a player do after he finishes his first full season in the major leagues with the fifth highest batting average, finish sixth in the NL in slugging, and seventh in the NL in OPS? Oh yeah, and you constitute your team’s offense and only fantasy-worthy hitter in the lineup.

There are some prospects who possesses a bat so good that an organization will try them anywhere across the diamond in order to find a spot. 

The St. Louis Cardinals have such a prospect in Allen Craig, who has played all over the infield as well as being tested in the outfield.

He’s seen minimal time at SS and 2B, and there is no chance that a hole opens up at 1B courtesy of Albert Pujols.  He has spent the majority of his time at 3B, though his long-term potential there is minimal despite the team’s potential need.  As Baseball America recently said:

Yesterday, Topps released its All-Star Rookie team for 2009 and while there were some justified selections and some questionable ones, the player that has the most intrigue for me is Mets C Omir Santos. He beat out phenom Matt Wieters, who most thought would be in contention to take home the Rookie of the Year award in the American League.

Did Santos’ season really justify the award? First, let’s take a look at his statistics:

Geovany Soto entered the 2008 season as a player with a ton of upside potential, having made his presence felt in a 2007 cup of coffee (.389, 3 HR in 54 AB).  Having lived up to his potential, owners entered 2009 thinking that he was easily a top five catcher in all formats, taking him early in drafts to ensure they got production out of a position that generally doesn’t offer much.

Unfortunately, saying that he fell flat would be an understatement.  His season was a disaster, with inability and injury holding him to a line of:

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When healthy, the Arizona Diamondbacks have a top-five one-two punch, in Dan Haren and Brandon Webb. After undergoing shoulder surgery at the beginning of this past season though, we cannot be certain that Webb will come back and be the force he once was, at least initially.

It has long been considered that Kevin Correia could develop into a usable fantasy pitcher, though the results had never previously been there.  He had shown signs, like pitching to a 2.54 ERA as a starting pitcher in 2007.  However, after getting an extended look in 2008 (19 starts) and posting a 5.36 ERA, it was time for him to move on.

Fast-forward 12 months and once again, there is fantasy hope for Correia after posting the following line:

12 Wins
198.0 Innings
3.91 ERA
1.30 WHIP
142 Strikeouts (6.45 K/9)
64 Walks (2.91 BB/9)
.298 BABIP

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Amidst all the excitement swirling around a possible Cy Young winner, the MVP-type season for Albert Pujols and the re-signing of Matt Holliday, the Cardinals’ individual success stories this season aren’t just related to their big-name players. There are some, like Colby Rasmus, who are trying to establish their own name in the major leagues.

The Cincinnati Reds selected Todd Frazier, a product of Rutgers, with the 34th selection in the 2007 MLB Draft.  To date, his minor league numbers have not been overly impressive, at least on the surface, making his flexibility appear to be more of his ticket to the Major Leagues than anything.

He has seen time all across the diamond, playing 1B, 3B, SS and OF during his two plus years in the Reds’ system.  While it’s great to view him as a potential utility option, his bat has the potential to be so much more than that.