By Dan O’Shea
Most fantasy baseball trade chatter centers around who to sell high, and a lot of buyers buy into that mentality – if they need a position or a stat, they tend to target the best f the best. There is another way to go about it, of course: Buy low, and buy smart.
Here are a few players who probably still can be bought low in many leagues:
Chase Headley: Is getting traded to the Yankees enough to break a season-and-a-half long slump? It has been enough to rejuvenate players like Alfonso Soriano in the past, if only briefly. Headley had been on a pace for roughly 14 HRs and 65 RBI before the trade, but going from the cavern of Petco Park to the hatbox of Yankee Stadium should help.
Bryce Harper: You won’t get him for nothing, but Harper has been pitiful since returning from injury and even the most patient owners must be considering offers. I’d think the pre-season top 10 OF could be had right now for the price of a player in the deeper end of the overall top 50, or maybe two outside the top 50 with the right mix of stats. The thing is, Harper is too competitive and talented to write 2014 off as a lost season.
Evan Longoria: Only 11 HRs so far, just a season after his near career-best 32 HRs made it look like he had rediscovered something. He has been healthy all year, and his 101 hits so far have him close to being on pace for a career-best on that department. I think the HRs will come in the last two months of the season.
Jason Kipnis: Atrocious first half was somewhat due to injury, but not entirely. In the last 10 days or so, he’s looking a bit more locked in, and also has six SBs in the last month, one of the stats which made so many of us pick him as the No. 1 pre-season player at 2B.
Ryan Zimmerman: Throughout his career, he’s been a much better hitter after the All-Star break – .303 batting average compared to .270 before. One of the top fantasy players of the last week, so get him before his current owner notices.
Justin Verlander: Hard to believe he has a 4.84 ERA right now. Tigers seem poised for a late summer run to the division title, and even if Verlander is looking a little ragged, he should have a better second half with Detroit’s offense and bullpen kicking it up a notch.
Expert Wire
* Bleacher Report features the top waiver wire pick-ups this week.
* Fox Sports gives Darwin Barney some fantasy love – on the day he gets designated for assignment. Godspeed, Darwin.
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Dan O’Shea is our man in fantasyland. He welcomes your comments.
Posted on July 22, 2014