June 18, 2012

Value Picks

Second, Short, and Catcher for 6/18/12

by Josh Shepardson

Departures
What will nine hits, five of which were home runs, in 22 at-bats get you? In Trevor Plouffe's (Yahoo! 59%, ESPN 91%, CBS 74%) case, a spot in the departures section of this article. In one week, his ownership has risen 50 percent or more at each of the major fantasy host sites. Adios, Plouffe.

Sticking Around
There is no news of Ramon Hernandez swinging the bat, and that's good news for Wilin Rosario (Yahoo! 17%, ESPN 10%, CBS 49%). Rosario's strikeout rate will likely keep his average below .250, but his power continues to make him a useful second catcher in NL-only leagues and larger mixed leagues that start two.

Rehab is going well for Salvador Perez (Yahoo! 6%, ESPN 1%, CBS 22%), but Royals manager Ned Yost doesn't anticipate him joining the club for their upcoming series in Houston. He's catching on consecutive days now, though, as he did on Saturday and Sunday, and he's hitting for average (.310 in 45 plate appearances for Triple-A Omaha). The power isn't there, but a healthy Perez will be worth rostering for his average alone in large two-catcher mixed leagues and AL-only leagues.

Hanging on by a Thread
The other shoe has dropped for Rod Barajas (Yahoo! 5%, ESPN 1%, CBS 20%), who had just one hit in 19 at-bats last week. As I said last week, Barajas has an established level of talent, and he's a guy fantasy owners are constantly looking to replace. He provides a bit of pop, but his value is largely derived from his unquestioned starting catcher status. In mixed leagues where 24 catchers or more are rostered, Barajas remains viable, but it's safe to cut bait in shallower leagues.

Last Call
A hot June continues for Zack Cozart (Yahoo! 28%, ESPN 30%, CBS 66%). At roughly the midway point of the month, his triple-slash stands at .356/.397/.525 in 63 plate appearances, and he has smacked a pair of home runs while also adding a stolen base for good measure. Perhaps most important for his sustained fantasy relevance, though, is his drop in strikeouts from May to June. In May, he sported a 25.5 percent strikeout rate. This month, it has dropped to 15.9 percent, a rate that's more in line with his career marks. He's not going to continue to be this hot, but his ownership grew a bit this past week; expect it to continue to grow as his sortable “last 30 days” stats look rosier as some of his May clunkers start getting wiped off the slate.

For the first time since suffering a spiral fracture last July, Stephen Drew (Yahoo! 23%, ESPN 15%, CBS 42%) played in three consecutive games at shortstop while rehabbing with Reno. Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson hasn't released a timetable for Drew's return, but he's optimistic that it will be soon. Drew is sizzling for the Aces, hitting .292/.346/.542 with one double, one triple, and one home run in 26 plate appearances. He may have some rust to shake off in the majors, and the club may choose to handle him with kid gloves initially given the severity of the injury he suffered, but Drew's ownership levels will skyrocket when he's activated from the disabled list; now is the time to get him.

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