Wil Myers has been mostly forgotten so he should be a steal on draft day
At FantasyPros we compile rankings from dozens of experts to produce our ECR (Expert Consensus Rankings). In a standard 10-team league with 25-player rosters, there are 250 players drafted. This article will only list players that are ranked below No. 210 in order to help you through the most difficult portion of the draft, when many of you don’t know any players left on the board, and others just can’t decide which way to go. Today’s list will highlight a dozen hitters to consider with your final five picks, while Friday’s list will discuss pitchers worth drafting. If your league is considerably deeper, or you want a group of players to keep an eye on so you can snatch them out of free agency before they become popular pickups, then check out my Deep Sleepers article that I wrote earlier this week.
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Wil Myers (SD – OF)
In 2014, preseason rankings had a 23-year-old outfielder, that the Rays just acquired for James Shields, listed as a top-60 fantasy player. That kid batted .293/.354/.478 in over 300 at-bats the season before and was a top-five prospect that hit .314/.387/.600 with 36 homers in just 134 games as a minor-leaguer. If you haven’t figured it out yet, that player was Wil Myers. Since then, he has suffered a few injuries and grown into a strong 25-year-old man. His big league stats weren’t very good (while he was playing through injury), but he can blossom into a .300 hitter that mashes 25 homers (even in Petco!) and steals 10 bases. Don’t let him slip by you in your draft.
Yasmany Tomas (ARZ – OF)
This time last year, the Diamondbacks signed a big-time power prospect for 68 million dollars. That kid proceeded to bat .333 in his first month, .316 in his second and .311 in June before fizzling out from the long season. All of the traveling may have been an issue, or perhaps the Arizona dry heat. It may even have been a result of that stress that comes with fleeing your home to come to a new country. What is important here, is that Tomas is a very capable hitter and has raw power that is bound to develop any day now. Don’t be surprised when he hits .290 with 20 homers and 80 RBI this season.
Stephen Piscotty (STL – OF)
Mature demeanor, professional approach, wise beyond his years; those are all terms that are often said about the Cardinals’ youngster who hit the ground running as a rookie. In his first 130 big league at-bats, he batted .340 with 18 extra-base hits. Don’t be worried about him finding playing time. Between Matt Adams, Matt Holliday and Randal Grichuk, someone is bound to get hurt, and Mike Matheny is known to give veterans plenty of days off. Piscotty is a safe play if you are targeting a 3rd outfielder or just some overall hitting depth. He has hit everywhere he has played, and while he isn’t likely to hit 25 homers, he will not hurt you in any category.
Chris Carter (MIL – 1B)
Chris Davis, Nelson Cruz, Edwin Encarnacion, Mike Trout, Jose Bautista, David Ortiz, Josh Donaldson, CHRIS CARTER, Adam Jones, Paul Goldschmidt, Giancarlo Stanton, Miguel Cabrera, Anthony Rizzo, Albert Pujols and Yoenis Cespedes. What is that list, you ask? The top-15 for most homers since 2013. Chris Carter is just now entering the prime of a power hitter, and moving to Milwaukee, which is an extreme home run hitter’s ballpark for right-handers, will only help him swat another 30 to 40 bombs this season, all at the price of 25th round pick.
Brett Lawrie (CHW – 2B/3B)
When Lawrie was called up to Toronto in 2011, he had a .293/.373/.580 line. That is 21 extra-base hits and 7 stolen bases in just 150 at-bats. Everyone was going nuts. This kid is the next huge thing, they would say. The tools behind all of that hype are still there, but the attention has dissipated as he dealt with various injuries and had his power suppressed in Oakland last season. Now that he will be playing his home games in Chicago, we could see a major offensive surge from the 26-year-old, somewhere near the tune of .265, 20 homers, 15 steals. Anyone would be thrilled to find that out of a 20th round middle infielder.
Javy Baez (CHC – 2B/SS)
In 130 games, Javy Baez batted .282/.341/.578 with 37 homers, 34 doubles, and 20 stolen bases against players that were an average of four years older than him. That performance propelled him into the top-five MLB prospects. Since then, all Baez has done is hit, besides a brief stint in the majors as a 21-year-old, but isn’t that understandable? Now, 23 years old, the middle-infielder is primed to progress towards to perennial all-star that many expected him to become. Baez putting up 20 homers and 20 stolen bases is not out of the question in 2016.
Here are a few other players to target in this range that have already been written about:
C.J. Cron (LAA – 1B) and Ryan Zimmerman (WAS – 1B) – Gavin Tramps – 1B Sleepers
Nick Castellanos (DET – 3B) – Gavin Tramps – 3B Sleepers
Byron Buxton (MIN – OF) and Joey Gallo (TEX – 3B) –Bobby Sylvester – AL Rookie Hitters
Domingo Santana (MIL – OF) – Bobby Sylvester – NL Rookie Hitters
Yulieski Gurriel (Free Agent, 3B) – Bobby Sylvester – Cuban Defectors
Thanks for reading. Make sure to use test this new information by pulling up our Mock Draft Simulator and running through a quick draft or two so you are prepared to dominate your draft.
