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Fantasy Baseball: Hitters With Position Flexibility

Delino DeShields has been a useful addition for the Rangers and fantasy owners alike

Delino DeShields has been a useful addition for the Rangers and fantasy owners alike

Here’s a list of position-flexible hitters that are still widely available in standard Yahoo fantasy leagues. These types of hitters can be a huge plus for fantasy owners when inevitable injuries start to occur. When owning them, you’ll have the luxury of knowing that they will more than likely never be wasted on your bench when they have a game. No fantasy owner enjoys seeing one or more of their bench hitters miss out on an opportunity to start when needed, or even fill-in when a main starting fantasy player either gets a day off, doesn’t have a scheduled game, or gets hurt. This happens quite a bit to teams who own hitters who play a single position or who own several hitters at the same position. Also, owning hitters with position flexibility is extremely helpful if you like to have an extra pitcher or two sitting on your bench in order to get that slight advantage over your competition in certain pitching categories.

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Stats are through 5/24/15. All player ownership percentages from Yahoo leagues are through 5/25/15 and all players listed are owned in no more than 60% of Yahoo leagues.

2B/OF – Delino DeShields, Jr. – TEX (owned: 29%)

DeShields, currently hitting .280 to go along with 20 runs and 10 runs batted in in 75 at-bats, has come out of nowhere since late April. He has been a speed demon (11 stolen bases on the year) that has given fantasy owners an extremely useful position-flexible player who can conveniently fill up either an outfield or second base spot on their roster. Other than his lack of power, there’s not a whole lot not to like about him.

3B/SS – Jung-Ho Kang – PIT (owned: 20%)

Kang continues to show the Pirates why they were wise on taking a chance on him in the offseason. As one of the top third base and shortstop eligible fantasy players, he has put up very respectable numbers so far; AB: 92, R: 10, BA: .304, HR: 2, RBI: 11; SB: 3. His league ownership percentage amazes me, especially considering SS struggles this fantasy season. He is a player that has really fallen off of the fantasy radar. It’s time to take advantage.

SS/2B – Addison Russell – CHI (owned: 50%)

When you find a productive fantasy player who has both second base and shortstop eligibility, you come to really appreciate that player. There are only a few players in the league who can do that and even fewer provide more than Russell on the offensive end. Granted, Russell has been in a mini-slump of late, hitting only .211 in the past week, but his talent should help him overcome his current struggles. In 108 at-bats this season, he has put up the following numbers; BA: .241, R: 15, HR: 3, RBI: 12; SB: 1. Be sure to acquire him now while his league ownership percentage is still split. Waiting any longer to pick him up could prove to be a big mistake in the long run.

3B/OF – Yasmani Tomas – ARI (owned: 56%)

There aren’t many players out there who are both third base and outfield eligible in Yahoo leagues, but Tomas is one of them. He’s off to a solid start this season, AB: 96, BA: .333, R: 10, HR: 1; RBI: 14, but there is one glaring problem he will be facing soon. The team’s injured starting third baseman Jake Lamb (foot) is going to be returning to action after spending time on the DL and will more than likely get his position back. Yes, Tomas also the ability to play a corner outfield position instead of third base, but Arizona already has plenty of solid options filling up those spots. There’s still a chance Tomas could platoon with someone at some position, but that wouldn’t be an ideal move for his fantasy owners. The Diamondbacks would probably also like to see their well-paid youngster getting regular reps, no matter the level. Stay tuned to see what goes down with his playing time.

C/1B – Yasmani Grandal – LAD (owned: 54%)

Grandal (concussion) will serve as the designated hitter for Triple-A Oklahoma City in his upcoming rehab stint. He was recently put on the 7-Day DL by the Dodgers and should be back in action within the next week or two. He has been a pleasant surprise so far this season. He sports a .291 batting average to go along with 17 runs, four home runs and 17 runs batted in in 103 at-bats. He also has first base eligibility in Yahoo leagues, making him even more useful. Once he’s back in action, if he can sustain the type of productivity he had before he landed on the DL, he is going to be considered one of the top 10 early season waiver wire pickups of the year.

3B/OF – Alex Guerrero – LAD (owned: 35%)

Guerrero has done the most he can with his limited playing time this season and should, at some point, be given a full-time gig either at third base or in the outfield. It’s just hard to imagine him getting this same type of treatment all season. He’s simply too good of a hitter to continue losing at-bats to third basemen Juan Uribe and Justin Turner and outfielders Carl Crawford and Scott Van Slyke. He’s now batting an extremely productive .300 to go along with 13 runs, seven home runs, 18 runs batted in over 80 at-bats. For any fantasy owners who currently have him, keep your fingers crossed that the Dodgers do the smart thing and give this man the playing time he deserves. For those of you who don’t already own him, now may be the time to consider taking a chance on him. His league ownership percentage is still very low considering his production thus far.

CD Hill is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from CD, check out his archive.

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