Fantasy Baseball Player Notes

Martinez had a disastrous 2020 season, during which he slashed just .213/.291/.389 and hit seven home runs. Martinez simply didn't hit the ball nearly as hard as he used to, and hit a ton of fly balls, the combination of which helped to drain his batting average significantly. There's a ton to dislike about last year, but given that Martinez has talked about how much he relies on watching video in-game, and his inability to do so last year because of COVID-19 protocols, it seems likely that you can write off last year to a slump that didn't have time to end. He'll be eligible at utility only, but there's a massive opportunity for profit if you are willing to largely look past 2020.

Verdugo's first season in Boston went about as well as you would have expected. He hit for a high average, scored plenty of runs, and added just a bit of power and speed. But under the hood, there were some concerning signs. Specifically, his quality of contact was generally below the MLB average in every notable measure, and his expected batting average was just .238, a full 70 points below his actual batting average. And his strikeout rate rose to 20.4%, a career worst. But, in the end, Verdugo is going to continue to lead off for the Red Sox and contribute in both batting average and runs scored even on his worst day, and he'll offer at least some production in the remaining categories. Nitpick if you must, but he'll be a valuable contributor overall, regardless of the Statcast data.