Log In | Create Account
Dan Port
Under the Radar - Mixed Leagues
Friday June 8th, 2012
Rockies catcher Wilin Rosario has serious home run power. (US Presswire)
Each week, Baseball Press will be providing some "under the radar" fantasy players for NL-only leagues, AL-only leagues and mixed leagues. We'll review the diamonds in the rough on the waiver wire who might help you boost your fantasy team in 2012.

With all of the unpredictable injuries and job changes of the baseball season, many fantasy owners are looking to the waiver wire for help. Regardless of where help is needed, this edition of UTR can provide you with some players who are still available in most mixed leagues.

*Owned percentages via Yahoo!

A.J. Burnett - SP, Pittsburgh Pirates (35% owned)
There was a time in the mid and late 2000's when starting pitcher A.J. Burnett was among the better and more consistent hurlers in the game.  He may have been fairly unspectacular, but he was steady with wins, had a solid ERA mark, and posted good strikeout numbers.  In his past two seasons (as a New York Yankee) though, Burnett struggled to a 21-26 record and, more alarmingly, a 5.20 ERA (after a 3.84 in his prior seasons, starting in 1999).  The 35 year-old righthander joined the Pirates and returned to the National League this year for the first time since 2005 in hopes of reclaiming some of his past success and getting a fresh start, and (after an early-season disaster) he is now well on his way to doing exactly that.  Burnett was absolutely destroyed by the St. Louis Cardinals back on May 2nd when he allowed 12 earned runs over 2 2/3 innings pitched, but since then he has been as steady as any hurler in baseball and his season ERA sits at a decent 3.76.  In six starts since that debacle, he's posted a 2.06 ERA, a 1.12 WHIP, and 33 strikeouts in 39 1/3 innings with a 4-0 record.  For the season, he has 50 punchouts in 55 innings, and that's where his biggest fantasy value is right now.  He won't maintain that low 2.06 ERA for the season, but decent-to-good starts and a 8.2 strikeouts per nine innings (K/9) rate are in line with his career numbers prior to 2010, and he should find a place at the end of basically any fantasy rotation right now.

Wilin Rosario - C, Colorado Rockies (19% owned)
Catcher is almost always a tricky fantasy baseball position to fill, and this season many fantasy owners are taking notice of Rockies rookie backstop Wilin Rosario.  The 23 year-old will never win a batting title and may never even sniff .300 as a big leaguer, but he certainly earns his money via the home run and he can earn some fantasy points that way too.  Rosario hit just .249 and had a measly .284 on-base percentage in 102 games for Double-A Tulsa last year, but he also smacked 21 home runs in just 405 at-bats, along with the 3 he hit for the Rockies in a 16 game late-season callup.  His 33 to 5 strikeout-to-walk (K/BB) rate this year certainly won't earn him a lot of favor with analysts, but his 9 home runs in 112 at-bats (37 games) entering Friday have earned him some roto recognition, and any fantasy owner looking for some power stats from the catcher spot should give him a look.

Trevor Bauer - SP, Arizona Diamondbacks (18% owned)
Mixed league owners aren't typically keen on picking up too many players who haven't yet made their major league debuts, but Diamondbacks pitcher Trevor Bauer is certainly worth a roster spot right now.  After a 7-1 record, a 1.68 ERA, and 60 strikeouts in 48 1/3 innings in 8 starts for Double-A Mobile, Bauer was moved up to Triple-A Reno.  For Reno, Bauer has been nearly as good in 4 starts and will enter his next game there with a 2.52 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 25 innings, and there is a flurry of speculation that the 21 year-old phenom is on the precipice of a call-up.  D-Backs officials are mum on any specifics, but Bauer is as dynamic a major league prospect as there is, and the first fantasy owner to act on the hype and speculation could get a big payoff.  The window to act is closing quickly, so the time to pick him up is now.

Quintin Berry - OF, Detroit Tigers (12% owned)
27 year-old outfielder Quintin Berry made his major league debut on May 23rd of this season after seven years in the minor leagues with the Phillies, Padres, Reds, and Tigers organizations, and the journeyman speedster has already surprised many with his hitting and baserunning abilities.  The former 5th round pick has become the Tigers leadoff hitter and has hit .306 with 14 runs scored, 4 doubles, 2 triples, and 7 stolen bases in just 15 games for the club.  Berry was a bit of a basestealing dynamo in the minor leagues (he topped 40 steals in four different seasons), but his lack of home run power and so-so .267 average had him stuck on the farm for quite a while.  However, his career on-base mark in the minors is a fair .358 and, despite striking out more than one would like from a leadoff hitter, he is looking more and more like a solid late-blooming leadoff option, not unlike outfielder Scott Podsednik (who finished second in NL Rookie of the Year Award voting in 2003, at the age of 27).  Fantasy owners in need of steals should definitely find roster room for Berry.

Juan Pierre - OF, Philadelphia Phillies (12% owned)
While we're on the subject of basestealers, it seems appropriate to take a look at veteran speedster and owner of 564 career stolen bases (entering Friday) Juan Pierre, who is currently roaming left field for the Philadelphia Phillies.  Pierre is just 34 years old, but he has a lot of miles on his quick legs and has been terrorizing major league basepaths since his best days with the Rockies and Marlins back in the early 2000's.  The .297 career hitter doesn't draw many walks and managed just a .277 combined average and .335 on-base percentage in 2010 and 2011, but he enters play on Friday hitting .319 with a .356 on-base line and 10 stolen bases (2 caught).  His batting average on balls in play (BABIP) this year is well above the roughly .300 mark he's had in recent seasons, but it's not unreasonable to think that he could hit .280 and continue stealing bases and scoring runs as the Phillies left fielder and number two hitter.  Fantasy owners looking to fill up the stolen base category shouldn't hesitate to turn to the veteran and should keep in mind that, despite a disappointing year on the basepaths last year (27 steals, 17 caught), Pierre swiped 68 bags just one season before that.

Placido Polanco - 3B, Philadelphia Phillies (9% owned)
Like his aforementioned teammate Juan Pierre, infielder Placido Polanco is also getting things done out in Philadelphia, though it should be noted that he is currently day-to-day with a cut on his hand.  The recent injury derailed a nice six week stretch by Polanco, who hit .293 in May and has hit .328 since April 25th, pulling his average from .196 to .289 for the season.  The 36 year-old Dominican native was never a big home run threat or base stealer, but his nice defensive work and steady contact hitting has usually earned him a job throughout his career, and he even notched his second career all-star appearance last season.  Assuming his hand injury is something minor, he could be a sneaky pickup for fantasy teams in need of some help with their batting average and runs scored at the third base or corner spot.

Ben Revere - OF, Minnesota Twins (4% owned)
Despite a .267 average, Twins outfielder Ben Revere turned a few heads by stealing 34 bases (9 caught) in 117 big league games last year, and the thievery earned him some fantasy respect too.  He was a pretty popular late-round pick in 2012 fantasy drafts, but a crowded Twins outfield forced him to the minor leagues and he bounced up and down a few times as needed before team injuries prompted a more full-time return to the Twin Cities in mid-May.  Since then, Revere has hit .314 with 4 doubles, 2 triples, 6 stolen bases (1 caught) and 12 runs scored in 70 at-bats for the club.  He still sees the bench sometimes and won't provide much right now in terms of home run potential, but the 24 year-old has very good prospect upside and can help out fantasy teams in need of a fill-in guy with some speed and batting average contributions.

Closer News:
Tom Wilhelmsen - RP, Seattle Mariners (17% owned)
Stephen Pryor - RP, Seattle Mariners (5% owned)
The 2012 closer carousel found its way to Seattle last week, as 2011 all-star and incumbent closer Brandon League's string of bad outings finally lost him his job as the club's ninth inning man.  That duty now falls to second-year man Tom Wilhelmsen and rookie fireballer Stephen Pryor.  Wilhelmsen has gotten a lot of media attention since last season due to his very interesting career path, which took him away from baseball (partially due to a marijuana suspension) and into a job as a bartender in Tuscon before he decided to return to the game.  He isn't as dynamic as his younger teammate Pryor, but the 28 year-old has been very reliable late-inning option for the M's, and his mid to high-90's fastball and slow curve have proven to be a potent two-pitch combination thus far.  Tom enters play on Friday with 37 strikeouts in 31 innings and a 3.48 ERA, but he has been scored upon in just one outing since May 17th and appears to be the main choice for closing situations, as evidenced by the two saves he's notched in outings on June 4th and 6th.

Pryor, on the other hand, fires high-90's gas and can even touch triple digits with his fastball, but has struggled with control in the past and looks like the number two guy for now, despite a dominant minor league campaign this year in which he allowed just 2 earned runs and struck out 39 hitters in 28 innings for Double-A Jackson and Triple-A Tacoma.  The 22 year-old has the look of a future closer, but for now he appears to be behind Wilhelmsen in that regard.  Either way, both have some fantasy value, though Pryor may not get his shot until the situation changes, and it's also possible that League could reclaim the role.
Dan Port has been a writer and article editor for Baseball Press since the fall of 2009. He's a Wisconsin native and Los Angeles resident, as well as an aspiring novelist, moderately successful gambler, and avid craft beer aficionado. You can reach him at [email protected] or check him out on Twitter @danport and at DanielPort.com.
comments
by Anonymous on Saturday June 9th @ 5:11PM
Rosario, he of the sub .600 OPS in 700+ career ABs. Huge power
by Dan Port on Sunday June 10th @ 12:46PM
In fantasy, power = home runs, so unless you play in some weird league where OPS is a category that isn't really relevant.


Copyright © 2009-2013 Baseball Press, LLC | Partner of USA Today Sports Digital Properties | Baseball Press is not affiliated with Major League Baseball or the Major League Baseball Players Association