Continuing my
previous post, here is the top 10 all-fantasy killer outfield:
1. Carlos Lee, HOU -- Everything El Caballo has done to this point (next to nothing) is screaming for an adjustment. Then again, it is almost JUNE, and he has just 17 RBI and a .196 batting average. As for the adjustment, Lee has hit three HR in his last four games, to bring his season total up to 5. We all knew Lee would eventually fall off the cliff, but at age 34, there still seems to be time to muster another couple decent seasons -- although there is not a lot of lineup protection in Houston. Considering that Oswalt and Berkman have already indicated they want to be traded, it doesnt seem too far out of the realm of possibility that Caballo will be moved as well -- with that in mind, I would call him a terrific buy low, and the time is now.
2. Carlos Quentin, CHW -- I welcome yet another White Sox player to the all-team-killers list. Quentin kind of burst onto the scene a few years ago, and he has never lived up to his draft day value since then. In 2008, his breakout season, Quentin hit 36 HR and had 100 RBI; and he slugged .571. Then, he fractured his wrist by slamming a bat into the ground in frustration. Last year, he hit 21 HR to go with 56 RBI and missed most of May, all of June, and most of July. He hasn't gotten hurt yet this season, but the clock is ticking. I think you should sell the moment the guy meets a hot streak (if he can). He is currently batting .216 with just 4 HR.
3. Adam Lind, TOR -- Lind was flat-out awesome last season, and who could blame owners for thinking the same type of production would be in store this year? Well, he may be posting OK power numbers (7 HR), but considering that he is trailing Jose Bautista (14 HR), Vernon Wells (11), Alex Gonzalez (10) and John Buck (8)
on his own team, we would expect more. Most savvy fantasy owners should have been expecting a short fall, considering his 110 strikeouts last season -- but he still managed to hit .305. This year, he is hitting .231 and slugging just .399; and he is almost halfway to his strikeout mark already, with 46. Here is another guy I would hold until he gets hot, and then try to move him.
4. Grady Sizemore, CLE -- Nobody has gotten as much flack for a decision lately as Michael of the UPL's Muddy Muddy Mush Heads did for leaving Sizemore unprotected (in favor of Jermaine Dye...ouch!) in our expansion draft. And while the Mush Heads are in last place, it isn't because he doesn't have Grady Sizemore! Every red warning flag should be up in the minds of fantasy owners regarding this guy. His season last year was ravaged by injury -- and guess what, his 2010 looks to be more of the same. His batting average has steadily declined over the last 4 seasons, and the power surge he showed in 2008 has disappeared. I think his most recent DL stint (knee) is a blessing in disguise for his owners -- first of all, it gets him out of the lineup :) and second, when he returns, there will be a little bit of buzz surrounding him. Hopefully that buzz will be enough for you to be able to swing a quick deal and get him off your roster for good.
5. Julio Borbon, TEX -- He hit .312 in 46 games last year...and owners were salivating over his 19 steals in those games. Better news for fantasy owners was that Borbon would be leading off for the potent Rangers offense this season, which surely meant a ton of runs and steals!! Fast forward to May, and Borbon is hitting .240, and has long since been moved to the 9th spot in the order, as phenom Elvis Andrus has assumed leadoff duties admirably. That leaves Borbon as a steals-only guy who only has 6 and has found his way onto most waiver wires. It's pretty much time to cut bait, unless you can find an owner who is desperate for speed -- but you wont be getting anywhere near draft-day value for him.
6. Chris Coghlan, FLA -- the reigning NL Rookie of the Year has absolutely no trade value right now -- even to his fans! As
Greg told me in a recent e-mail: "
I asked you (if you wanted to trade for him) because I figured you were the only person in the league who still valued him at all. Last season he started slow too, so maybe he's just a slow starter." Well, Greg, the fact of the matter is, Coghlan IS a slow starter and he is starting to come out of it. But that's not the problem with Cogs -- the problem is he doesn't provide the ideal set of stats from a top-of-the-line outfielder. His ROY season saw him amass 84 runs scored, which is awesome; however he only posted 9 HR 47 RBI and 8 SB. The bottom line is that Coghlan, even at his best, does not provide you with enough counting stats to justify his value. And when he struggles, those numbers tend to take a hit themselves. As much as I like his scrappy nature at the top of the lineup for the Fish, he shouldn't be starting on very many fantasy teams.
7. Nate McLouth, ATL -- Granted, Nate has come up with a few clutch hits -- I saw him crank a HR to deep center to win a game a few weeks ago -- but the fact of the matter is a prototypical leadoff hitter shouldn't be batting .198. Big props to my boss Steve, who told me three days before my drafts that McLouth was hitting something like .086 for spring training, which convinced me to stay away. McLouth has bounced around the order this season because of his inconsistent hitting, and mostly now finds himself batting in the 8 spot. This is terrible for his fantasy value (not to mention his paltry 2 steals), and while it may be too early to completely sever ties with the guy, I would be looking to get rid of him at a discount.
8. Milton Bradley, SEA -- Listen, we all knew this guy just might have a few screws loose. So, it shouldn't come as a surprise that he was dealing with "dark thoughts" in the last year or two that forced him to go onto the restricted list and miss most of this season so far. He just came back to the Mariners after some counseling, and he has posted two multi-hit games so far. If you are interested in reading more about Bradley's troubles, ESPN just did a cool
exclusive interview. Numbers-wise, it is probably a big risk to try and buy low on Bradley, but
someone on the Mariners has to start hitting, right? The discount on Bradley would be so deep that it might be worth taking a chance.
9. Nolan Reimold, BAL -- I was very high on Reimold coming into the season. He seems to possess all the tools to be a quality OF in the Majors. Instead, this season has turned into an unmitigated disaster for him and his owners -- bad enough to see him splitting time with Felix Pie -- and then finally bad enough to be demoted to AAA. He slugged .466 last year and looked very promising in a little more than half a season. After less than half of this one, I'm selling or dumping and not looking back.
10. Mark DeRosa, SF -- Even before he hit the DL, DeRosa was doing just about nothing. He may have looked good for half the season with the Cardinals last year, but those memories are long gone for fantasy owners this season, with a whopping 10 RBIs in 93 ABs. He is 35 years old, and now he has a bum wrist. Dump him.
HM- Kyle Blanks (bust city);
Jeff Francouer (he teased you for a second or two, but he is back to form, hitting .210 with 29 strikeouts).
