Fantasy Baseball Sleepers: Lesser-Owned Bats Making Noise
From batting-average standouts to stolen-base specialists, these overlooked hitters deserve more fantasy attention.
Let's turn our attention back to fantasy baseball, looking at players flying under the radar in fantasy leagues.
We'll look at fantasy hitters first, then fantasy pitchers in another article.
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Troy Johnston - Colorado Rockies
Johnston is rostered in just 19% of fantasy baseball leagues right now.
He has played in 58 games and he owns the fourth-best batting average (.320) in the league. Johnston has a .377 on-base percentage.
Johnston has 63 hits, including 17 doubles and two home runs. He has 27 RBIs, 24 runs scored, 16 walks and 44 strikeouts. He's also stolen three bases.
Johnston is a solid deep-league asset, and is worth adding/utilizing in more leagues. He'll likely top out as a deep-league asset, but at least take advantage of his hot hitting in those leagues for now.
Nick Gonzales - Pittsburgh Pirates
Gonzales sits sixth in the league in average (.314). He is getting on base at a .367 clip.
He has 65 total hits, including 10 doubles and two home runs. Gonzales has 29 RBIs, 31 runs scored, 15 walks, three stolen bases and 38 strikeouts.
Gonzales was part of today's waiver wire article. He's on the rise, and is up to 23% rostered now.
Gonzales could be eligible at a couple positions, which ups his fantasy value even more. He's a really solid deep-league fantasy asset at this time, so add and utilize him in deeper leagues at least, and he could even be a short-term option in standard leagues.
Jung Hoo Lee - San Francisco Giants
Lee has been on the rise of late, and is up to 38% rostered.
He has the 10th-best batting average (.310) in the league. Lee also has a .346 OBP over 54 games played. Lee also has 12 doubles, three homers and two triples among his 63 total knocks, plus 20 RBIs, 25 runs scored, 10 walks and 23 strikeouts.
Lee is a very good deep-league asset right now, and could even be tried in standard leagues. Take advantage of things with Lee while his bat is hot, and roll with him as long as he's producing.
Spencer Horwitz - Pittsburgh Pirates
Horwitz has a top-15 OBP (.390) in the league. He has a strong .291 average over 57 games played as well.
He has eight doubles, seven homers and a triple among his 53 total hits. Horwitz has 26 RBIs, 24 runs scored, 30 walks, a stolen base and just 26 strikeouts.
Horwitz is rostered in 38% of leagues, and has been on the rise over the past couple weeks. He's one to add and utilize in deeper leagues at least. Horwitz could eventually be worth adding in some standard leagues, so keep tabs on him and make that move if he keeps delivering at the plate.
Nasim Nunez - Washington Nationals
Nunez has just a .191 average, but a .284 OBP. He leads the league in stolen bases (22).
He has played in 59 games, and has 33 hits, 16 RBIs, 22 runs scored, 22 walks and 43 strikeouts. Nunez has just three extra-base hits, two doubles and a triple.
Nunez might not be a very good fantasy asset, but he produces enough to own in a few fantasy leagues at least. He's sitting at 15% owned right now, but in the right leagues, he can be utilized and be a useful asset.
J.P. Crawford - Seattle Mariners
Crawford sits at about 24% rostered right now.
He has a .224 average, but a .351 OBP is pretty strong. Crawford has 43 hits and 34 walks. He has five doubles and 10 home runs, plus 23 RBIs, 30 runs scored and 44 strikeouts. Crawford has one stolen base so far.
Crawford might not be hitting the best this season, but he's getting on base enough, and that gives him more fantasy value than you might originally think. Look into adding Crawford, especially in deeper leagues, and keep tabs on him in case his bat heats up eventually.
Jake Burger - Texas Rangers
Burger is rostered in about 37% of fantasy leagues right now.
He has played in 60 games, and is sporting a .235 average and .290 OBP so far. Burger has 53 hits, 37 RBIs, 30 runs scored, 17 walks, a stolen base and 65 strikeouts. He has 53 total knocks, including 11 doubles and 10 home runs.
The average and OBP aren't great, but the power numbers make him a bit better fantasy asset. Burger has seen his fantasy own percentage grow over the past month, but he still is worth looking into in even more deeper leagues.
