In my fantasy baseball prospects series this year, I had how many Padres rookies? Seventeen? (Three.) Luis Urias makes it twenty? (Still three.) It was at least twenty-five (nope, three). More fantasy baseball prospects than I care to recount here (it was seriously three). More than any of us can count (if you can’t count above two). This is good news for Padres fans if there are any. *calls up Petco* “Can you put me on the phone with a Padres fan?” “Hello?” “Is this the San Diego Chicken?” “Yeah, who dis?” So, the Padres will be good (in theory) soon, and unlike some of the other rookies I’ve outlined this month, Urias actually has the starting job and the lead for the lead-off spot in the lineup. What could go wrong? Or more seguey: So, what can we expect from Luis Urias for 2019 fantasy baseball?
It really is all about the Padres, isn’t it? I hate to go down this tangential path that does naturally relate to Urias, but what do Austin Hedges, Yonder Alonso, Anthony Rizzo, Manuel Margot and Hunter Renfroe have in common? They were as good on the Padres as I imagine Jon Cryer will be as Lex Luthor. I know, I know, Rizzo’s unfair — he was young, and quickly traded away for no reason. Also, Renfroe’s partially unfair — he’s showed signs and might still be something. Maybe Hedges and Margot will too. And Francisco Mejia seems like all kind of promising. Urias could be on top of a lineup that could make us totally forget the last twelve years of San Diego shizz. As of right now, I see no reason why Urias won’t be on top of the lineup. At the end of the year, I said, “Urias is a solid all-around bat, think .300 hitter, without huge power or speed. He’s young though, which means he could blossom, so remain calm. For now, I will call you, Zen Bobrist. I would grab him if you’re struggling at MI to see if he can catch fire and master Zen and the Art of MI Maintenance.” And that’s me quoting me! I still like him for 2019, if you’re at all *pinkie to mouth* Urias. Also, I love me some late-round MI flyers. Of course, sometimes I like to draft them in the first ten rounds. Hey, Josh Rutledge! Steamer projects Urias for 9/5/.247, which seems way too low. I’d say his line is anywhere from 8-15 HRs, 8-15 SBs and .260-.300. As you can see, there’s not a ton of power or speed, but if he can hit .290+ at leadoff, he might be one of those super cheap MIs that turns out extremely valuable in deep mixed and Only leagues. For 2019, I’ll give him the line of 79/12/42/.279/8 in 582 ABs, which isn’t quite a snooze, so mow that yawn!
