Last week, I talked about how you should believe in your studs. No, not Studs Terkel, but he was the man. No, not Macho Man Randy Savage either. Why did you even bring him up? Though his hip hop album is easily one of the best (or worst) things I’ve ever heard. Where was I? This week I’m looking at a few guys that I believe are either off to a hot start and undervalued or off to a slow start and worth buying low in OPS leagues. After all, the season isn’t even 10% over, so it’s too early to make drastic assumptions about a player’s performance (that’s for next month!).
Seth Smith – So the title of this article is slightly outdated since Smith went to Oakland last year, but that doesn’t matter too much because everybody forgets about him. Dude is currently mashing and is probably on your waiver wire. Go ahead, check – I’ll still be here after you pick him up. He is a reliable .800+ OPS guy and is even better in daily leagues, where you can bench him against lefties like the A‘s do. His playing time should be even more consistent now with Cespedes on the DL.
Jose Altuve – A couple months ago I said, “I’ll let you in on a little secret. Or maybe it’s a big secret. James Brown came to me in a dream last night and took me to the Apollo Theater where I became his band leader. When he played “I Feel Good” he started improvising about how Jose Altuve was going to lead his fantasy baseball team to the promised land. So James and I are in agreement about Altuve being a great stolen base guy in OPS leagues, especially considering the weak position. Yes, we’re on a first name basis now.” What I’m trying to say is that I’m all in on Altuve as a great OPS second baseman and, despite his solid start, you may still be able to buy him relatively cheap. Why? Well, either his owner isn’t buying his hot start or doesn’t really want to own an Astros’ player. These aren’t mutually exclusive.
Pedro Alvarez – He’s getting dropped in a ton of leagues right now, so he’s a good buy low (free?) player. I still believe he’ll approach his numbers from last year.
Brandon Belt – He’s available in a lot of leagues as well and had a slow start to the season. He was also sick (of Bochy) and we have no idea how much that contributed to his poor performance. I would take a chance on him, ABBA. His upside is, has been, and will continue to be very enticing.
Carlos Beltran – Maybe I just like players with “belt” in their names. What does that say about me? Don’t answer that. I feel like it’s common for an ageless wonder like Beltran to take a couple weeks to warm up. He’s still trying to shake off the cryogenic residue from his offseason preservation program. This is an awkward way of saying I think he’s neat. Also, I could see a repeat of last year so I would buy if his current owner is afraid that Father Time has come to reclaim his soul. I hear you’re next, Konerko.
David Ortiz – Sounds like my OPS king will be returning to the lineup soon. I’d try to buy low if you can. I covered him here and here. Basically, as long as he can still swing a bat, I’ll be getting excited about him in OPS leagues and you can too! Sit, Ubu, sit. Good dog.
