I’ve always enjoyed good knock offs. Are those Mikes or Nikes? Why does the horse logo on your Polo shirt only have three legs? Some of my favorite were Dolce & Banana, Johnnie Worker Red Labial, Adidos, and Skerpie. In the baseball world, knock offs are prevalent as well. Sometimes intentional, as younger players try to pattern their games after another, but more often than not, players just end up profiling very similarly. Yulieski Gurriel (57.9% owned – increase of 12.7%) has always reminded me of Martin Prado – high batting average, high contact, limited power, and low strikeout hitter from the right side of the plate. For his career, Prado has a .290 batting average, 11.2% strikeout rate, 6.7% walk rate, and .129 ISO. Gurriel has a career .296 batting average, 10.6% strikeout rate, 3.9% walk rate, and .162 ISO. Yes, Yuli has slightly more power, but that’s not saying much. So, why is Yuli one of the highest-added players in ESPN leagues over the past week? Since July 1st, he has a seven-game hitting streak and is batting .367/.444/.667 with 2 home runs. The ISO is .300 and strikeout rate is at 13.9%. Yuli has value, as he will hit for a high average. Just like Mikes can allow you to walk around, but try playing in a tournament with those bad boys and…..TRASH
Austin Meadows (28.9% owned – decrease of 12.1%) has a nice season line: .304 batting average with 5 home runs and 4 stolen bases. Unfortunately, most of the production came back in May. Since the hot start, Meadows has only hit 1 home run and stolen 1 base. The batting average, OBP, and slugging have all decreased every month. The most disconcerting thing, though, is that he no longer starts every game. TRASH
Brandon Nimmo (42.2% owned – decrease of 11.8%) has been been easy to find lately. On league waiver wires!!! Ba dum tss. I accept PayPal and Venmo. Nimmo hasn’t homered since June 18th and hasn’t stolen a base since June 16th. Over the past month, the strikeout rate has been a whopping 35% and the BABIP has been .351! There’s a lot of ugliness here, especially since he plays for the Mets. With that said, he hasn’t been flailing away at pitches, as the chase rate has only been 23%. The contact rates have been decent, the hard contact rate has been at 32.8%, and line drive rate has been at 14.8%. Nimmo is still batting 1st or 2nd in the lineup on a daily basis and maintains a double-digit walk rate. He won’t hit for a high average and will be streaky, but there will be heaters with pop and speed. TREASURE
Niko Goodrum (12.3% owned – increase of 8.5%) has been….well, Niko. Urbandictionary.com defines Niko as a French adjective to”qualify someone close to perfection.” Since the start of July, Niko has a .429/.442/.690 slash with 6 doubles, 1 triple, 1 home run, and 1 stolen base. He’s a switch hitter, has multi-eligibility (2B, 1B, and OF), and bats 3rd in the Tigers lineup. There’s a lot to like with Niko, but let’s not get carried away here. The BABIP has been .548 and the ISO has been at .262. On the season, he chases 34.1% of pitches outside the zone and has a 14.2% swinging strike rate. The projection systems have Niko down for a .240-ish average, .150-ish ISO, and 28% strikeout rate the rest of season. 6 home runs and 6 stolen bases are also projected. As with Yuli above, there’s value, but don’t expect the levels of the current heater. TRASH
