Not quite two weeks into the season and some top picks have already been placed on the LIST. Brian Roberts appears to be out at least all of April. Aaron Hill another highly drafted MI was placed on the DL yesterday and is expected to miss most of the month. Jimmy Rollins comeback season must be put on hold as he will also be out of the lineup during April. Miguel Montero was placed on the DL by the Diamondbacks late last week and could miss up to 6 Weeks of action.
All injuries tend to have a negative effect on your teams but this collection of injuries can be even more devastating. All of these players play received a premium pick because they play in possibly the three weakest positions. You drafted these players high so you could have some reassurance that these areas will be productive for you throughout the season. Now just a week into the season you are having to cypher through names to find the best of a bad bunch. Obviously the deeper the league the lesser the quality of a replacement. We play in a 12 Team league with 25 players. While the NFBC plays a 12 Team 30 man league. That is a difference of 60 players which makes for a big difference in the caliber of options you have.
When selecting a replacement player because of injury I try to go by 1 of 2 methods. The first method is the highest upside available. If I have a roster with little question marks in terms of expected production I would rather role the dice with a player than go with the safe steady selection. Scott Sizemore for example is a rookie for the Tigers. His minor league track record suggest that he should develop into a decent hitter with .270 AVG potential or better. He also possesses good speed and could be a good source of SB if he can consistently get on base. The problem with Sizemore is he is unproven. He could be the above player or he could really struggle with MLB pitching hit well below the .270 mark and go from being the everyday guy to a players who gets two starts a week. The other method is the one tool player. Most baseball fans know a 5 Tool Player is one who can do everything well. Of course the chances of landing one of these players from the FA pool is slightly less than Ryan Moore shopping at Rite Aid.
So you focus on the player who can get you elite level in any category rather than a guy who is decent in more than one. Now in the draft I would rather draft a player who can produce in 4 areas than a player who hits .320 but like the 5 Tool players these big producers can't be found on the FA list. So a decent producer in multiple areas in the FA pool will have a season stat line no better than 270/20/70/70/10. Over a full season this is a serviceable option but in a short term fix to replace a injury I would rather have a guy who could hit .300 or have 28 HR or a 25 SB guy. Chances are he will have a more immediate impact on your team and be more productive in a short period than the latter player.
With this free advice in mind I will take a look at various positions and list some available players who fit this criteria. One Tool Player is the elite stat possibility. The Touchem' All is the player who can do a little of everything in at least 4 areas but I would reccomend staying away from. The Prospect is the player who has the upside.
C- Let's face it. No strategy in picking up a FA catcher you will pick up whoever has the potential for some AB's and sometimes you could be better picking up a C who only plays when it is advantageous to them such as a Ronny Paulino vs. Lefties. However three really good C prospects are a injury away. Buster Posey, Carlos Santana, and Jesus Montero could join Matt Wieters and be the best young C crop in decades.
1B-One Tool Player- Mike Jacobs (HR), Connor Jackson (AVG)
Touchem' All- Casey Kotchman, Lyle Overbay
Prospect- Daric Barton, Matt LaPorta, Gabby Sanchez
2B- One Tool Player- Chris Getz (SB)
Touchem' All- Felipe Lopez
Prospect- Scott Sizemore
SS- One Tool Player- Christian Guzman (AVG)
Touchem' All- Yuniesky Betancourt
Prospect- Cliff Pennington
3B- One Tool Player- Currently No FA in the 64/60 meets this criteria as no player appears to be an elite option in any one spot.
Touchem' All- Pedro Feliz, Mark Teahen
Prospect- Chase Headley, Kevin Kouzmanoff
OF- One Tool Player- Carlos Gomez (SB), Tony Gwynn (SB), Jonny Gomes (HR)
Touchem' All- Aaron Rowand, Carlos Guillen
Prospect- Michael Brantley, Dexter Fowler
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