Now that we’re half-way through the season, we have a pretty good idea of what to expect from most players. While there’s still plenty of value to be found in free agent pools across the web, it’s unlikely we’ll find the next ace starter or stud outfielder waiting to be snatched up. If anyone out there was that good we probably would have seen it by now.
Still, that doesn’t mean we should stick with the rosters we have and keep our fingers crossed. If your team is lacking in home runs, there are guys out there that can help you. The same goes for every other category, and here’s a look at some of the most notable players widely available (under 50% owned) and how they can help you down the stretch.
Mitch Moreland, 1B/OF, TEX, 44% Owned
Strengths: AVG, HR
Weaknesses: RBI, SB
Moreland has 11 homers on the season including five in the last month. According to Hit Tracker Online, Moreland hit the third longest homer of anyone this season (472 feet) and 10 of his 11 bombs have been over 400 feet — most well beyond that. The average homer in the league this year is 394.8 feet, and Moreland’s average homer has traveled 422.3 feet. Hit Tracker Online also has this cool tool that tells you how many ballparks each homer would have gone out in. Seven of Moreland’s 11 homers would have gone out in all 30 parks, and three of the other four would have been round trippers in 26. Moreland’s lone cheap homer was a 342-foot poke in Minute Maid Park in Houston. Moreland actually hits for a near-.300 average, too, but sadly he doesn’t get any RBI chances and has just 24 on the season while playing at the game’s premier power position. Deep leaguers with questionable outfielders or utility spots should give Moreland a look. He has tremendous power.
Angel Pagan, OF, NYM, 48% Owned
Strengths: R, AVG, SB
Weaknesses: HR
Pagan was a fantasy darling last season, erupting for 80 runs, 37 steals and a .290 average in his first full season, but early struggles and injuries derailed him and many have forgotten how valuable he was. In the last month Pagan has swiped six bases, scored 15 runs and batted .303 with a .391 on-base percentage. He finally appears healthy and resembles the player we saw in 2010. While I wouldn’t call Pagan a power threat as he won’t hit many homers, he does post modest RBI totals by virtue of hitting in the Mets’ five-hole.
Seth Smith, OF, COL, 42% Owned
Strengths: he does a little bit of everything…
Weaknesses: except steal bases
If I had to pick one undervalued player who could be a star in the second half, I’d give Smith a long look. He still has trouble hitting left-handed pitchers, something that will prevent him from becoming an elite fantasy option, but he has good power in a good ballpark and has a .964 OPS against right-handed pitchers this season. Smith has just three homers this month — two coming in one game — but he’s a good RBI guy and bats fifth or six in the Rockies’ lineup behind some real big bats. I may have mentioned this, but don’t start him against lefties.
Ryan Ludwick, OF, SD, 39% Owned
Strengths: RBI
Weaknesses: AVG, SB
Ludwick has so-so power and I almost listed “HR” as a strength, but he plays in a tough park and has just 10 on the season. Still, he’s the guy the Padres look to when they need base runners driven in and his 50 RBI puts him on pace for around 100. Unfortunately, he doesn’t score a ton of runs, doesn’t steal bases, and doesn’t hit for a good average. That’s not all his fault, but it does impact his value.
Austin Jackson, OF, DET, 38% Owned
Strengths: R, SB
Weaknesses: HR, RBI
Jackson has 41 runs scored this season including a whopping 20 in the last month. He can run and score, but doesn’t do much else. Even though Jackson is hitting just .254 on the season, he does go on torrid stretches when he can bat well over .300 but then go ice cold. Right now he’s clicking on all cylinders and can provide your team with everything but the power categories.
Mark Trumbo, 1B, LAA, 32% Owned
Strengths: HR
Weaknesses: pretty much everything else
I’ve flirted with adding Trumbo for most of the season, but his home run potential wasn’t great enough for me to justify adding someone who strikes out as much as he does…until recently that is. Trumbo batted .272 in May and is equaling that mark in June all while cutting his strikeout total down from 21 in May to just 13 so far this month. Still, there isn’t much here in the way of runs or RBI and I wouldn’t expect him to bat better than .270 from here on out.
Jemile Weeks, 2B, OAK, 24% Owned
Strengths: R, SB
Weaknesses: HR, RBI (big time weaknesses)
Weeks generally puts the bat on the ball and is probably fast enough to run from the cops. Oakland has let him run and Weeks has been successful thus far. If you’re looking for a cheap source of steals and maybe even some runs and a potentially solid average, Weeks might be your man.
