by Fantasy Baseball is a game of opinions. We don’t always agree, and that’s good. That is why we play this game six months a year.
Last week we tackled some polarizing pitchers. Today we look at some polarizing batters.
Shohei Ohtani (Util), Dodgers and Ronald Acuña Jr. (van), Braves
I have Ohtani on my fade list, but see it for what it is worth – a very mild fade. In a world that rises Ohtani when the automatic 1-pick, I prefer him at 2 or 3. Last year’s samples are a terrible gamble to repeat. It is not worth the health maintenance of Ohtani. He never stole more than 26 bases before 2024, and part of the peak last year was the novelty of the 50-50 Chase. Ohtani and the Dodgers are smart. It is not about beating the Rockies or the Reds in May, it is about being prepared to defend the Ring in October.
My phone call: Regression is not fun, but it certainly feels inevitable. So that’s there. And don’t forget how often Ohtani was injured in Anaheim. The Dodgers are ready for six months of loading management. They are already in the play -offs. That is not a scenario for someone I can first take in general.
On Acuña he also starts to curb the running – and he admits it openly. You know the rule about player and team quotes – be careful with the Sunshine dings, but believe all the negative things they tell you. That is where the truth serum is.
My phone call: Acuñas have had two major injuries in his career and the bags must be exchanged for preservation. Oh, he will run a bit. But given that he is not ready for the opening day and that he is already talking about maintenance and game changes that are needed, I will not touch the market price of an ADP in the low 1930s.
Kyle Tucker, van, Cubs
Look, Tucker has always been great since he became ordinary. But last year his characteristic year would be Sgt. Pepper season. Just about every stat will bring you to the same conclusion, but let’s use the 181 Ops+ as the illustration of the supporters. Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani beat it under the qualifications of the competition. No one else did it.
So Tucker has all grown up, as they say at the Apollo. But now he is on the Cubs, not the Astros. My friend Gene McCaffrey had a great look – an open question – about Tucker and this curious trade:
I do not rank it higher until I understand why the Astros exchanged him. The idea in baseball is not to exchange players such as Kyle Tucker. The Astros know this for sure and still exchanged him. Reading between the lines, and I could be wrong, I think they were very strange that he missed three months after an HBP. I saw the piece, he didn’t even look like he would leave the game. After he finally returned, he only tried to steal one.
Tucker has always been a high percentage of a stealer, but perhaps he is another Slagster who decides to grab it. Or maybe 2024 was an aberration after the injury, I don’t know. He plays for his next contract, which counts for some. I will admit that I am a bit worried about guys after they have received the big payment days, especially if the opportunities of the team context (Colton and the Wolfman have gone up so early and they have made a coin of those fades). But everyone actually tries. It is not that Tucker ever looked half bets.
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My phone call: So I’m afraid to set Tucker and I’m afraid not to set him up. Perhaps the Cubs are my own personal version of a scary film, I always expect something bad to happen. That is not a tangible reason, I know. I still rinse to what would have added six months of Kyle Tucker 2024.
Jarren Duran, van, Red Sox
The funny thing is that the 2024 breakout always hid in sight. He just needed a full season of dedication. The oblique lines of the last two years are almost identical. The work on the bases, the same stuff. The power seemed to bloom (13 more gays), but his slugging only bumped 10 points. When career years take place in the early 1920s, we say “to the moon!” When they jump in the later 1920s, we become suspicious.
My phone call: I suspect that the best approach is to ask: “Who is Duran this year?” And not Chase Duran 2024. I don’t think he is a huge too much paid, only a mild with an ADP in the Low 20s. The park is a gift and the line -up looks delicious. Boston can even be the Division favorites, given the terrible spring that the Yankees have. But I think the market has responded somewhat exaggerated, so Duran is another mild blur for me.
Nick Castellanos, Van, Phillies
When I investigated outfielders around the holidays, Castellanos considered me the most obvious blurring in the world. The career bow moves down, and although the growth and development of players is not always linear, it is almost always the deterioration of the skills. Now it’s a season-33 season. Unfortunately, many people in the industry that I respect choose Castellos as the boring veterinarian value, and although I don’t do the drum as much for the Ibanez All-Stars as much handsome as I used to play, they play to my emotions.
My phone call: I have prepared Castellanos once this year, in case they are right. I will blur him for the rest of spring, in case I am right. At least the park and the line -up offer buoyancy.
Michael Teglia, 1B/van, Rockies
He is not the biggest name on this list, but he may fit best in the column. Toblia has linked 21 gays in 116 games, we can’t see that. He also hit 147 times and hit .218, we can’t see that either. His house/road splits were strange, while he hit 17 of his homers away from Coors and had a higher ops on the road. The Rockies just have to leave Toblia alone for six months and see what they have, but back to my husband McCaffrey, who once said: “Colorado is a club that can’t wait to get his best team out of the field.” That is an elegant way to say ‘impatient’.
First base used to be a fantasy -fun zone. It has become more difficult in recent years. It is better to look at the bottom half of the first base pool and find someone you like. If it’s not a Toblia, it might be Tyler Soderstrom or Ryan Mountcastle. How can Carlos Santana continue to produce at his age? Soderstrom is my favorite of these guys on the current market, but I focused on Teglia for a best ball concept, which expected a volatile profile, but ultimately a good streamline at the end of the year.
My phone call: The high-strikeout, High-Fly Ball Hitters have the biggest peaks and valleys. We will see if Colorado is smart enough to let Teglia work through it. It is not as if he is blocking the next Todd Helton. See what you have here. The same can be said for fantasy managers, with its ADP Past Pick 200.
