Asdrubal Cabrera, 2B/SS, Cleveland Indians
Status: Back from the disabled list (shoulder)
Basics: .304 AVG, 2 HRs, 33 RBIs, 7 SBs in 59 games
Key Stats: Hitting .208 (5-for-24) since return from DL
What to Watch For: His ability to get back on track after DL stint
Other Notes: Is a good play at shallow middle infield positions … can get away with lack of power, but ideally would develop 15 HR potential to go along with solid batting average … word of warning: peripherals are on the decline … had a .434 OBP, 13 walks and 17 strikeouts in 70 April at-bats; numbers slipped to .345-7-21 in 131 May at-bats … declining K-to-BB rate indicates that average is likely to fall below .300
Verdict: Add as a reserve, see if/when he gets hot again

Status: Heating up after a cold start
Basics: .263 AVG, 3 HRs, 16 RBIs in 28 games
Key Stats: Hitting .343 (23-for-67) with 15 RBIs in last 20 games
What to Watch For: Power development
Other Notes: Has the look and demeanor of a star; hasn’t been overwhelmed by Major League pitching, even with just 59 Minor League games under his belt … good numbers to note are his .429 average with runners in scoring position and his .556 average with runners in scoring position and 2 outs … it’s a tiny sample size, but those numbers reveal a guy who gets better in tough situations
Verdict: Is hitting now and has a high ceiling; add immediately, especially in keeper leagues

Status: Earning everyday playing time
Basics: .343 AVG, 6 HRs, 27 RBIs in 47 games
Key Stats: Hit .368 with 5 HRs, 18 RBIs in June
What to Watch For: Regular ABs, either at 2B or 3B
Other Notes: Went 7-for-9 with 6 RBIs in the last two games of a series in Chicago … has gotten most of his time at second base, but has also entered the fray with Bill Hall and Mat Gamel at third … multiple positions give him more value and better versatility in fantasy … was claimed off waivers by the Brewers after putting up so-so numbers in the Chicago Cubs organization … don’t expect huge power in the long term - his current .567 slugging percentage is 158 points higher than his career minor league mark of .409
Verdict: Capitalize on current hot streak, but don’t expect resounding success to last

The New York Yankees are putting wins on the board a little differently these days. The Bronx Bombers are still lighting up the outfield bleachers, but they have also made better use of smaller ball tactics to scratch out runs and win games.

The Major League leaders with 112 home runs, the Yankees have fallen just off the pace in June, hitting the seventh-most homers (32) in baseball. But in the place of overwhelming power, baseball’s most star-studded, veteran-laden and patient lineup has worked over opposing pitchers and scored runs the old-fashioned way. Read more »

Fans and fantasy owners can be remarkably short-sighted.

In trying to project for an upcoming season, the tendency is to look at last season’s results and assume they are going to repeat themselves. Understandably so, too; the fresher information is the safest approach to evaluating players and the best way to feel good about the picks you’ve made.

It takes some guts to reach for a rookie or a player coming off an injury plagued season. We can’t look at the statistics and feel safe in our decision-making, so we tend to avoid those players and only look at them when prices are absolutely right. Read more »

The end of a season is just about the only time where fans and fantasy owners can sit back and appreciate what their favorite players have accomplished. All things are equal then, so all numbers count the same. But, up until that point, there’s an ebb and flow to every player’s season, where hot streaks, cold streaks and fundamental changes should alter how he is viewed by fantasy owners.

There are all kinds of ways to split the numbers and get a deeper sense for a player’s long-term value. One of the easiest, most common ways is to take periodic snapshots of his production. Constantly take looks at the last seven days, the last two weeks, this month, last month, before the All-Star break, after the All-Star break. The numbers and the trends reveal stories and tell you where players have been and where they could ultimately be going. Read more »

Nolan Reimold has impressed Baltimore Orioles management with both his power and his patience, according to the Baltimore Sun. Reimold has exhibited a maturity well beyond his years and experience, which has helped him carve out an everyday role with the O’s.

Impressively, Reimold has 10 walks to just six strikeouts so far in June. Combined with his .326 batting average, the 25-year-old rookie has an impressive .453 on-base percentage and 1.034 OPS this month. Read more »

It’s been a while for Los Angeles Angels outfielder Juan Rivera. A while since he’s been a full-time player. A while since he’s been this healthy. And a while since he’s had this kind of impact, on both the Angels’ and fantasy teams’ lineups.

Rivera burst onto the scene in 2006 with a .310 average, 23 home runs and 85 RBIs and, with a current hot streak, is on target for eerily similar numbers this season. His batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS are all within a few points of his 2006 marks. Season projections have Rivera surpassing those career-best totals in homers, RBIs and runs scored. Read more »

We’re all about closers this week. We’ll rank ‘em 1-30 and let fantasy owners know who may or may not be on the chopping block.

As closers get injured or lose their managers’ confidence, doors open for setup men to win jobs and for fantasy owners to score on the waiver wire. Closer is the only position where playing time translates directly into fantasy value, so all it takes is one chance for a no-name player to be worth a roster spot.

Take Oakland A’s new closer Andrew Bailey, for example. No baseball fan or fantasy owner outside of the Bay Area could have told you who this guy was until this season. But, lo and behold, he starts pitching lights-out as a setup man, and suddenly finds himself as the team’s go-to reliever in the ninth inning. Read more »

Pay any kind of attention to trends and streaks, and you’ll notice that Boston Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester has been on fire. The 25-year-old has gone 2-0 with a 1.23 ERA and 34 strikeouts in 22 innings over his last three starts. Lester is overcoming his early struggles in a big way, and he’s adding a fantasy-friendly element to his game in the process.

All those strikeouts — he ranks third in the American League with 96 and is one of a handful of starting pitchers averaging better than 10 Ks per 9 innings — are new to Lester’s game. He made leaps and bounds last season, going 16-6 with a 3.21 ERA, but was never a true dominant force because he had too many walks and not enough strikeouts. Read more »