Note: Don't whiff on this special FanDuel offer. Win your first contest or get your money back (up to $10) to keep playing. Try FanDuel now!
In 2011, Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia both finished in the top 5 in AL Cy Young voting, with Verlander walking away with his lone trophy to date.
Verlander finished in the top two the following season, but hasn't pitched consistently at an ace level since, while Sabathia hasn't placed in voting since -- they have just three All-Star game appearances between them since.
So, it's a bit of a surprise to see these two pitching so well. Less so for Verlander, who has been universally owned since draft season after a solid 2015, but Sabathia was pretty much completely written off after posting a 4.81 ERA over the last three seasons.
However, he is showing us some flashes of peak CC this season and has been on an absolute roll lately.
Should Fantasy owners buy in?
Despite dealing with a groin injury, Sabathia has been dominant in three May starts, allowing just one earned run, while striking out 21 batters and walking four in 20 innings of work. His velocity hasn't been consistently up in this time, but he has added a pitch to his repertoire, which is an interesting wrinkle at this point in his career: Sabathia is throwing a cutter now. A lot.
According to BrooksBaseball.net, Sabathia had thrown just 30 cutters in his career; he's thrown 181 of them through his first seven starts, a full 28.5 percent of his pitches. This isn't just a category error, either, because the cutter comes in eight MPH harder than his slider, with less horizontal and vertical movement. This is a conscious change Sabathia has made, inspired by work with former Yankees Andy Pettite and Mariano Rivera.
This change has so far worked out for the better, as Sabathia has held opponents to a .240 average and .080 ISO against the pitch. We'll see how it works moving forward, but Sabathia's results of late shouldn't be ignored. They aren't proof that Sabathia has turned back the clock, but if you're looking for a flier on the wire, he's worth a look.
Jurickson Profar, 2B, Rangers (18 percent owned)
Unfortunately, this one will probably just be a short-term option, but Profar is certainly worth talking about as he gets a chance to return to the majors. Profar is set to be recalled from Triple-A Friday to replace Rougned Odor on the roster, and he will likely man second base for the next week while Odor serves his suspension. He probably won't be on the roster long after that, but Profar is the kind of talent who is worth a look any time he gets a chance, because he might play so well the Rangers can't afford to send him back down. He hit just .231/.301/.343 in two previous stints in the majors, but it's hard to give him too much grief for that, because he hadn't even turned 21 at that point. Profar was once the top prospect in all of baseball, and has bounced back nicely from two lost seasons due to injury, hitting .284/.356/.426 in 41 games at Triple-A this season. If you've got a roster spot, Profar might be the kind of high-upside play worth betting on.
Matt Adams, 1B, Cardinals (20 percent owned)
Adams was kind of a disaster in 2015, even before a serious quad injury cost him significant time. He also struggled in 2014, hitting just 15 homers in his first real shot at an everyday role, so it's tough to get too excited about Adams at this point. However, we know he has real power and can absolutely crush right-handed pitching, which makes him worth riding when he is hot. And Adams is very hot right now, hitting .500 with three homers in his last six games, putting him back on Fantasy radars. Assuming the back injury he left Thursday's game with isn't serious, Adams is worth picking up now that he is in a groove.
Byron Buxton, OF, Twins (45 percent owned)
I'll never be able to quit Buxton. I'm sure some Fantasy players have totally given up on him, and I can't blame them. He has looked completely lost when given the chance to showcase his talents in the majors. However, his talents are considerable, as his performance since a demotion to Triple-A shows. In 25 games since being sent back down, Buxton is hitting .340/.398/.621, with a reasonable 21.2 percent strikeout rate and four stolen bases. There's a chance Buxton is just a quadruple-A player, someone who can crush the minors but can't make the leap to the majors, but that seems like an odd tag to apply to a 22-year-old. In 38 career games at Triple-A, Buxton has hit .361/.413/.595, and I'm not ready to give up on his talent. With Buxton crushing the ball and the Twins headed absolutely nowhere, it's probably only a matter of time before he gets another chance, and given his track record and pedigree, you probably want to bet on Buxton hitting eventually.
