Sleeper hitters for Week 8
| 1 | 
Delino DeShields
Texas Rangers CF
|
| A challenger emerges! Much of Delino DeShields ' production comes in the form of stolen bases, so in points leagues where those are worth only one point instead of the standard two, his appeal is lessened. But in a week the Rangers have the best matchups, facing some of the worst the Mariners and White Sox have to offer, their leadoff man (and emerging on-base threat?) figures to do some scoring. | |
| 2 | 
Jorge Soler
Kansas City Royals RF
|
| OK, so he didn't fall far. Soler may not have the most favorable matchups, but he'll still benefit from a couple bullpen games against the ransacked Rays staff to open the week. The plate discipline and batted-ball tendencies point to him being a much improved player, so I suspect this is the last week he'll meet the ownership limit for this list. | |
| 3 | 
Shin-Soo Choo
Texas Rangers DH
|
| Among the pitchers the Rangers will be facing this week are Mike Leake, James Shields, Lucas Giolito and whoever the White Sox dig up for a spot start Saturday, so offense is happening. And quietly, Choo has been at the center of the Rangers offense, currently on pace for about 20 homers, 35 doubles and 90 runs. | |
| 4 | 
C.J. Cron
Tampa Bay Rays 1B
|
| C.J. Cron has the everyday job he could never quite lock up in Anaheim, but he's still doing his best work against lefties, batting .390 (16 for 41) with three homers and a 1.079 OPS. The Rays have three of those on tap this week, and some of the righties include mashables like Ian Kennedy and Jason Hammel. | |
| 5 | 
Franchy Cordero
San Diego Padres CF
|
| Franchy Cordero's suspect plate discipline limits his appeal in points leagues, but he can also put a charge in the ball and figures to do so with regularity in a week the Padres are facing stalwarts like German Marquez, Chad Kuhl and Ivan Nova. It's five right-handers in all, and Cordero has hit .286 (19 for 62) with four homers and a .911 OPS against righties so far. | |
| 6 | 
Ryon Healy
Seattle Mariners 1B
|
| Ryon Healy has recently found his stroke after missing most of the first month with a sprained ankle, batting .346 (18 for 52) with seven homers in his past 13 games. He mashed lefties to the tune of a .314 batting average and .873 OPS last season, and the Mariners have three on tap in a seven-game week -- against the Rangers and Tigers rotations, no less. | |
| 7 | 
Maikel Franco
Philadelphia Phillies 3B
|
| With five homers in his past 13 games, Maikel Franco is certainly a hot-hand play, so while the Phillies matchups are less than magical, you're still more likely to start him than not. His high contact rate reduces his disaster potential, but judging by the data-ball data -- namely, the line-drive, fly-ball and hard-contact rates -- I'm not fully convinced he's a changed hitter. | |
| 8 | 
Rougned Odor
Texas Rangers 2B
|
| Starting a player fresh off the DL is always a risk, but you may have heard the Rangers have good matchups this week. Fortunately, we'll have the weekend to observe whether or not Rougned Odor is definitively past his hamstring injury, and assuming he is, his power should play up against the Mike Leake, James Shields and Lucas Giolito types. | |
| 9 | 
Max Kepler
Minnesota Twins RF
|
| Get used to seeing Max Kepler's name in this space. At 49 percent ownership, I think he's vastly underappreciated, so anytime the Twins have passable matchups with more righties than lefties, he's probably among the best sleepers you'll find. He has had some bad RBI and run luck so far, but better times are ahead. | |
| 10 | 
Denard Span
Tampa Bay Rays LF
|
| Denard Span has done his part to assure us he's still sneaky productive when healthy, getting on base at a good clip with just enough power and speed to appease Rotisserie owners. And as the leadoff man for a team set to face Eric Skoglund, Ian Kennedy, Jason Hammel and Nick Tropeano in the coming days, he figures to cross the plate a few times. | |
