Welcome back to “Off The Deep End”, where I will give you fantasy baseball tips on who to pick up in deeper leagues. For people who play standard leagues, drop/add columns are easy for you to find, but for those of you that love deeper leagues, advice can be harder to come by. That is where I can help. All of these players are available in 85% or more of ESPN leagues.
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This time around we will do things a little differently. I will only do one position at a time, but I will give you advice on who to drop as well.
The first piece will focus on the catchers.
Martin still has value in most leagues. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Add:
Russell Martin, Pirates: Martin is getting plenty of at-bats behind the plate for the Pirates. His power is mostly gone – he has just five homers on the season – but he is still hitting for a good average. The value of that in deep leagues cannot be underestimated.
Travis D’arnaud, Mets: He is back in the majors again in case you haven’t noticed. He is looking MUCH more comfortable this time around. He is hitting .309 since his call up on June 24th with two homers and 13 RBI. That has made him a staple in the Mets’ lineup. He should be in your deep league lineups as well.
Dioner Navarro, Blue Jays: Navarro is 6-17 with a pair of homers since the break. He has been a consistent force in the Jays’ lineup for the last five weeks, yet he is still owned in just 4 percent of leagues. Pick him up if you want consistent production.
Drop:
Robinson Chirinos, Rangers: He was useful for a while, and I still like the fact that he is getting at bats at first base, but you just can’t justify a bench slot on a guy hitting .130 since July 7th.
Mike Zunino, Mariners: He has great upside, and good power, but he is also prone to slumps. Such as the one he is in now. Zunino is hitting just .102 in July. You can do better in any leauge right now.
Tony Cruz, Cardinals: For those of you that thought he would be a sneaky play with Yadier Molina on the DL, the joke is on you. Cruz is hitting just .143 since Molina went down.