Fantasy Baseball Stats: Daily All-Stars from September 4
Joy R. Absalon-USA TODAY Sports
Another day is down, and with an abbreviated schedule, the top fantasy baseball stats belonged to the hitters. Many of those fantasy baseball stats belonged to the designated hitters.
But we start with a catcher who broke out of a slump in a pretty mighty way.
Daily Fantasy Baseball Stats MVP
Devin Mesoraco — Cincinnati Reds
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What a game from one of baseball’s best breakout performers this year. Mesoraco’s Reds teammates didn’t do enough to allow the team to win this game, but the offense certainly contributed more than enough to get the catcher some dominant fantasy baseball stats. He hasn’t had a great second half so this pace could drop, but Mesoraco is on pace to hit just under 25 homers with 80 RBI and a .286 average.
Not bad for a guy that you probably picked up after the draft. Guys like Jonathan Lucroy and Buster Posey are the stalwarts, but people like Mesoraco pop up every year, showing that you probably shouldn’t reach to grab a top backstop.
Daily Fantasy Baseball Stats Honorable Mentions
1. David Ortiz — Boston Red Sox
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Thanks to Chase Headley, Ortiz’s team couldn’t quite pick up a win over their rivals, but Big Papi was on point, slugging homers number 31 and 32 on the season. These were his first homers since the middle of August. If that slump hadn’t happened, he’d have a chance for 40 bombs. Actually, with a torrid finish, he can still get there.
While we’re talking about him, I’m actually going to take a second to vouch for David Ortiz and his Hall of Fame chances. You’ll frequently hear people wonder if a DH belongs in Cooperstown, as they only contribute to one-half of the game. I have two arguments back.
- Pitchers don’t exactly contribute to the whole game. Actually, American League pitchers don’t contribute at all on offense. Also, they only play in about 20 percent of games. Yet, they go to the Hall of Fame with no arguments.
- If the position of DH is going to exist, you have to honor the best players at that position just like you do any others.
That’s the end of my soapbox rant for the day. This has been another great year for Ortiz, who’s still about as reliable a source for power as there is in baseball, or fantasy baseball.
2. Victor Martinez — Detroit Tigers
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Hey, another primary DH having a fantastic season. Martinez broke the game open in extra innings, smacking a three-run bomb that helped give the Tigers a much needed win.
We knew that Martinez could hit coming into the season, we just weren’t sure how much power he had. Well, next homer will be No. 30, which I guess answers that question.
3. Nelson Cruz — Baltimore Orioles
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First off, apologies to Chris Denorfia, who probably had better overall fantasy baseball stats than Cruz. Unfortunately, the difference in ownership rate more than made up for the difference in stats, as Denorfia’s day helped virtually no fantasy players.
Due to his suspension last year, Cruz is another guy that entered 2014 with some questions around just how good he actually is. Now, 37 home runs later, those questions have largely been answered.