Padres Dinelson Lamet a Player to Watch: Fantasy Value

By Brad Kelly | May 27, 2017

May 25, 2017; New York City, NY, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Dinelson Lamet pitches against the New York Mets during the sixth inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /

Dinelson Lamet was solid in his big league debut for the Padres. But, should fantasy owners be making a player to watch on the waiver wire?

The Padres knew coming into the 2017 season that it would be a rebuilding year. They roster intriguing young and potential up and coming offensive stars but were also planning to enlist a rotation headed by Jhoulys Chacin and Jered Weaver. Predictably, the rotation is one of the worst in MLB, meaning that the Padres will take quality innings from anyone they can find. Enter in, Dinelson Lamet.

Lamet signed with the Paders in 2014 as a free agent out of the Dominican Republic. He was never a highly touted prospect, he ranked as the Padres 10th best heading into this season, but pitched effectively at every stop in the minors. Across four seasons in the minors, he has a 2.99 ERA and has amassed 336 K.

The 24-year-old is older than most prospects that we see come out of the Domican Republic so it remains to be seen just how much of a ceiling there is to be hit, but he has the stuff to dominate. The righty stands in at 6’4 and weighs 220 lbs., so is he a big dude. HIs fastball routinely sits in the mid-90s and plays even faster thanks to his height

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He pairs his fastball with a slider and change-up. His slider is considered a plus pitch as well, with his change being the one area that he needs to be refined. With his height and raw stuff, he does run into control issues. at times While he has at least a 26% K rate in the minors, his BB rate comes in at 10%.

With injuries and general ineffectiveness, the Padres called upon Lamet to make his debut against the Mets this past Thursday. Even though he only went five innings, Lament shined and showed the flashes of potential that the team had seen in the minors. He finished the game with only surrendering one run, two walks, and three hits while striking out eight.

He threw plenty of strikes, 61 of 91 pitches, and was able to get a feel for a change-up early on. With a solid fastball, nasty slider, and the possibility of him honing in a third pitch, things start to look better in terms of his fantasy value moving forward.

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This is not to say that Lamet is going to be the next big thing. This is simply a reminder that there can be diamonds in the rough to be found on bad teams. Lamet fared well against the Mets, but gets the Cubs in San Diego for his next start. He can not be a recommended add just yet, but if he pitches well versus the champs, owners may have to roll the dice. Pay close attention to his next start because there are the makings for a solid waiver wire add here.

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