Will J.D. Martinez Have Fantasy Success In Arizona?
By Mike Marteny
Arizona adds right handed power in J.D. Martinez
The Diamondbacks added more power from the right side in outfielder J.D. Martinez Martinez slugged 38 home runs in his last full season, and 22 last year despite missing 42 games. He already has 16 homers this year in only 200 at bats, and that is with half of his game played in a pitcher’s park! Here is the deal that took him to the desert:
Arizona is one of the most hitter-friendly parks outside of Coors Field, so this move should increase the already high power potential of Martinez. He likely isn’t available in your leagues, but he could make a nice trade target for the stretch run if you are in need of a power bat. It’s not out of the question for Martinez to hit 40 homers this year with the big park upgrade in store for him.
Martinez will also be a popular DFS target until his price starts to reflect his new surroundings. He is priced at only $4,300 on DraftKings tonight when his output could rival that of teammates Paul Goldschmidt and Jake Lamb. Just beware of high ownership!
More from Fantasy Baseball
- 5 fantasy baseball waiver wire pivots to replace Triston McKenzie
- Fantasy baseball mock draft 2023, 12-team: Aaron Judge over Trea Turner?
- 3 fantasy baseball sleepers being drafted too late
- NBA DFS picks December 25: Merry Bucking Christmas
- Fantasy Baseball: Hot pitchers worthy of starting this weekend
The big return in this deal for Detroit is third baseman Dawel Lugo. Lugo likely wont make the jump to the majors this year, but it is worth noting that he has a .282 average with seven homers for AA Jacksonville. Lugo likely wont see the majors until next year at the earliest. If he does enough to earn a September call up, he may be worth using in deep leagues.
Jose King is a very raw prospect, and still just 18 years old. He was holding his own in the Arizona League this year, but any fantasy impact he has will be several years down the road.
Sergio Alcantara projects as the eventual replacement for Jose Iglesias. Maybe. He is still a raw player as well. He is hitting .279 with three homer and 11 steals for high-A Visalia.
Detroit got a lot of potential in this deal, but Lugo is the only one close to a sure thing. Martinez will provide Arizona with another power bat from the right side, and should see a little bit of stat inflation in Arizona.
The big loser here in Arizona is likely Reymond Fuentes and Gregor Blanco. Even Yasmany Tomas could find at bats hard to come by once his bothersome groin injury is under control. The most likely scenario is for Tomas and David Peralta to platoon and Pollock and Martinez to play every day in the other two slots. Fuentes and Blanco can be dropped in nearly all leagues now, even deeper ones. They wont see enough playing time to help unless you have time to check lineups every day before deploying.
The trade of Martinez will open up some more at bats for Alex Presley and Mikie Mahtook going forward. They should see every day action as the Tigers try to figure out what they have in them. Both of them are worth a look if you need outfield help in leagues of 12 teams or more. Mahtook is more for power numbers. Presley could help in runs scored and steals.
Next: Will Jose Quintana Succeed With The Cubs?
Stay tuned for the rest of the trade breakdowns as the deadline approaches. We also have DFS picks for MLB and the British Open and fantasy football advice as we head for the upcoming NFL season!