Fansided

3 fantasy baseball sleepers being drafted too late

By Michael Brakebill

(Photo by Matt Dirksen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Matt Dirksen/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
(Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /

Fantasy Baseball sleepers No. 2: Brendan Donovan, St. Louis Cardinals

In points leagues, Brendan Donovan put up 249 points in standard scoring leagues in just 126 games. Adjusting for an entire season, he was on pace to put up over 300+ due to slashing an impressive .281/.394/.379 as a rookie. Where he lacks power, he makes up for in on-base percentage and is a solid depth piece that is eligible in Yahoo Sports leagues for 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, and the OF.

Three hundred is not a very significant number for points leagues, in general, but it is when he is falling to the 249th overall pick. Donovan’s 129 wRC+, or 29 percent better than league average, was highly impressive in his first season. He’s a fantastic stash to have on your bench for key matchups when they pop up. Let’s dive further into the stats and analytics for the most appropriate times to utilize him in your starting lineup by breaking down his numbers against different pitch types:

  • Four Seam Fastball (36.27%): .326/.446/.431
  • Slider (15.72%): .273/.431/.364
  • Sinker (14.09%): .302/.422/.491
  • Changeup (11.39%): .233/.277/.317
  • Cutter (10.68%): .275/.383/.350
  • Curveball (8.24%): .136/.208/.136
  • Split-Finger (0.92%): .250/.308/.250
  • Knuckle-Curve (0.25%): .500/.667/.500
  • Eephus (0.92%): .000/.000/.000 
  • Fastball (0.20%): .000/.000/.000

Considering Donovan was pretty split-neutral against LHP vs. RHP, with a .297 average off southpaws and .282 against righties, we can safely assume that any time he goes up against a pitcher that is primarily throwing 4SFBs, sliders, and sinkers, Donovan will quietly be in a position to produce that night.

It also doesn’t hurt to be part of a lineup consisting of Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, and Willson Contreras against lackluster NL Central pitching. Make sure you have him queued up if you need a backup piece that can play almost every position once you get up to about the 200th pick in your draft.

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