Former catchers raking like their former selves highlight this week’s Week That Was:

Victor Martinez:  V-Mart went 3-for-4 and scored twice on Sunday.  Do not look now but the V-Mart of old is may be the V-Mart of now.  Coming into Sunday’s game, V-Mart was hitting .329 with 5 HR and 18 RBI.  Can this continue?  I say it can.  Remember, before playing with a bad knee in 2015, V-Mart hit .335 with 32 HR and 103 RBI in 2014.  Need more evidence?  Well, his contact rate is still in the high 80’s and the BABIP is only a few points above his career average.  I am shopping at the V-Mart and you should too.

Joe Mauer:  Speaking of former catchers looking like their former selves at the plate, Joe Mauer raked again Sunday going 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI.  Like V-Mart, Mauer came into Sunday’s game on fire to the tune of .321 with a .453 OBP.  It seems to me that Mauer is seeing the ball better.  Will he hit 30 dingers?  No. Will he be as valuable as when he was a catcher?  No.  Will he provide a profit for those owners who believed?  Yes.  His contact rate is back to his elite days of 2006-2010.  If the Mauer owner in your league doesn’t believe, seize the opportunity.  

Geovany Soto:   More on catchers who used to fetch major fantasy dollars as offensive catchers.  Remember 2008 when Soto his 23 HR, knocked in 86 and hit .285 for the Cubbies?  Well, with his 2-5 and a dinger Sunday, Soto is sporting a gaudy 1,038 OPS on the young season and evoking memories of that catcher with huge potential of yesteryear.  Playing for Mike Scioscia (a former catcher himself) and behind only Carlos Perez, at-bats are there for the taking.  Given that his contact rate is way up, strikeout rate way down and he has not hit an infield fly all year, there is every reason to think Soto is going to prove to be a big time bargain, especially in two catcher leagues.  Invest while you still can.

Gregory Polanco:  Ok, enough catcher stuff for now.  Let’s move on to young hitters making some serious noise.  Gregory Polanco is one such hitter.  He went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and two walks Sunday.  Coming into Sunday, Polanco was hitting .302 with a sweet .900+ OPS.  Surprised?  You shouldn’t be.  The Rules of Engagement say that young talented players who have yet to hit their peak and have already logged 800 or more AB in the majors are good candidates to move to the next level and be bargains.  Polanco is just proving the Rule.  Buy!

Nick Castellanos:  Like Polanco, Nick Castellanos is a young hitter who had not hit his full stride and came into the season with 800-plus AB.  Like Polanco, Castellanos had a big game Sunday, hitting a three run bomb.  Also like Polanco, Castellanos came into Sunday on fire hitting .363.  Yeah, the BABIP is over .400 and that will not continue.  So what?  Wouldn’t you take .280 with good counting numbers?  Well, you will get more than that and pay less than his year-long value if you make a deal now.  Book it. 

Mallex Smith:  Mallex Smith has shaken his early malaise.  Sunday, the fleet of foot Brave went 3-for-4 with a run and a stolen base.  That means he has six hits in his last eight AB after going just 9 for his first 48.  If he can hit at all (and I believe he can), then the speed will make him very valuable.  He has three SB already and let’s face it, there is no reason the Braves should throw up the stop sign.  They are going nowhere in a hurry.  Smith, on the other hand, will go 90 feet almost every time he gets to first base

Julio Teheran:  Julio Teheran seems to have righted the ship.  Against a tough Cubs lineup Sunday, the Atlanta hurler tossed 7 innings of one run ball while striking out nine.   Combined with his previous start, Teheran has now hurled 14 innings while giving up just two runs and striking out 17.   Is he as good as the last two starts?  No.  The reduced velocity is a concern.  So is the reduced swinging strike percentage.  I am cautiously optimistic but need to see more support before I buy in fully. 

And now the moment you well, may or may not be waiting for, the Baron of Bottom of the Page pontificates a/k/a Schultz says: “because it's entirely possible that people keep track of such things or, as Laremy Tunsill learned this week, because nothing ever disappears from the Internet, Schultz strives to remain coherent with his advice from week to week. While the Overlord may take issue with the final result, he will always give Schultz credit for trying - or at the very least meeting his weekly deadline. Those with decent short term memories may recall the mocking tone of last week's Schultz Says concerning the undying roto-desire to save your season with one pick off the free agency wire. Fate has caused a 180 here as there is potential this week to seriously bolster your pitching staff not just for this year but for the rest of the decade.

Early season injuries have resulted in the Oakland As - always a source of undervalued pitching as they play in a canyon with expansive land to run down foul balls - calling up Sean Manaea, their ace of the future. This spring, some pundits had penciled Manaea in as the AL rookie of the year despite it being common knowledge that he wasn't starting the season in the rotation. Similarly, in Minnesota, the Twins have decided that the time is now to call up Jose Berrios, one of the top pitching prospects on planet Earth. Adding to the bounty, Shane Greene's injury had led to the Tigers bumping Michael Fulmer up the main roster.

All three of these future roto-studs did the knowledgeable roto-owner a favor by not really impressing anyone out of the gate. Don't look at this as an indication that they aren't ready. Look at it as their roto-favor to you that they discouraged the looky-loos that didn't understand the value of what they were seeing. Unlike the Blake Snell experiment, Manaea, Berrios and Fulmer are going to be around for a while as injuries make it ill-advised to rush them back to AAA. While the Tigers will be cautious with Fulmer, the A’s and Twins have a history of rolling the dice with young pitchers - sometimes to the tune of a future Tommy John. Nonetheless, pounce on these three before the rest of your league wakes up.”

Response:  Well, as overlord, I used to exercise my unfettered, unmitigated, unabridged power to belittle the unseen Carlton the Doorman of fantasy sports.  But alas, each week in my inbox I find wisdom worthy of praise.  This week continues the string as Schultz is surely right (and yes, that hurt to type) – the young pitchers did you a favor not lighting the world on fire in Week 1.  You may not get so lucky if you wait any longer!