Everyone hates on Elvis Andrus every year. Every season I write about him and tell folks to target him late since no one cares and he’s effective and extremely consistent. Looking up through 117 games he’s hitting .296 with 52 RBI, 53 runs scored and 18 steals. He just produces. Period.
Andrew Benintendi had an MRI on his knee and the results were positive. There is no structural damage in his knee, and the hope is that he will be able to return before the end of the regular season. Still, it doesn’t sound like he will be able to help anyone in a mixed league the rest of the way so it’s hard to hold on to him in most setups. Here’s the report on his health.
Carlos Gonzalez has hit .205 without a homer his last 10 games. I got a note from a fella this morning complaining about the slowdown, and I get it. My point though was/is, really, you have nothing to complain about. CarGo has hit .313 with a .361 OBP and .544 SLG this season. His career numbers are .293/.348/.526. Yep, better across the board this season. His Isolated Power mark is .231. His career rate is .233. Cargo has appeared in 117 games with 23 homers, 80 RBI and 74 runs scored. His career averages per 117 games are 23 homers, 72 RBI and 73 runs. Again, he’s right there. You can complain about the two steals if you’re stuck in 2013 since the 4-time 20/20 threat stole a total of five bases the last two seasons. CarGo has been the same hitting star he always has been. Period.
Dee Gordon has appeared in 25 games since his return from a PED suspension and he’s pretty much looked like – Dee Gordon. He’s hit .294 with nine steals and 20 runs scored, all impressive marks. Alas he has no homers and just four runs batted in since the return, so like so many other speedsters his value certainly doesn’t extend past three categories in a standard 5x5 setup.
The more I look at Blake, the more impressed I get. I dare you not to be.
Ender Inciarte has been a disappointment this season. Period. However, since the All-Star break he’s been really good with a bat in his hands. Over the last 39 games he’s hit .357 with a .404 OBP and .371 wOBA. That’s Ichiro level stuff. However, there’s very little chance he will be capable of keeping that pace up. OK, there is none, and he’s just 3-for-6 in steal attempts since the Break. Gotta do better than that since there is no power here (three homers, 23 RBI this season).
Checking in on Ketel Marte, who was a top-10 SS according to ADP as the season began (by the way, I had him ranked 19th). Marte is batting .263 with one homer, 24 RBI, 42 runs scored and nine steals in 88 games. He also has a .293 OBP and .338 SLG. He’s been just a guy around multiple injuries.
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Mike Napoli is batting .222 with no homers and two runs the last two weeks. In fact, Napoli has gone 13 games without hitting a big fly. He still has a whopping 29 homers in 444 at-bats this season, but with his approach, and track record, you had to know that things were going to slow after his torrid two weeks, right? Come on, you had to.
Joe Panik is, finally, performing. Took long enough. Panik has a hit in 12-of-13 games as he’s posted a .333/.451/.548 slash line in that time. He’s also driven in eight runs while scoring 10 times. He’s stable, solid and has that nice flat even swing. I’m a fan. I think he’s the next Howie Kendrick… minus the steals.
Did you catch the news yesterday that the plan with A.J. Pollock is for him to play two out of every three games? Yet another reason to slow the massive hype train with him that has folks predicting he will hit .300 and steal more than 10 bases in September (I’m not making it up, check my Twitter account from Thursday night). Slow that roll folks.
Buster Posey has zero homers the last two weeks. Still, he’s hitting .333 with a .409 OBP over those two weeks. His effort has been a bit down, but just how good are you when you’re hitting .295 with 12 homers, 60 RBI, 67 runs scored and six steals and your owners are upset? The slugging percentage is down .026 points from his career level as his fly ball rate is a 4-year low, but overall this is still one stable skill set.
Wilson Ramos has finally run out of gas. After having a stupendous out of nowhere effort that is going to help folks to championships, it’s all gone. Ramos is 1-for-18 of late and 3-for-31 as he takes a seat on the bench Friday. Further, after hitting .330 in the first half he’s dropped to .276 in the second half, and after averaging an RBI ever 5.56 at-bats in the first half the number has dropped to 6.68 in the second half. More regression seems likely as well. His BABIP is .324. The mark has been under .291 the last three years. Second, his HR/FB ratio is 21.8 percent. That’s a step above his already high 17.4 career percent, and we know he doesn’t hit many fly balls (just a mere 25.6 percent fly ball ratio this season). Ramos has one homer in 13 games. Oh, then there is logic. This guy is no .300 hitting, 25 homer bat, the pace he is still on at the moment.
Ray Flowers can be heard Monday/Tuesday and Thursday/Friday, 8 PM EDT, Wednesday 7 PM EDT on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 11 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).