Mike Aviles signed a 1-year deal with the Tigers. In 2015 he appeared in 11 games at second, 28 at third and 23 at shortstop. Oh hell, he also appeared in 40 games in the outfield. He’s always a target of mine late in league specific drafts because of that versatility.

Jose Fernandez might still end up with the Dodgers. Well maybe. The club from California is still in talks with the Marlins though most seem to suggest that a deal for the superstar youngster is unlikely. However, the Dodgers, who were spurned by Zack Greinke, need another arm, a top level one, as teams like the D’backs and Giants move ahead bolstering their rotations (Greinke to D’backs, Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto to the Giants). They can hope that Hyun-Jin Ryu (shoulder) is healthy, but that would be foolish to depend on. Ryu says he’s fine at this point and will be ready for the start of the season, but he didn’t throw a pitch that counted last season and was able to throw a mere 152 innings in 2014.

Matt Holliday is familiarizing himself with the first base bag. The 35 year old left fielder is apparently taking it upon himself to add some versatility to his game as his body starts to break down. I applaud that. Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said that Holliday might see some game action at first, but he’s still the left fielder so this is much ado about nothing. Holliday had a strong .394 OBP last year bit the rest of his offensive game caved as he hit .279 with a mere .410 SLG. Injuries played a huge part of course, he appeared in just 73 games, and for the first time since 2005 he failed to hit 20 homers with 75 RBIs (he was at four and 35). His outlook for 2016 is clear as mud.

We’re busy cranking out the 2016 Fantasy Baseball Draft Guide right now. Hoping to release the Guide a month from today. How excited are you? Probably not as excited as I am.

Scott Kazmir appears to be the arm everyone wants at the moment. In 2014 his second half was horrible (4-6, 6.90 K/9, 5.42 ERA, 1.45 WHIP). In 2015 his second half was just blah (2-6, 6.50 K/9, 3.86 ERA, 1.32 WHIP). Someone will overpay for his services. Hope it’s not your club. Wei-Yin Chen would be a much better target for someone looking to add a lefty. Reports suggest that Chen might be seeking twice as much money as Kazmir, don’t know if that makes sense either, but Chen is a really good, extremely undervalued asset. The 30 year old owns a 3.72 ERA and 1.25 in his career, pitching in the AL East mind you. Moreover, his ERA the last two seasons is 3.54 and his WHIP 1.23, much better numbers. He’s also failed to walk even two batters per nine the last two seasons. The last piece? Big innings. He’s thrown 185.2 and 191.1 innings the past two seasons, but it’s also fair to point out that he’s crested 185 innings in three of four campaigns. If he moves to the NL we could have something very interesting in the fantasy game.

Brandon Phillips is still with the Reds. The Nationals and Red agreed to a deal that would send the second sacker to Washington but Phillips, due $27 million the next two seasons, wanted more money to waive his no-trade clause. The Nationals said no so Brandon remains with the Reds. Phillips has been in Cincy since 2006 so I get wanting to stay there, but hopefully he enjoys losing as the Res continue to build for the future cause they ain’t winning nothing in the short-term. Phillips had a nice effort last season hitting .294 with 23 steals, but the 34 year hold last hit that high in 2011 and last stole that many bags in 2009. He’s not going to get another big contract from anyone.

Denard Span will be 32 in February, but he says his back/hip issues are a thing of the past. He will work out for teams starting next month as he hopes to secure a multi-year deal. Span appeared in just 61 games last season though he did hit .301 with a .365 OBP. Over his three seasons with the Nationals he produced a solid slash line (.292/.345/.404) while playing solid defense. Solid is a good word for him. He doesn’t do anything at an elite level but he is a very, here it comes again, solid baseball player.

I love holiday lights as much as anyone, but holy cow…

 

 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Thursday at 8 PM EDT and Friday at 10 PM EDT on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 7 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).