Nick Ahmed had three hits Monday to push his effort this spring up to a 1.157 OPS. I find it interesting though that after posting a .634 OPS last season, showing himself to be a liability at the dish, that his hot start has folks excited about him. Stop it. You shouldn’t be pumped at all. Ahmed could be playing himself into a significant role with the D’backs which would boost his value in NL-only leagues. Still, isn’t it ironic that Ahmed has a .429 batting average and .419 OBP this spring? So fitting.

Brandon Belt and the Giants are talking about a contract extension. The soon to be 28 year old hit .280 last season with 18 homers and nine steals, a solid season. But ask yourself this. Would you think differently about Belt if he went .280 with 20 homers and 10 steals last season? You might, admit it. He needs to stay healthy as he’s amassed 500 at-bats just once in five years.

Andre Ethier has an issue with his right leg (fractured tibia) that will sideline him for 10-14 weeks. His injury brings up a name from the past – Carl Crawford – who would be asked to step into the daily lineup. Crawford hit just .265 last season and is 34 years old, but check this out. Over his last 563 plate appearances Crawford is batting .288 with 12 homers, 62 RBI, 75 runs scored and 33 steals. Know how many guys hit all those marks last season? Only two men pulled off that trick: A.J. Pollock and Jose Altuve. #JustSayin

Jose Fernandez tossed five scoreless innings Tuesday. In fact, he didn’t allow a single hit against the Red Sox who had seven regulars in the lineup. He’s a stud, period. There’s also a good chance that he will be lucky to reach 180-innings this season as the club, through manager Don Mattingly, admitted that Fernandez could have half his starts this season come with an extra day of rest. That’s why he’s not in the top-10 starting pitchers this season, workload concerns.

Evan Gattis is getting some at-bats Tuesday as he works his way back from hernia surgery. The key here is that the at-bats are happening in a minor league game. The reason being that if he doesn’t appear in a big league game they would be able to backdate his early season DL stint, and it appears that he will need one, allowing him to hopefully return in mid-April. Gattis did as expected last season socking 27 home runs with 88 RBI. He was also miserable with a .246 batting average and .285 OBP. Things shouldn’t be much different this season once he’s healthy.

Kevin Gausman is dealing with a shoulder issue which sounds like it might preclude him from opening up the season on time. Sounds like he could still start by April 10th which is the first time this season that the Orioles will need their fifth starter. Still a huge fan of the arm but he’s pretty tough to trust given everything the past few years. I’ve downgraded him a couple of spots, but I’m still bullish – unless we hear more bad news about his wing.

Starling Marte or Andrew McCutchen? It might be closer than you think.

We all seemed to know this would happen besides the team that employs him, but the Padres finally made the decision to move Brandon Maurer back to the bullpen. Maurer had a 3.00 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 12 holds last season working out of the bullpen. It’s where he likely belongs long-term.

Wil Myers was terrible to start the Spring but he rapped out five RBI Monday. He should be fine, is a nice target on draft day and qualifies at two spots (1B, OF) which further enhances his value. Check out more of my thoughts in his Player Profile.

Daniel Norris was forced from his outing Tuesday with lower back tightness (he didn’t start Saturday because of the same issue). Doesn’t sound major, but he can ill afford to miss time with Shane Greene pitching so well this spring.

Roberto Osuna wants to remain in the bullpen and not start for the Blue Jays. "I like to be a reliever because I like to pitch very often," he said. "I would get bored if I pitch every few days.” I don’t know if the Jays will use him out of the pen or try him as a starter in the long-term, but this news seems to suggest that the battle for the 9th inning with Drew Storen might not be a clear cut as hoped. I’m still expecting Osuna to end up working the 8th inning because I can’t see why the Jays would have brought in Drew Storen to have him setup after he displayed his displeasure last season when he was demoted after the addition of Jonathan Papelbon.

Matt Wieters threw from 90 feet Tuesday and there didn’t appear to be any setbacks. He’s moving in the right direction with his wonky elbow, but he might need to serve as the DH early in the year giving a boost to Caleb Joseph’s value in AL-only leagues.

 

Ray Flowers can be heard Monday through Friday, 7 PM EDT and Friday on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210, XM 87). You can also hear Ray Sunday nights at 6 PM on the channel talking fantasy sports. Follow Ray’s work at Fantasy Alarm and on Twitter (@baseballguys).