Steve Pearce
45% owned in Yahoo, 50% in ESPN
Steve Pearce is proving to be a surprisingly good offseason investment for the Tampa Bay Rays, and he could be a similarly underrated addition to your fantasy squad. The immediate appeal of Pearce is that he likely has multiple position eligibility in your league. In most Yahoo and ESPN formats he can be slotted in at 1B, 2B and OF. Flexibility is, of course, always nice to have in fantasy baseball.
Aside from that, he’s just plain having a good year at the plate thus far. He is slashing a hearty .324/.407/.662 in May, lifting his overall line to .302/.388/.552. Pearce has also collected eight homers and 20 RBI.
As with many of these players, fantasy owners should temper their expectations for the long term. Pearce wasn’t nearly as successful a year ago for the Orioles, posting a .218/.289/.422 line in an injury-abbreviated season. Health issues also limited him to 102 games in 2014, but he slashed .293/.373/.556 with 21 home runs and 49 RBI.
If he can stay on the field, will this season’s version of Pearce be closer to the 2014 edition? If so, he can be a difference maker for your team, wherever you decide to place him in your lineup.
Next: Matt Wieters