Fantasy Baseball 2018: Stay away from these draft duds

With the 2018 MLB season just days away, and your  Fantasy Baseball baseball draft approaching; stay away from these MLB duds.

Are you ready for a fresh start after your beloved MLB team broke your heart last season? Did your Fantasy Baseball add salt to the wound, leaving a sting in that very gaping hole?

Or, did you kick butt and take names, bringing home the Fantasy Baseball trophy, raising it high in celebration?No matter what your 2018 draft situation is; beginning from ground zero or looking to add to an already stout squad in your keeper league elite, we’ve got your back.

We’ve already given you a taste of our sleepers from both the National League and American, but it’s as important (if not more) to know which players to avoid while drafting.

It’s easy to go after that big, sexy name, but often, such player is washed up or even overrated for Fantasy Baseball purposes. You want to stay away from fools gold in your 2018 Fantasy Baseball draft.

Now, if you’ve already completed your Fantasy Baseball draft, this applies to you as well. You might be able to spin fools gold into something of actual value. However, that means you’ll have to prevent your competition from seeing this very wealth of information.

Without further ado, here are your 2018 Fantasy Baseball duds. Stay away from these wannabees in your draft, or you’ll be sorry.

Fantasy Baseball duds: Position Players

Jason Heyward

2018 stats:

Slash line: .259/.326/.389

HR: 11

RBI: 59

R: 61

SB: 4

Games played: 126

Heyward is a valuable MLB player, just not within the Fantasy Baseball realm. He’s collected four straight Gold Glove awards, but that won’t help you much in most leagues.

In the past, stolen bases were his only saving grace, but he collected less than a handful of them in 2017 and expected for 10 SB to be his max in 2018. Plus, he’ll miss a good chunk of games, which you cannot afford as a Fantasy Baseball owner.

Avoid Heyward like the Bubonic plague.

Yoenis Céspedes: New York Mets

2018 stats:

Slash line: .292/.352/.540

HR: 17

RBI: 42

R: 46

SB: 0

Games played: 81

Cespedes makes this list of Fantasy Baseball duds for entirely different reasons. If we logged a full slate of MLB games, he’d be on our list of top 25 players to draft. However, health has illuded the talented outfielder.

His wrist injury just won’t go away, which is a shame. The game of baseball is a much better place when he’s healthy, as is the case for your Fantasy Baseball team. Don’t waste a high draft pick on him and only snag him up in your draft if it’s in the later rounds.

Ryan Braun: Milwaukee Brewers

2018 stats:

Slash line: .269/.336/.487

HR: 17

RBI: 52

R: 58

SB: 12

Games Played: 104

It’s convenient to live in the past, but let the past die in this case. Ryan Braun is nowhere near the player he was a few years ago, and his shipment of PEDs has stopped — as far as we know. Too soon?

He’s also missed a bit of action for one reason or another, where he hasn’t played a full slate of games since the 2012 season. Like any other aging star, his value is in the later rounds of your Fantasy Baseball draft. Expect more of a dropoff from Braun in 2018.

Fantasy Baseball Position Player duds Round 2

Eric Hosmer: San Diego Padres

2018 stats:

Slash line: .318/.385/.882

HR: 25

RBI: 94

R: 98

SB: 6

Games Played: 162

Logging a full slate of MLB games is no issue for Hosmer, who played in all 162 contests for the Kansas City Royals in 2017. However, a change of scenery will hinder his Fantasy Baseball worth in 2018.

Playing in Petco Park is a hitter’s nightmare, where is power numbers will indeed drop off — where he’s matched a career high in long bombs the past two season with 25.

Also, playing on a roster where he’s the most significant threat won’t offer him much protection at the plate. Hosmer won’t get much to hit this season, which will make him less selective at the dish.

If you’re planning on snagging up Hosmer in your Fantasy Baseball draft, wait until the middle or late rounds — he’s not worth the risk in the initial part of the draft.

Starlin Castro: Miami Marlins

2018 stats:

Slash line: .300/.338/.454

HR: 16

RBI: 63

R: 66

SB: 2

Games Played: 112

One thing Fantasy Baseball owners have going for them with Castro is that he now wants to be in Miami. But, don’t expect much out of him this season — until he’s traded to a contender.

The three-time All-Star had a stellar 2017 campaign with the New York Yankees, hitting over .300 and launching 16 long bombs in less than 120 games. Like with Eric Hosmer, Starlin Castro will suffer going to a bottom of the barrel team, diminishing his Fantasy Baseball value.

Do not waste a pick on him, unless you’re desperate for second baseman later on in your draft.

Shohei Ohtani: Los Angeles Angels

We have Ohtani on our list of American League sleepers, and we aren’t giving mixed signals. On the mound, he’ll be worth a top-five round risk. However, at the plate is an entirely different story.

Remember, it’s a curious case with Ohtani in Fantasy Baseball, where most formats will have “two” different players — one at the mound and the other as a position player.

So far at the dish, Ohtani is struggling. Now, it’s only Spring training, but all signs indicate that he’s not quite ready to hit at the MLB level. Honestly, don’t draft him at all, unless you need another arm. Make sure you’re paying attention and that you snag the correct Ohtani in your Fantasy Baseball draft.

Jon Lester: Chicago Cubs

Starting Pitcher.

2018 stats:

Win/loss: 13-8

ERA: 4.33

WHIP: 1.32

SO: 180

BB: 60

Innings Pitched: 180.2

Jon Lester is one that benefited from a potent Cubbies lineup last season. Don’t expect the same sort of luck in 2018, with a .500 record a higher ceiling this coming slate.

His ERA and WHIP alone will hurt you in two main categories, and he nearly gave up 30 home runs in 2017. With the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals projected for substantial offensive campaigns, and the Reds always dangerous at the plate, Lester’s ERA will inflate drastically.

Aroldis Chapman

Relief Pitcher: New York Yankees

Win/loss: 4-3

ERA: 3.22

WHIP: 1.13

SO: 69

BB: 20

Saves: 22

Ever since Joe Maddon pulled a Dusty Baker and turned Chapman’s arm into rubber, he hasn’t quite been the same. Looking at his stats, you might not get the full picture. Chapman’s ERA used to be microscopic, and he was nearly unhittable.

His amount of strikeouts in the past allowed us to overlook his (at times) wildness, but he no longer K’s as many hitters. Expect him to be a seventh or eighth inning guy, at best, this season. He may log a few holds, but not every leg counts that as a Fantasy Baseball category.

Next: Fantasy Pitchers to target late

Make sure to stay away from these Fantasy Baseball duds in your draft. If you’ve already completed yours, then trade these players ASAP.

Did you miss our sleepers for 2018? Make sure you view those before your draft, as well.

AL Fantasy Baseball youngsters to stash for 2018

NL Fantasy Baseball young guns for 2018

Did we miss any? Sound off in the comments below and tell us on our social media pages.