Fantasy Baseball: sleepers by position for 2020 season

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Fantasy baseball sleepers to help you win your league on draft day. Who you should be targeting late in your draft to help fill out your roster.

With only a few weeks left of spring training, fantasy baseball drafts are in full swing, and while we can all agree that picking Mike Trout or Christian Yelich is a great first step towards having a strong team, winning fantasy baseball is all about uncovering the diamonds in the rough; The guys who aren’t expected to be stars, or produce at all.

As someone who likes to draft extremely safe in the early rounds, I rely heavily on finding good value in the lower rounds. Well drafted (and if necessary, stashed) sleepers are what tends to separate the cream from the crop.

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Players become sleepers for various reasons.

Sometimes, they’re prospects who don’t quite pan-out right away, other times they’re veterans who are deemed “over-the-hill” a little too early, they may also just be guys who needed a change of scenery and found a new home (and a revamped lineup) to be beneficial.

Every year, fantasy stars come out of nowhere to win categories and break hearts.

After a subpar 2018 season, Rafael Devers set the world on fire to the tune of 32 home runs, 115 RBIs, and a .361 OBP. Jorge Soler exploded on the scene and hit 48 homers (10 more than he had hit in his entire 4-year career, combined).

If pitching is more your thing, how about Mike Minor winning 14 games and striking out 200 batters for a hapless Texas Rangers squad?

Those three probably won’t catch anyone by surprise this year, but the question is, who will?

As you move through this piece, we’re going to give you a diamonds worth of sleepers; guys who we expect to provide better value than the spot that they are projected to be drafted in.

Ignore these sleeper picks at your own peril…

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2020 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers

Catcher – Danny Jansen, Toronto Blue Jays (ADP 268)

The most barren position in fantasy baseball. Count me among those who tend to draft catchers very late, and constantly search for any sort of value towards the end of the draft. If you think like me, then you’re looking for this year’s Mitch Garver.

Look no further than Toronto, where Danny Janson’s shine seems to have worn off. This spring training however, his bat has done no such thing.

At the time of this article, Janson is hitting 6 for 14 with 3 home runs and 3 stolen bases in Grapefruit League action. His ADP is currently 268, which means he’s barely making the cut in 12 team leagues.

Many owners are going to be turned off by his 2019 stats (.207 Avg./13 homeruns/43 RBIs), but young catchers tend to take more time to develop, and the former prospect is going to be given every opportunity to play and contribute in a lineup that already has a plethora of young stars.

Let someone else get sucked into a run of catchers. Jansen is the guy you want late in your draft, as he prepares to light up the Rogers Center this year.

2020 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers

First Base – Josh Bell, Pittsburgh Pirates (ADP 94)

Not all sleepers are created equal, and while many people know that Josh Bell is good, I’m not quite sure people realize how good.

In 2018, he hit more home runs (37) than Paul Goldschmidt (34), Anthony Rizzo (27), Matt Olson (36), Jose Abreu (33), DJ LeMahieu (26), and Max Muncy (35). Yet all of those guys are pre-ranked higher than than the Pirates slugger.

To complement the gaudy home run total, he plated 116 runs and scored another 94 himself. It’s not as though Bell’s .277 batting average was Joey Gallo-Esque either…

At 27 years old, Bell is approaching the prime of his career. Taking into account that he missed almost 20 games last year, saying that he could reach the 40 home run plateau this year isn’t a stretch.

One of the knocks against him may be the loss of Starling Marte to Arizona, but Bell did most of his damage with the likes of Jose Osuna and Francisco Cervelli protecting him. The loss of Marte may lower the RBI total, but the rest of Bell’s numbers have room to improve.

Seeing as how the aforementioned first basemen are sure to go off the board a few rounds earlier, I’d be more than happy to sit back and grab Bell a round or three later to be my primary first baseman.

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2020 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers

Second Base – Scott Kingery, Philadelphia Phillies (ADP 163)

After signing a 6 year, 24 million dollar contract in 2018, there were many questions about whether the Phillies gave too much money to a rookie that hadn’t proven anything at the big league level. Through one season, the doubters and naysayers would be proven right as Kingery slashed a mere .226/.267/.407.

In 2019, Kingery started figuring things out, raising that line to a more respectable .258/.315/.474 to go along with 19 home runs and 15 thefts for a disappointing Phillies team.

We’re predicting a big 2020 for the 25-year-old Phillies utility man. A 20-20 season (with room to grow) should be well within the realm of possibility, to go along with a bunch of runs hitting atop a stacked lineup in a hitters haven known as Citizen’s Bank Ballpark. If the power-speed mix isn’t a good enough reason to target Kingery, then his position eligibility should be, as Yahoo allows you to play him at second base, shortstop, third base, and outfield. If this year is the year that the former top prospect breaks out, you’re going to want to own stock in him.

Shortstop – Didi Gregorius, Philadelphia Phillies (ADP 212)

If you find yourself without a shortstop deep in your draft, something probably went wrong. Baseball currently in a golden age of shortstops and talent isn’t hard to come by. If however, you are looking to take a flier on a guy few expect to have a big season, look no further than Kingery’s teammate Didi Gregorius.

When the New York Yankees acquired Didi from the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2014, the fans and media anointed the shortstop as Derek Jeter‘s successor. Early on, he didn’t disappoint, posting 4 solid seasons for the Bombers. Unfortunately for Didi, an injury-plagued 2019 ended up costing him his job, as the Yanks let him walk in favor of Gleyber Torres as part of their youth movement.

Enter 2020, where the Philadelphia Phillies took a 14 million dollar gamble on Gregorius, who is looking to prove that there are no lasting effects from his Tommy John Surgery. Despite the negatives, there are still lots of reasons why you should take a flier on Gregorius as a deep sleeper. For one, Didi is still only 30 years and not so far removed from multiple seasons of 25+ home runs and 85+ RBIs. Secondly, he is going to get the opportunity to hit in a lineup that features Bryce Harper, Rhys Hopkins, and JT Realmuto to name a few. Thirdly, Gregorius’ glove is so good that Joe Girardi will have a tough time removing him from the lineup, even if he does struggle. With RBI opportunities plentiful, and the right situation Didi should be very driven to prove the doubters wrong in with a bounce-back 2020.

2020 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers

Third Base – Travis Shaw, Toronto Blue Jays (ADP 349)

Another Blue Jay makes our all-sleeper team, and it’s easy to see why. After authoring back-to-back 30 home run seasons in 2017-2018 for the Milwaukee Brewers, Shaw hit for an embarrassing low .157 average, and eventually found himself being sent down to the minors in late June.

Looking to rebound to his prior form, Shaw signed a 1-year deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. The corner-infielder will be surrounded by young talent to mentor, and to drive in.

It’s not just a new environment that should get you excited about a resurgent Shaw in 2020, it’s the fact that “he changed back to his old swing after a minor adjustment he made to his swing heading into the 2019 season”.

A new (old) swing, a dynamic lineup, a bandbox of a stadium, and a proven pedigree are all the reasons you should need to take a flier on Travis Shaw as a sleeper in 2020.

Outfielder – Trent Grisham, San Diego Padres (ADP 334)

It’s time to move out west.

Before becoming infamous for a costly error in the NL Wild Card Game, Milwaukee Brewers prospect Trent Grisham was filling in admirably for injured superstar Christian Yelich, after reaching base at a high clip in Double and Triple-A

In the off-season, Trent Grisham was shipped to San Diego, where he will be given the opportunity to start every day in center field. With another year to develop and other young dynamic hitters around him, Grisham should be able to take this opportunity and run with it.

His history in the minors doesn’t suggest that he’ll hit for much power, but 20 home runs are certainly on the table, while his elite ability to get on base will keep him in the lineup.

If he manages to find his way into the 5th spot in the Padres lineup (behind Tatis Jr, Pham, Machado, and Hosmer), he should be able to put up decent counting stats, while also helping you out in on-base percentage.

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2020 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers

Outfielder – Mallex Smith, Seattle Mariners (ADP 151)

2019 was an inconsistent year for the Mariners speedster. On one hand, he led the major leagues with 46 stolen bases. On the other, he only hit .227 to go along with a pretty pedestrian 42 walks.

While many would be quick to group Smith in with the Billy Hamiltons of the world, we still see the upside. In 2018, Smith slashed .296/.367/.406 which suggests that his low average last season could have just been a bad year – and with Mallex being the only Major Leaguer to swipe over 40 bags, that’s a gamble that you should be willing to take.

If Smith can improve on his strikeout total (a whopping 141 of them…), he can then use his blazing speed to get on base, where he is most effective. In an era where baseball is becoming more and more about striking out or hitting the ball over the fence, Smith’s speed is a commodity that can help, and win a category for any fantasy team.

If he wakes up in September with an average of around .250-.270, we may be talking about Smith’s stolen base total being higher than the 2020 Mariners win total…

Outfielder – Justin Upton, Anaheim Angels (ADP 223)

Injuries derailed the former first overall pick’s 2019 season, limiting Upton to only 63 games, and ending his string of three consecutive 30 home run seasons.

The new season looks bright for Upton who finds himself in a lineup surrounded by the current AL MVP (Mike Trout), the newly-signed 3rd runner up for NL MVP (Anthony Rendon), and a fully healthy Shohei Ohtani, among others. With that type of company, 100 RBIs is certainly in play.

His peripheral numbers also suggest that his poor play in 2019 wasn’t as bad as they seemed, as Upton’s walk rate was over 12%, and his BABIP was only .261 (which suggests that he had lots of bad luck while he was healthy). Barring another injury, or another worst-case scenario of a season, Upton will have all the opportunity in the world to not only bounce-back but put up all-star type numbers for the offensively loaded Angels.

2020 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers

Starting Pitcher – Zac Gallen, Arizona Diamondbacks (ADP 129)

After getting dealt from the Miami Marlins to Arizona, pitching prospect Zac Gallen is starting 2020 as a member of the Diamondbacks where he finds himself under the tutelage of former World Series MVP and ace Madison Bumgarner and pitching in front of a much better offense.

The new environment isn’t the only reason to get excited about Gallen, who spent 2019 ripping up Triple-A before his call-up to the Marlins. From the time of his debut on June 30th, Gallen never gave up more than 3 earned runs in any of his starts. He also managed to strike out a whopping 10.9 batters per 9 innings. Not bad for a 24-year-old rookie.

Starting Pitcher – David Price, Los Angeles Dodgers (ADP 176)

It’s rare that a 5-time all-star, 2-time ERA champ, and Cy Young winner can be called a sleeper, but here we are. After getting traded, along with Mookie Betts from the Red Sox to the Dodgers, David Price finds himself pitching on the West Coast for the first time. With spacier ballparks, National League lineups, and no New York Yankees to deal with, Price will be given every opportunity to thrive.

Without putting too much stock into Spring Training, Price has now dominated two Grapefruit League starts, putting to rest the concerns of how his offseason wrist surgery would affect his pitching.

There’s no doubt that Price struggled through much of 2019, but he has a pedigree and track-record that most, if not all other pitchers don’t at the point in the draft that you’ll consider taking him. Some of those 2019 struggles can also be attributed to bad luck, as Price carried a .350 BABIP against. Look for that number to balance itself back towards the mean.

With the powerful Dodgers lineup behind him, the throw-in to the Mookie Betts deal will have the opportunity to go out and get 15-20 wins with a double-digit K/9 ratio. Sounds like the type of pitcher you can anchor a pitching staff around, never mind compliment one with.

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Relief Pitcher – Giovanny Gallegos, St. Louis Cardinals

Relief pitching, the most volatile position in fantasy baseball. Managers who burnt picks on Blake Treinen and Edwin Diaz after strong a strong 2018 campaign, got just that, burnt. Due to a variety of reasons, closers tend to have the highest likelihood of flaming out year-to-year, so rather than relive the past, I prefer to chase the future.

Enter Giovanny Gallegos. In 74 innings pitched last year, the 28-year-old struck out 93 batters, to go along with a tidy 2.31 ERA and an even tidier 0.81 WHIP. He also managed to compile an upper echelon swinging strike rate of 16.4%. He started to gain recognition last year as one of the best, if not the best reliever on the Cardinals.

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Put all of that together, along with 2019 closer Jordan Hicks recovering from an injury, and you get a potentially elite closer for 2020. Opportunities for saves with the Cards should be plentiful, as they are a good team, that has always historically played close games, thanks to solid pitching, and a “solid enough to win games, but not solid enough to blow you out” offense.

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