Season takes toll on original ratings: the rise of the underrated and the fall of the overrated players change expectations and ratings of available players.
Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:00
by Steven Iñiguez Ruiz

With a little less than month away from the All-Star game in St. Louis, Player Rankings have once again fluctuated players up and down the ranks. Underrated players such as Torii Hunter, Carlos Peña, and Raul Ibañez have risen to the top due to their RBI production so far; while other rankings drop drastically due to the DL, Josh Hamilton and José Reyes both original top ranks that are now in the high hundreds after joining Ibañez on the DL. Underrated Pitcher Zack Greinke’s ranking has skyrocketed to the top with his eight wins while Tim Wakefield’s power ranking has ballooned to the high hundreds even with his nine wins. But that’s fantasy baseball. Here are a couple of options that should be available in most leagues that deserve a look or two when looking for a decent bench player or possibly an upgrade.
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After a slow April and a decent May, Cody Ross is an available pick up for Raul Ibañez owners after the announcement of his placement on the 15-day DL and he will not be playing the rest of the month. Ross is hitting .304 in the month of June, picking up 6 RBI in the last 10 games. Ross is not walking much with 3 BB total in the first three weeks of this month and has 15 K in 56 AB, but owners are going to have to look for available OF RBI production after Thursday’s announcement.

Cody Ross (Fla – OF)
Avg HR RBI SB
.266 10 39 3
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As of June 18th, José López is available in 1 out of every 2 leagues. In the month of June, López is hitting .309 with 16 RBI and is putting the ball into play with 4 K in 55 AB and no walks but is ranked 6th among 2B in driving runs in with 43 RBI, and is available for those looking for an upgrade or a bench player in a position with lower RBI production.

José López (Sea – 1B,2B)
Avg HR RBI SB
.248 10 42 0
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Pedro Feliz is still available in most leagues and is starting to heat up again driving in 7 RBI in the last 10 games, totaling 35 RBI for the season. Feliz is also not walking much in the month of June with 1 BB in his last 37 AB, 5 K in the same AB.

Pedro Feliz (Phi – 3B)
Avg HR RBI SB
.311 3 35 0

Barmes still available
The Clint Barmes bandwagon paid us a visit last week, and to be honest Colorado Rockies infielder deserves a quick look before its too late as his value has picked up this month and is being picked up by owners familiar with the 30-year old Barmes. As of Friday morning Clint Barmes (Col) who is leading the NL with 27 H this month and in the top 3 amongst 2B, SS, and 3B with 15 RBI in the MLB is available in 1 out of every 2 leagues, and with just under a month before the All-Star break could be an excellent pick up for those who lost Howie Kendrick (Laa) last week.
Clint Barmes (Col – IF~1B)
Avg HR RBI R SB
.296 7 34 36 5
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Callaspo, we’re still in Kansas
Before jumping onto the Callaspo bandwagon, owners must remember that Callaspo is playing for the 9 games under .500 Kansas City Royals and that many of his 69 H in his 224 AB were with the bases empty, keeping his RBI at 26. But with Kansas City’s next two series against NL teams, Callaspo could come up big again in H and possibly RBI against NL pitching. Callaspo is available in most leagues as a 2B/SS and deserves a good look for those who need H.
Alberto Callaspo (KC – 2B/SS)
Avg HR RBI R SB
.309 4 26 29 0