Evan Longoria - (3B - TB): Longoria's started to put things together in a pretty big way of late, but I remain utterly perplexed that his performance this season hasn't continued to grow upon past levels. Longoria's improved his BB Rate, cut his K Rate, and has seen his ISO rebound from a low of .213 last year to his usual .240-.250 range. Typically when a hitter puts together improvements in all three of those categories, the production spikes along with it. That hasn't been the case this year for Longoria as a .230 BABIP (career .303) has really hamstrung his performance. Longoria has seen his chase rate elevate slightly this year and his LD Rate is down from a career average of 19% to 17%. These are minor deteriorations and don't come close to accounting for the rapid drop in BABIP. It's only really explainable by poor luck. Longoria should close out the season quite strong and I'm interested to see how this "off-year" will impact his draft value next season. Longoria will be entering his age 26 season primed for a performance breakout and likely undervalued by the poor luck he's had this year. I have to think he'll fall into the 2nd round of fantasy drafts at which point I think he'll be an absolute steal. In dynasty type formats, I'd try to make a play for Longoria now.
Dayan Viciedo (3B - CHA): Viciedo responded to the first start of the season by homering in a 2-3 effort that even included a walk. Viciedo's first go around at the major leagues last year was pretty impressive (.308/.321/.519) but was marked by a free-swinging approach (39% chase rate, sub-2% BB Rate) that many figured would eventually be exploited. At AAA this year Viciedo has shown improvement in pitch recognition and has worked 45 BB's in his 450 PA's, while maintaining the elite power potential. He'll get everyday playing time with Carlos Quentin out and while his approach still needs work, his power potential with 3B eligibility deserves attention. He's worth an add in all leagues for those seeking power out of the 3B position.
Howie Kendrick (2B - LAA): Early in the season Kendrick was on a roll like the one he has going right now and it made me believe Kendrick was on the verge of the big breakout campaign many dreamed of him as a top prospect. Kendrick's putting together the best OPS of his career, but the fantasy breakout hasn't exactly come along for the ride largely due to a lack of lineup support around him. Of late though Kendrick's hitting the ball with such authority that he doesn't need much help from those around him. He homered for the 5th time in his last 6 games and has now picked up multi-hit games in 5 of his last 6 as well, while putting together an 8 game hitting streak. The scary thing? It could get better. Kendrick's been doing his best work against LHP this year, hitting an impressive .322/.382/.545, and this upcoming week the Angels face 3 more LH's (A. Vasquez, C. Furbush, Duensing) none of which present much of a threat to Kendrick. Look for another big week.
Mike Carp (1B - SEA): It sure was fun while it lasted! After staying red-hot for a month after his call-up Carp has started to hit an adjustment period. He's still picked up hits in all but 3 games this month, but if you dig into the last 10 games Carp has hit just .167/.222/.262 with 17 K's in 45 PA's. As I noted when Carp was going well it's really hard for young hitters to maintain elite production with a 38% chase rate and that's what has happened here. His poor plate discipline has been exposed. Owners who had been riding the hot streak, now is the time to jump off the bandwagon. The K Rate has gotten out of control over the last 10 games and the power has faded as well. Looking at Carp's last month you may get sucked into believing in him, but the more recent data suggests more pain is on the way.
Nick Swisher (OF - NYY): Seasons like Nick Swisher's are the reason I enjoy this job so much. Back in the beginning of June I noted that Swisher's performance this season was bound to pick up in a big way. All his peripherals were right in line with his career rates, but the power just hadn't quite shown up. He was building some momentum in the power department and it appeared he was ready to burst. From June 13th (the day of my post) to yesterday Swisher hit .305/.413/.545 as he's steadily worked his season Slugging % back up to his normal career rates. Last night Swisher added to those totals, launching his 20th HR of the season in a 8-3 win in the night-cap of a double-header. When statistical oddities such as Swisher's slow start just jump off the page at you as overwhelmingly likely corrections, it's pretty fun. It wasn't a particularly hard call to make, but suggesting owners make some buy low efforts for Swisher couldn't have worked out better.
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