Michael Bourn - Bourn singled, doubled, walked, and stole a base yesterday in a 9-1 loss. He definitely has the Juan Pierre 2.0 skill set down pat, which will make him an asset when he's hitting over .300 and a sinkhole when he isn't. I don't mean to demean Bourn, who already at age 27 walks twice as much as Pierre ever did, and he is much more judicious in utilizing his speed (SB success rate over 80%). Bourn has been much more latient at the plate this year, swinging only 37.5% of the time, and that patience has been well rewarded thus far, as his OBP is over .400. The BABIP of .431 is way off the charts, so I do expect the AVG to dip down under .300 sooner or later, but if his increased patience sticks he should be able to maintain an OBP of over .375, and with that come the R and SB that a speed guy needs to give your team. He's better now than Pierre ever was, in my opinion, and he keeps showing little bits of growth that make him an asset even in formats that don't weight SB so heavily.
Aramis Ramirez - Aramis turns 32 this season, but he's been in a slow, steady decline since his age 28 year (2006). He's fallen off the table so far this season, and as is typical for this sort of a thing it's part skill deterioration and part luck-based. The power has continued to disappear, although I have no doubt that he'll find his way back close to a .200 ISO (on either side) by summertime. His K rate and contact rate are his worst since his rookie year however, and when combined with an unlucky BABIP you've got a horrendous statline. There certainly will be some bounceback, but I'm not as optimistic on Ramirez as many going forward.
Chris Young (OF) - Young is staying hot, picking up a pair of singles and a double yesterday in the 9-1 thrashing of the hapless Astros. One of the best reasons to believe in the rebound year for Young is that his K rate has been the lowest of his career thus far in 2010. His contact rate (of course) has bounced back nicely, and his BABIP is a smidge better than expected after being quite a bit lower than expectations last season. The combination of those factors, some luck and some skill, has him posting a respectable but not outstanding line so far here at age 26. A 20/20 year is likely, but the stardom that was once forecasted isn't.
Lance Berkman - Berkman is trying to play his way into shape, as the aging 1B picked up a double and a walk last night against the D-Backs to bring his line to 220/333/439. The 34 year old Berkman has been in a slow decline from his lengthy 2001-2006 peak, and this latest run of injuries isn't likely to help that trend reverse itself. I'd be surprised to see much of his speed return, so likely a bit more of the AVG will disappear, and the power is likely to continue to diminish (likely ISO of .200-.225, which would be the lowest of his career). In keeper leagues, unless you're gunning for the title this season I'd be looking for a sell point on Berkman.
Nate Schierholtz - There's some good and some bad in Schierholtz's reclaiming of the RF job in San Francisco. His patience has been growing consistently with big league PA's, his contact rate ccontinues to improve, and although he hasn't homered yet this year his ISO is still increasing steadily. However, the BABIP over .400 is going to drop considerably, leaving Schierholtz as just another middle-of-the-road option on the waiver wire in most formats. He's still just 26 with a minor league ISO of .209, so there's still plenty of potential upside here.
