Andrew Cashner - Cashner is accelerating through the finish line this year, showing marked improvement over the last month that culminated (for the time being) in a brilliant one-hit shutout of the Pirates on Monday. Cashner has just 5 walks against 28 K's over his last 30 2/3 innings, he has posted six straight quality starts, he hasn't allowed more than three earned runs in an outing since July 5th, and his ERA is under 2.00 since the beginning of August. I'm still firmly in favor of owning Cashner in all formats for both the final two weeks of 2013 and certainly for 2014.
Matt Adams - Adams continues to hit while filling in for the injured Allen Craig, going 2-4 with a double in the 6-2 win over Colorado on Monday. Adams already has 5 homers this month while still maintaining a respectable average, and while his only real plus tool is power, that should be enough to allow him to have value in all formats for both the remainder of 2013 and for next season. The only real issue here is the huge amount of options at the Cardinals disposal for 2014, as really only Carlos Beltran isn't currently slated to return from the offensive side of the ball, and Oscar Taveras isn't likely to require much more time at the minor league level while Kolten Wong could really use some big-league ABs as well. They could really stand to deal for a SS, so that'll be something to keep an eye on over the winter, as all of the aforementioned players are worthy of playing time (and also of spots in your fantasy lineup). Adams has near-elite level power, and should certainly be considered in all formats if there is a clear path to playing time.
Freddie Freeman - Freeman has had a year remarkably similar to last year, except this year his BABIP is only a touch below expectations instead of vastly below, so he's been able to post a .314 AVG instead of a measly .259 mark. The best thing about Freeman in my opinion is that he just turned 24, so there's a reasonable chance that he could blossom into a 30-HR threat from a 20-25 HR 1B over the next few years, which when coupled with a decent supporting cast and a .300 AVG is a very valuable commodity. I'm inclined to bump him up a notch or two in the 1B rankings for 2014 in hopes that that comes to pass.
Wily Peralta - Peralta had another solid outing Monday against the Cubs, going six innings and allowing an unearned run on five hits, walking two and striking out seven while moving to 10-15 on the year. That was Peralta's fourth straight quality start, and his K rate has jumped to over 9.0 for the last four outings. He is likely to face the Cards and Mets over his final two outings, and I'd at least consider having him active in all formats for the latter of those two. The 24 year old has excellent stuff, and thus quite a bit of upside potential, something to remain aware of going into 2014.
Chris Owings - Owings is splitting time in a fairly haphazard fashion with Didi Gregorius and Willie Bloomquist as the D-Backs play out the string this season, and Owings pretty clearly has the largest upside of the bunch. Some substantial contact issues will likely create some average-related struggles, but he has enough power and speed to get anybody interested at the premium position of SS. I don't expect him to carry enough value these last two weeks to justify anyone's starting slot, but as Derek mentioned, a stash in many formats for 2014 in anticipation of a victory in the expected spring battle with Gregorius could certainly be justified.
