Jesse Chavez - Chavez was brilliant on Monday, showing off the two attributes that have led to his ridiculously hot spring: improved control and a flashy new high GB rate. Lest you think that chavez is feasting on weak offenses, the Twins (go figure) and the Angels are tied for the 2nd-best offense in the early going in terms of runs per game, and Chavez managed 7 IP, 1 ER, 0 BB, 9 SO lines against both. His curveball looks like a real weapon, but his ability to spot his fastball is what has really enabled him to succeed in his first three starts. Small sample size caveat applies, but Chavez does indeed look like he could continue to provide value.
Matt Wieters - Wieters was 3-4 with a double on Monday, bringing his 2014 line up to 366/400/634 and continuing his string of reaching base in every game thus far. It's too early to be reading much into this by a long shot, but after a couple years of being frustrated by Wieters failing to take another step forward, perhaps there is still a bit of time for him to grow. It isn't exactly unprecedented for a catcher to mature a bit more slowly....Jorge Posada's best power year came at age 28, as a recent example. Wieters turns 28 next month, and I do think he has the capacity to put up ISOs in the lower .200s with an average in the .260-.275 range. He's already a very solid backstop....undervalued in many respects because he hasn't become the superstar many expected, and if pressed, I'd bet in favor of his next 3 years eclipsing his last 3.
Roenis Elias - Elias pitched very well against the Rangers on Monday, holding them to five hits and a run over 6 2/3 innings, walking two and striking out five en route to his first MLB win. Elias threw groundball after groundball when he wasn't fanning people, and generally looked a bit better than I expected, albeit against a Texas lineup that is significantly weaker than we've come to expect. I'm still in wait-and-see mode with Elias, as with Iwakuma and Walker both nearing a return, Elias could be heading back to the minors in a few weeks regardless of how well he pitches. His next two starts are in Miami and home against Texas, and I'd probably be inclined to roll with him in most formats for the time being.
Kole Calhoun - Calhoun was 2-4 with a double Monday, and basically he's doing exactly what we expected thus far: putting up an ISO of .200, hitting a homer and stealing a base every 5-10 games, and hitting a mess of line drives. The only difference is a BABIP of .216, something that will remedy itself before too long if he keeps hitting. I'm not worried, I'm still a buyer, etc, etc.
Kevin Kouzmanoff - Kevin Kouzmanoff was the flavor of month about 8 years ago, a 24 year old 3B prospect coming up through the Indians chain that slugged .655 at AA and AAA without any of the typical contact issues before grabbing a cup of coffee late in the year. Since then, the contact ability has mostly stuck around, but the ability to make hard contact (both in terms of LD rate and power) has diminished nearly every season. Now 32, I find it hard to believe that he's suddenly remember how to hit for power, but he was picked up in nearly every one of my leagues this weekend. With Adrian Beltre on the shelf for two weeks, Kouzmanoff should get most of the PT at third in Texas, but I'm skeptical that he can help much outside of the deepesst of formats. Five organizations have given up on him over the past five years, including a few that certainly could have used a 3B at the time. I would pass on the speculative add here.
