These are a few NL players who have dissappointed fantasy owners this season and what to expect going forward:
Mat Latos, SP, FA
Latos has been inconsistent all year, but he was atrocious in his short stint with the Dodgers, posting a 6.66 ERA in 6 appearances (5 starts) for the team and eventually getting designated for assignment. The funny thing is that his 3.68 xFIP is right in line with his career norm, yet after five straight seasons with a sub-3.50 ERA, that number has jumped to 4.95. Even with the Dodgers, his xFIP was 3.62, and what has killed him is his suddenly low LOB%. At 62.6%, he has left far fewer runners than any of the past five years, and that number has dipped to 54.9% with L.A. He has a wOBA of .312 with bases empty, but .361 when there are RISP, which helps explain why runners aren't left on. This could be a case of bad luck, or it could be something in Latos' head. Either way, with his future very uncertain Latos is unlikely to get drafted next season, but if he puts up a few quality starts with some team, I would be looking at him as a possible waiver-wire pickup.
Devin Mesoraco, C, CIN
It's hard to imagine that Mesoraco was a top-5 C in drafts this year, and what a waste of a pick it was. He batted .178 in 23 games until having season-ending hip surgery, but he is expected to be ready for the beginning of next season. Mesoraco's struggles this season came from a career low 13.9% LD% and a ridiculously high 33.3% Soft% (3rd in MLB, min. 50 PA's). The hip injury is probably partly to blame and maybe he really is healed by next spring. But I'm not ready to risk anything but a low draft pick for someone whose entire fantasy resume is one breakout season in the power department.
Yasiel Puig, OF, LAD
Puig has been a massive disappointment for owners this year, as he hasn't even produced much when playing between injuries. He has been making softer contact this season, and that could explain his extremely low .541 AVG on line drives. If he is healed however, he can go back to being the Puig of old, which means putting up a good BA with some power. He reminds me a bit of Manny Machado - a player with a lot of talent, but had some injury concerns and then had an excellent season. I could envision a similar situation with Puig, as his rough year should significant lower his draft-day value and the elite talent is still there.
Anthony Rendon, 2B, 3B, WAS
After being drafted around the 4th round in most fantasy drafts this season, Rendon has been limited to 71 games so far this season thanks to two stints on the DL. His per game totals have dropped as well, from 21 HR's and 17 SB's in 2014 to 5 HR's and 1 SB in about half as many games this year. Rendon's plate discipline, however, continues to be elite as he has an excellent 5.5% SwStr% in 2015 (career 5.2%), and a league best 17.4% O-Swing% (min. 300 PA's). This makes me think he has room to improve on his already good career .278 BA, which in turn could make him an elite run scorer once again atop the Nationals lineup. His 111 runs in 2014 led the NL, and his 19 runs so far this September are only behind teammate Bryce Harper, so if he can just stay healthy, he has a good chance of rejoining the league leaders in that category. That being said, I wouldn't count on a return to his 2014 numbers in the HR and SB departments, especially regarding the steals. In 283 major and minor league games outside of 2014, he has combined for 24 homers and 9 stolen bases, so at this point last year seems to be the anomaly. Overall, a high BA with a lot of runs and double-digit HR's should make Rendon a solid-mid round pick as a MI-eligible player.
Stephen Strasburg, SP, WAS
Strasburg has been incredible since returning from the DL in early August, posting a 2.24 ERA, and a 72:6 K:BB ratio across 52.1 IP through 8 starts. His ERA will probably still end up closer to 4.00 than 3.00 (currently 3.81), and that's not what his 2015 owners signed up for. But with a 10.72 K/9 and 2.87 xFIP that are as good as ever, Strasburg seems like an ideal bounce-back candidate for 2016. In my mind he's still an ace, and he could be a great value in next year's drafts.
This is just a small sample of our daily analysis, join our member area for more premium content: http://www.fantistics.com/
