Former Dodgers prospect Zach Lee was effective yet inefficient yesterday, needing 90 pitches to go 5.1 innings against the Rockies. It was an impressive start nonetheless given that it was the second of his career and it took place at Coors Field. Lee walked 4 batters in the game, which will prevent him from having much success at the major league level even though he escaped yesterday without giving up a run. Lee was a former first rounder but still needs to develop quite a bit to become fantasy relevant; he sported an ERA of 4.89 and 7.39 in AAA last year for the Dodgers and Mariners, respectively, and doesn't have particularly overpowering stuff. It was a nice start for the youngster, but leave him on the waiver wire.
Matt Adams played left field for the fifth time this season yesterday, which is a great sign for the Cardinals' willingness to get him in the lineup. The bad sign is that he's yet to have much success hitting the ball in the early goings of 2017. The Cardinals must see something they really like with Adams at the plate if they're willing to deal with the defensive liability in the outfield, so keep an eye on Adams. He did hit 16 HR in just 327 AB last year, making him a legitimate power option.
I may be shot for suggesting this, but the time to sell high on Manuel Margot may be now. He wasn't much of a household name until the last few weeks, but now there's significant hype around the 22-year-old. Margot wasn't known for his power, yet has displayed an ISO of .343 coming into yesterday; he added a double as part of a 1-for-5 effort. He's an excellent contact hitter, so it's rare that he could hit for such power through the first 10 games. All that said, I think this is a pure case of small sample size, and he'll settle down as - at best - a #3 OF over the course of the season. With just 6 HR in 124 AAA games last year, it's tough for me to buy into a power we've seen so far, particularly when he's playing half his time in San Diego. Margot is a name to remember in the future because high contact guys with speed are a deadly combination, but if you can flip him for a more well-known asset, I'd pull the trigger.
If you used our Draft Software, you would know how high we were on Wil Myers. The dividends are already being paid, as Myers had another multi-hit game yesterday as part of a 2-for-3 effort. It feels like Myers has been around forever since he debuted as a 22-year-old in 2013, but at just 26, he's entering the prime of his career. He's certainly been fortunate on balls in player so far (.378 BABIP), but when you have a Hard% of 51.6%(!), that's bound to happen. If it's not too late, look to acquire Myers from some unsuspecting owner because I think 2017 is the year he really breaks out.
Giancarlo Stanton has no home runs on the season... that was before yesterday, when he hit two dingers off Jaime Garcia. Just when folks were starting to worry about Stanton, he delivered big time. It's a good reminder about how early in the season we are; Stanton was batting .250 with a .608 OPS coming into yesterday, and later in the game was batting .300 with a .921 OPS. Hopefully this is the start of Stanton returning to his 2015 performance.
