Steve Cishek, RP, Miami Marlins
Cishek pitched a scoreless ninth to notch his 26th save of the year. He retired the first two batters, only to give up a double and a walk before closing the game out. After an inauspicious start to the season, Cishek has been lights out for most of the year posting a 2.85 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 53.2 innings. He hasn't blown a save since June 4th, giving him 20 straight converted. Miami may not win a lot of games, but normally when the do, it's a close contest, giving the young closer plenty of opportunities to save games. Now seventh in the NL in saves, Cishek has put himself in the top 100 of most fantasy league formats.
Aaron Hill, 2B/3B, Arizona Diamondbacks
Similar to his teammate Paul Goldschmidt's heroics in Tuesday night's extra inning affair, Aaron Hill pulled some magic last night, tying the game with an RBI single in the ninth, and winning it in identical fashion, singling in Gerardo Parra in the bottom of the 14th inning. Hill has been on a tear lately, hitting .400 in August with three long balls and 10 RBI. There are a few guys who I told owners to stay away from, Hill being one of them. While I don't like players that have an injury history, his hitting over the past few seasons has been very solid from a fantasy standpoint.
Corey Dickerson, OF, Colorado Rockies
Dickerson has made the most of his late season call-up, driving in another two runs in the Colorado's 4-2 win over the Padres yesterday. In his first 78 MLB at-bats, Dickerson has a line of .321/.368/.551 with two homers and eight runs batted in. He started two of the three games vs. San Diego and gave them nightmares, recording six extra base hits (4 doubles, 2 triples) and scoring five runs as well as driving in the two yesterday. If you have the luxury of mixing and matching outfielders, Dickerson strokes righties, slugging .564 in 55 ABs. Colorado is always friendly to hitters, so Dickerson can only benefit from playing half his games there. He could make an impact late in this season considering his ABs have increased this month. Keep an eye out to see how he does in their next series, he possesses a nice combination of strength and speed.
Anthony Rendon, 2B, Washington Nationals
Rendon drove two more runs last night, making that six RBI over the last three games and 10 in his last 10. The first round pick from 2011 started this year a little slow with the bat, struggling to adjust to major league pitching, but now that he has had the opportunity to play every day, he is starting to find his groove. He slumped through July, batting .187, but in August he's been hitting .321 with a couple of home runs and a 1.007 OPS. He should be owned in ALL keeper leagues, so if he's available, snatch him up as he will improve with age. Even if you're in a standard mixed format, Rendon is owned in just 17 percent of Yahoo! leagues, so he should be given a roster spot if your looking for a 2B.
Shelby Miller, SP, St. Louis Cardinals
Another no brainer sleeper candidate is Miller, who struggled yesterday, giving up five runs (three earned) and took the loss. Last start he was hit with a comebacker on the first batter of the game, being removed instantly. With pitchers being injured recently by comebackers, it's not hard to believe that the young hurler might have had some nerves in the back of his mind as he stepped back on the mound, but nonetheless, any 22-year old with a sub-3 ERA and more strikeouts than innings pitched is a prime candidate for a keeper slot, especially when said pitcher plays for a playoff team like the Cardinals. And with all the quality pitchers that St. Louis seems to sprout out of nowhere, it bodes well for a guy who was drafted first round by them.
