Dan Uggla (2B-ATL) - We'd be remiss if we didn't acknowledge Uggla, who saw his hitting streak end Sunday, just 23 games short of Joe DiMaggio's major league record. For the record, Uggla entered the streak batting just .173/.241/.327. He then hit .377/.438/.762 with 15 homers during the streak, and is now batting .231/.297/.450. That's a gain of 179 points of OPS in case you were wondering. It's really too bad Freddie Gonzalez didn't hit Uggla second in the order Sunday, as he would have been in line for another at-bat off of Carlos Marmol. Now that the streak is over, we'll probably see the normal .260/.340/.480 Uggla the rest of the way, and that's not too bad.
Jose Constanza (OF-ATL) - Constanza (as a "Seinfeld" fan, I just love this name...yes, I know it isn't spelled the same) continued to defy the odds and his talent level, going 1-for-2 with a walk, two runs, and a stolen base on Sunday against the Cubs. The game raised his slash line to .383/.414/.545 in 55 at-bats. Constanza also has two home runs and five stolen bases. The 27 year-old was batting .312/.361/.351 in Triple-A, so the 27.5 AB/HR will start to increase quickly, but he's shown the ability to hit for average and stolen bases a la Juan Pierre. Constanza is listed at 5'9", 150 lbs. and has just minor league homers in over 2,500 at-bats, but he also has shown 50-SB ability giving adequate playing time.
Logan Morrison (OF-FLA) - I was pretty shocked to hear of Morrison's demotion to Triple-A, a move he understandably isn't taking well. It's pretty clear there is more here than meets the eye, as Morrison has received some flak from the organization for his tweets, and he seems like a bit of a hot-head. For the year, Morrison is batting a so-so .249/.327/.464 a year after breaking out with a .283/.390/.447 line in half a season with the Marlins. Another report has the organization angry with Morrison for skipping a session with season ticket holders, and considering how difficult the club has had in actually getting people to buy season tickets, it's no wonder they were upset. It's true with the .249 average that Morrison has disappointed, but his performance hasn't been that bad, and there are far worse players getting major league pay right now - see Dodgers, Astros, etc. We don't know how long he'll be down, but it could be a couple weeks.
Paul Goldschmidt (1B-ARI) - Goldschmidt was 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles on Sunday, raising his average from .216 to .268 and leaving him with a .768 OPS in 41 big league at-bats. Goldschmidt has struck out in an alarming 18 of his 41 at-bats however, so the BA remains a risk to hover in the .240 range, but the power is legitimate. Over the next couple years, we could be taking about the Upton/Goldschmidt duo as one of baseball's elite home run combinations. Goldschmidt's fantasy prospects got even brighter when Xavier Nady broke his hand on Friday. Goldschmidt has 32 homers in 403 at-bats between Double-A and the big leagues for a 13.4 AB/HR ratio, a rate that if you project over 550 at-bats yields a very nice 41 home runs.
Lucas Duda (1B/OF - NYM) - Duda did it again Sunday, going 2-for-3 with a walk and his fourth homer of the season. Batting cleanup between David Wright and Jason Bay, Duda is batting .276/.347/.448 in 174 at-bats, taking advantage of the absence of Ike Davis (injury) and Carlos Beltran (trade). Duda also homered four times in just 84 at-bats at the end of last season, so there's some power here for the 25 year-old. The Mets are reportedly looking to utilize Duda as their starting right fielder next year, so look for him to play more there than at first base this year. Hopefully he can handle the position defensively, as his bat is intriguing as evidenced by his .999 OPS in Triple-A last year. Hopefully for your NL-only team, you got in on Duda cheap.
