Allen Craig - Allen Craig had a double and 3 RBI on Monday versus the Pirates as he tries to break out of his early-season slump. After batting .307/.354/.522 with 22 HRs and 92 RBI in 2012, Craig is hitting just .224/.264/.306 without a HR in 2013. He's been impatient as evidenced by a 4% BB% and his .268 BABIP is 66 points below his 2012 mark (although, to be fair, his LD rate is also slightly down from 23% to 19%). Craig's ISO is also a paltry .082. All that's to say, I'm actually not worried about Craig. He owns a .296 batting average and .502 SLG% in 905 plate appearances in the majors to go along with a career .207 ISO. If fantasy owners in your league are looking to deal Craig, he represents an excellent buy-low option and someone I'm targeting in all league formats.
Tony Cingrani - With Johnny Cueto on the DL, the Reds are likely to call up Tony Cingrani to pitch Thursday. He has immediate value in deeper leagues and daily plays because he'll face 2 weak-hitting teams in his first 2 starts: the Marlins and the Cubs. The 23-year old Cingrani has tossed 14 1/3 innings at AAA Louisville and struck out 26 batters against just 2 walks. He's given up only 3 hits and 0 ER. That's a small sample size, but those are some serious numbers. Last season at AA, Cingrani tossed 89 1/3 innings, struck out 101 batters and owned a 2.12 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. With 278 strikeouts in 212 minor league innings, Cingrani should provide nice whiff totals and has a chance to post decent ERA and WHIP marks, especially considering the competition he'll face out of the gate.
Neil Walker - I talked about Neil Walker on the Fantistics podcast this preseason, stating he was an underappreciated second baseman in fantasy baseball. My colleague, Drew Dinkmeyer, went as far as to proclaim Walker a top-10 second baseman in 2013. But prior to Monday, Walker had been a disappointment through the first two weeks of the season. He finally started showing signs of life against the Cardinals last night by smacking his first HR of the season and driving in 2. Walker is batting just .234/.321/.298 in 2013, but he's been incredibly unlucky. He owns just a .257 BABIP despite a 35% LD rate. Walker also has a 7:4 K:BB and is coming off a season where he hit a career-high 14 HRs despite playing in just 129 games. If an owner in your league is losing patience with Walker, try to get him onto your team. He should be a very solid play at second base.
Ian Desmond - The Nationals put up a 10-spot on Monday against Miami and Ian Desmond helped lead the way by collecting 4 hits, including 2 doubles, and scoring 2 runs. He's now batting .320/.327/.600 for the season. So far in 2013, Desmond has enjoyed a .378 BABIP despite a mediocre 18% LD rate, so expect that batting average to take a big hit in the near future. He's also showing a tendency to strikeout (23% K%) and not take a walk (2% BB%), much like he did in 2012. A lack of patience and low walk rate are not a good combination for a hitter, which is partly why I believe Desmond won't be as valuable in 2013 as he was in 2012. I'm also not convinced Desmond can maintain his 18% HR/FB rate from last season, considering he owned just a 6% mark in 2011. He'll remain a decent SS option, but don't buy into the hot start.
Adrian Gonzalez - Adrian Gonzalez went 1-for-4 with 1 RBI versus the Padres. For subscribers, I talk about how well Carl Crawford is hitting in the daily notes email and Gonzalez is in the same boat as he has a .396/.473/.604 slash line to go along with a .208 ISO, 2 HRs and 11 RBI. The first baseman is making excellent contact with a 35% LD rate, which has supported his .415 BABIP. He's also walking more than he's striking out, which is a great sign considering Gonzalez posted just a 6% BB% in 2012 (compared to an 11% career BB%). He's also cut his chase rate from 37% last season to just 26% through 13 games in 2013. It's very early in the season, but Gonzalez's fantasy owners couldn't ask for a better start.
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