Matt Wieters (C, Bal): Wieters went 2-4 with two RBI and his 12th home run of the year for the Orioles. He's missed some time this year, as catchers tend to do, appearing in 99 games. His power has never really come back following his Tommy John surgery in 2014. He had ISO numbers of .188, .186, .182, and .192 in the years before his surgery, followed by a .155 ISO last year in 282 plate appearances and now a .146 ISO this season in 370 PA's. He's now 30 years old and an impending free agent, so while his career is far from done, he's no longer a player that has the potential to separate himself from the rest of the catcher herd. He has a below average walk rate (6.5%) which has saddled him with a .295 OBP this year, and hits too many fly balls (39.5%) to have an elevated BABIP to help his batting average, so he sits with a .268 BABIP and .238 average. Without much power upside or even a lock to hit for a decent average, he'll be "just a guy" at catcher next year, and will most likely receive a park downgrade as well if he gets signed by another ball club.
Rajai Davis (OF, Cle): Davis piled on to his impressive age 35 season, going 3-5 with a double and his 12th home run of the year, collecting three RBI in the process. His real value, as usual, has come in the steals department, where he was caught today but is still 33-38, which is a very nice efficiency rate. He hasn't quite played every day, which makes his less than stellar runs scored total of 63 more understandable for a leadoff bat. The real surprise continues to be the home run power, as 12 is now four more than his previous career high of eight. This is basically all gravy from a guy who wasn't drafted in a lot of leagues this spring, and has been one of the real value MVP's of the year. His stolen base total is in fact fourth in all of baseball. Despite this, it's still hard to get overly excited about him going into 2017. He will be 36 after all, and we see very few players manage to play successfully into their late 30's in the post-steroid era.
Kendall Graveman (SP, Oak): Graveman pitched well but took the loss, falling to 10-9 on the year. He tossed seven innings and allowed only three runs on four hits, walking one but registering only one strikeout. He's been very effective in the second half of the season, and in fact has now walked two batters or fewer in 15 of his last 16 starts. He's relied heavily on the sinker which has brought him great success. He has excellent command of the pitch, and used it 75% of the time in July and over 60% of the time in August. He has excelled at throwing the pitch low in the zone and has got 56% ground balls with it. He won't be a mixed league star any time soon because he simply doesn't strike anyone out, sitting at a 5.06 K/9, nor will he accrue a lot of wins pitching for the lowly Athletics. However, he is shaping up to be a durable innings eater that keeps the ball on the ground and doesn't give up free passes, and those guys have their place in fantasy rotations, too. He'll have a nice matchup with the Angels at home in his next start.
Hanley Ramirez (1B/OF, Bos): Hanley went 3-4 with his 18th home run of the year, driving in two RBI, which puts him at 80. Playing at first base has kept him overall pretty healthy this year, having played in 119 games. He's been a solid contributor since you can play him at outfield this year, but 20-25 homer power with a .281/.353/.465 slash line isn't an early round pick when you lump him in with other first baseman, which will be the only position he qualifies for next year. We've seen his contact rate dip about 4% this year and his strikeout rate jump by 3%, perhaps indicating that at 32 years old he's beginning to fade, as most players do when they approach their mid-30's. Being in a great Red Sox lineup will help ease the decline though, and it's a nice park and division to hit in, so one shouldn't expect him to fade into oblivion in a hurry.
Rougned Odor (2B, Tex): Odor hit a career benchmark, launching home run number 25 for the first time in his young career, and he did it in grand fashion as it was a walk-off. He would finish 3-5 with two runs, two RBI, and a caught stealing. He's got flaws in his game for sure, with a horrid 2.5% walk rate, and while 11 steals on the year isn't a detriment by any stretch, it's a disappointment from what a lot of people were expecting him to do this year. He may never be an outstanding base stealer, but one should consider steals an added bonus to the profile of a young second baseman that can approach 30 home runs in a season. They're not fluky homers either; his 35% hard contact rate on the season backs up his .484 slugging percentage, and his 45% pull rate and 41% fly ball rate tell the tale of a pull-heavy hitter that knows how to yoke a pitch he likes. His 12% swinging strike rate is a tad concerning, but at just 22 years old, he's got time to work on his contact. He'll be in the top 10 at second base come 2017.
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