Each week Baseball Press will be providing some Under the Radar fantasy players for NL-Only Leagues, AL-Only Leagues and Mixed Leagues. These articles will be dedicated to finding those diamonds in the rough on the waiver wire that will either be a short term or long term replacement to an injury or struggling player on your fantasy team. All players listed are owned in less than 30% of Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball leagues.
The Mixed League group of players is full of injury replacements and base stealers this week. Last week's options of long and short term guys did the job - Nick Johnson hit .300 with a homerun, Austin Jackson put up a .308 AVG with 2 stolen bases and Carl Pavano hurled a gem his first outing this week with a Win over Boston. With the season so early don't be afraid to cut bait on that 20th round pick to grab someone that is hot and can help now.
Chris Snyder - C, Arizona Diamondbacks (Yahoo! 12% / CBS 38%)
Getting a majority of the time in Arizona now that Miguel Montero has found his way to the DL for 4-6 weeks; Snyder will be a fantasy contributor behind the plate. He has always been an offensive catcher and will continue to do so in that lineup. Since taking over he has hit close to .300 with a homerun.
Chris Davis - 1B, Texas Rangers (Yahoo! 30% / CBS 63%)
I am not saying to go drop your First Basemen to pick this guy up but if you have a hole he is getting at-bats and the power potential is definitely there along with the low average and high strike out numbers. If you have a bench spot that is open you may want to pick him up and stash him for when he gets hot, if he doesn't nothing lost.
Felipe Lopez - 2B, St. Louis Cardinals (Yahoo! 27%/ CBS 14%)
Felipe is doing what most thought he would in St. Louis - playing a little bit of everywhere while putting up numbers that is not going to hurt anyone. Now it is true that he is a little cold at the plate over the past week but he has logged a couple games at third and a few at short with is playing time. Assuming this continues, he will be a valuable Monday/Thursday guy before the All-Star break.
Alcides Escobar - SS, Milwaukee Brewers (Yahoo! 24%/ CBS 82%)
Speed doesn't slump, and Escobar has speed. He stole 46 bases last year between Triple-A and the bigs to prove it. He does not have one yet this year but they will come. Some may be alarmed by his on-base percentage being so close to his batting average (.304/.333) but that has been the case throughout his minor league career. He would be a great replacement for a team that needs steals or had a shortstop go down.
Brandon Inge - 3B, Detroit Tigers (Yahoo! 23% / CBS 34%)
Remember last year when Brandon Inge got off to a hot start and some people refrained from picking him up because they said, "Aahh it's just a hot start."? Well 27 homeruns later those owners that decided to grab him were rewarded. This year the homerun power is not there - yet at least - but with 6 doubles in 34 at-bats it looks like it might be coming. Pair that with a .352 average so far this year (that won't be maintained), he is worthy of being owned again.
Andruw Jones - OF, Chicago White Sox (Yahoo! 8%/ CBS 17%)
There have been so many positives since day 1 of spring training about Andruw Jones that he just may be the come back player of the year. Hitting .304 with 3 homeruns and a stolen base we may be seeing glimpses of what everyone in LA though he was going to do after signing that big contract. It looks like he has the desire to play again and he soon will be losing that DH only status that he may have in some leagues sometime soon.
Dexter Fowler - OF, Colorado Rockies (Yahoo! 12%/ CBS 36%)
This suggestion is a speculation pick. Fowler is struggling at the plate and is a member of a crowded Rockies outfield but with the hamstring problems that Carlos Gonzalez is having he may still be given a chance to find his groove at the plate. Like mentioned before, speed doesn't slump, but if CarGon hits the DL watch to see who the Rockies call-up, if it is Eric Young Jr. then you may want to pass on Fowler.
Cameron Maybin - OF, Florida Marlins (Yahoo! 13% / CBS 35%)
With all the commotion that Jorge Cantu is causing, Maybin is quietly have a successful season at the plate down in Florida. Another guy able to steal at will when on base, which was the problem in the past, is actually getting on base. He is hitting .309 with a homerun and 2 stolen bases. He is still striking out too much but he has shown success at the lower levels with that high strike out rate.
Kevin Millwood - SP, Baltimore Orioles (Yahoo! 23% / CBS 49%)
With an ERA of 2.13 with 11 stikeouts over 12.2 innings against two quality offenses in Tampa Bay and Toronto Millwood deserves a roster spot on your teams. He has not picked up a Win yet but I am sure we do not need to elaborate here on the bullpen woes of the Baltimore Orioles. His next start is in Seattle, another pitcher friendly park and should be used.
Jim Johnson - RP, Baltimore Orioles (Yahoo! 16% / CBS 22%)
When taking over as the closer last year in Baltimore Johnson recorded 10 saves and posted a 3.26 ERA on the season. He is not a strike out pitcher but other closers have been successful without the strikeout as a weapon, see Ryan Franklin. He is definitely the short term answer but all MLB closers should be owned in most leagues and that is now what Jim Johnson is.