August 2019 BABS Update – Batters

by Pat Cloghessy

In late August, the BABS database update has us astraddle two things: what 2019 has wrought, and what’s in store for 2020. 

On with it.

Freddie Freeman (pictured), Charlie Blackmon and Anthony Rendon: Elite fantasy baseball commodities with BABS assets to match (PW,A+). 

There is another hitter with these skills. Not Nolan Arenado, or Josh Bell. It’s this guy, purchased from the Blue Jays for cash in August of 2018. 

At present, Giovanny Urshela (PW,A+) is the most BABS-y of this iteration of the Yankees’ Murderer’s Row. Not bad for a player who was chosen just once in 932 NFBC drafts. 

Before we anoint him, remember that entering the season Gio had just 466 career AB and eight HR. Could we be witnessing a late career breakout? Maybe. BABS likes what she sees so far in 2019. 

That said, elevating Urshela up near Freeman, Blackmon and Rendon is probably a bit premature.

Way back before the season, even before Bryce Harper signed with the Phillies, some were asking if Kyle Schwarber was the Cubs’ internal answer to Bryce Harper. 

Eight months later, BABS sees much the same thing. She has Schwarbs and Bryce both with the same assets (PW). Add Eugenio Suarez, Edwin Encarnacion and Franmil Reyes to the mix, and a clearer picture starts to emerge. Finish it off with Cole Calhoun, Christian Walker, and BABS part-timers Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez. 

What does this snapshot represent? 

Preconceived notions and biases tell us that Harper and Judge stick out as “disappointments”. 

Are they really? Well, yes, based on where they were drafted. BABS might agree, as she projected each with (P+,a) assets. But BABS also provided us with reasons to be at least slightly worried about Bryce (Nw) and Judge (INJ). 

As for Schwarber and the rest, they might fall into the bushel basket of “expected production”. 

The intoxication of elite potential will always influence the market.  

And sometimes lusting after an uber-talented player can pay dividends. Ronald Acuna (PW,SB,AV) has it all. He is steaming toward a 40/40 season. In order to justify his lofty draft position, this was the kind of season required. So far, so good. No other player can claim this asset mix. 

If unparalleled assets are your thing, at the top of the list is Fernando Tatis, Jr. (P+,S+,AV). BABS can hardly hide her excitement (read: dispassionate rendering of skills). The multiple IL trips could be cause for some concern going forward. Otherwise, Tatis would almost certainly be a first round pick next season (elite potential!!!).

Another neophyte smashing the learning curve is Juan Soto (p,SB,AV). Unlike Acuna, he has company in his asset group. But what 20 year old wouldn’t want to be mentioned alongside Mookie Betts, Francisco Lindor and Kris Bryant? The future appears to be in good hands.

Rafael Devers (p,A+) is having a breakout season. Devers is the only full-timer with these skills. There is one part-time player who has them, and he is increasingly looking  like a full-time player: Bryan Reynolds. 

Nicholas Castellanos (PW,AV) has been sizzling since leaving Detroit for Chicago’s north side. Maybe finally escaping spacious Comerica Park will do wonders for his fantasy stats, even into next season. His actual stats pale a bit in comparison to those who accompany him in the PW,AV group: Nolan Arenado, Javier Baez and Josh Bell. 

If chosen blindly, one might not yield a more disparate and unpredictable set of full-time triple threat players (p,s,a): Tommy Pham, Eduardo Escobar, Ramon Laureano and Shin-Soo Choo. This skill mixture gets even more interesting when we include the part-time inhabitants: Lourdes Gurriel and Scott Kingery. One can probably expect a wide range of opinions on these guys in 2020.

The (PW,a) contingent spurs thoughts like “I could have told you that” or “yep, thought so”. With a couple of interesting exceptions. It’s not shocking to find Matt Chapman, Michael Conforto or Max Muncy here. But, Kansas City Royals Jorge Soler and Hunter Dozier? Soler translating his physical gifts into fantasy relevancy is a welcome occurrence. It’s been a long time coming. Dozier was the 8th overall pick in 2013. Now, at the age of 27, it seems he is finally here to stay.

If one wanted to find players that BABS might fade in 2020, the (p,a) might be a good place to look. Manny Machado resides here. As does Gleyber Torres. Torres is young and dynamic and just flat-out really good. But maybe the skills haven’t matched the hype/output combination…yet. To be sure, collecting players with these assets is not a bad strategy. It would net Jose Abreu and Mike Moustakas. However, neither of those are as highly regarded as Torres or Machado.