The Bad Guy’s Pickups Of The Week
The Bad Guy himself is here to bring you his pickups of the week. These are all guys that are owned in less then 50% of Yahoo leagues who are sure to help you out in one way or another – go grab ‘em before someone else does.
Todd Helton 1B Rockies - After spending almost half of last season on the DL, this lifetime .329 hitter is once again healthy and has been quite productive so far in 2009. In 89 AB, Helton’s stat line look like such – 13 R, 3 HR, 17 RBI, and a .360 BA, not bad at all for someone that most likely went undrafted in the majority of leagues. At the age of 35, Helton is a pretty decent injury risk, but when he’s in the lineup and playing half his games at Coors field, he should definitely be given some fantasy consideration. Helton sometimes gets overlooked as the power he displayed earlier in his career seems to be gone, but people don’t seem to realize how valuable his insanely high average can be. If the five time All Star is still available in your leagues, go out and snatch him up.
Juan Pierre OF Dodgers -With the news that Manny Ramirez will be suspended for 50 games, no one’s value increases more then that of veteran Juan Pierre, as he is expected to take over the vacated OF position. It has yet to be determined where Joe Torre will bat Pierre in the lineup, but that really shouldn’t be of any concern, as you are going to use him for one thing and one thing only – stolen bases. With his new everyday role, we can only assume that we will see plenty of “Juan being Juan”, and if you are in need of some speed, he makes for a great waiver pickup . He obviously brings absolutely no power to the table, but could easily steal 20 bases while Manny is out.
Justin Upton OF Diamondbacks -This one is an exception, as Upton is owned in 60% of Yahoo! leagues, but I still felt the need to mention him as that number is still way too low. After getting off to a very slow start, B.J.’s younger brother has been absolutely killing the ball, crushing six homers and driving in 14 runs in his past 12 games, all while raising his batting average from .190 to .285. He hit third in the lineup for the first time Wednesday night, and while he might not stay there all season, it just goes to show how much confidence Arizona manger Bob Melvin has in the future stud. Upton had a crazy hot streak at the beginning of last season as well but cooled off immensely and was eventually sent back down to the minors. With a year of experience under his belt though, Upton should be able to stay productive throughout the season, and should definitely be owned in all leagues.
Tommy Hanson SP Braves - The best pitching prospect in all of baseball is owned in a mere 14% of Yahoo! leagues, a number that is sure to rise with the anticipation that Hanson’s call up could be drawing near. The future ace has been lights out in the minors, and he’s just too good to be kept down there much longer – he currently holds a 1.65 ERA in six AAA starts to go along with 48 strikeouts in just over 32 innings. The fact that he has yet to be called up has nothing to do with Hanson’s stuff, but instead finding room for him in the Braves’ rotation, as all of Atlanta’s starters have been more or less decent. If you have some room on your team, The Bad Guy suggests grabbing Hanson asap – you’ll regret it if you don’t.
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