Welcome to the 2012 season’s second edition of “Free Agent Frenzy,” which will try to steer you in the right direction when trying to fill roster spots. We don’t necessarily think you should give up on any players this quickly, but maybe you’ve had someone suffer an injury, see a guy’s job security begin to look shaky (hello, Chris Perez) or just decided that you made a mistake somewhere. There’s a fine line between impatient and stubborn. If you’re straddling it, read on.
Note: Ownership percentages below are from FOXSports.com leagues. We’ll try to stick to the general rule that no player will appear twice in Free Agent Frenzy during a four-week period.
Catcher
Standard Leagues: Geovany Soto (23.1 percent owned) has power, but is unowned in many leagues because of last year’s .228 batting average. However, his BAs in the three previous seasons were .280, .218 and .285, and his career mark is .258. You’d take that from a backstop who might hit 20 homers, right?
Deep Leagues: Ryan Doumit (3.2 percent owned) will play plenty of right field and be Joe Mauer’s primary backup behind the plate in Minnesota. As a catcher, Doumit’s bat can play in most fantasy formats. Figure on him getting somewhere close to regular playing time – until he gets hurt, which he always does.
First Base
Standard Leagues: New Brewers 1B Mat Gamel (7.2 percent owned) hit 28 homers with a .912 OPS at Triple A last season. If you need to fill a hole, he’s certainly worth a look. That was a short but sweet recommendation, huh?
Deep Leagues: Jesus Guzman (3.2 percent owned) has batted cleanup and played left field for the Padres in each of the season's first four games. Guzman has decent pop with a history of high minor-league batting averages, and PETCO Park doesn’t hurt righthanded batters as much as it does lefties.
Second Base
Standard Leagues: Ryan Raburn (33.6 percent owned) will probably shuffle between second base and DH for the Tigers. He has averaged 15 home runs over the last three seasons in part-time duty, so 20 dingers could be in play with his larger role. Watch out for his .250 career batting average, though.
Deep Leagues: Jeff Keppinger (0.5 percent owned) will be in the mix at second base for the Rays, and actually batted cleanup on Opening Day, and hit a home run on Sunday. Keppinger doesn’t have any outstanding tools, but he has a .281 career batting average. When scanning the wire for AL-only middle infielders, Keppinger might be the best one you come across.
Third Base
Standard Leagues: At this point, we’re basing free-agent recommendations on projected playing time and 2011 stats. Brent Morel (1.5 percent owned) is slated to bat second in the White Sox lineup, and hit eight of his 10 homers in September last season. I’m betting on that big month as being a breakthrough rather than an aberration for Morel, and think he’ll have a minor breakout this year.
Deep Leagues: In Baltimore, do you want to take the chance on Chris Davis‘ (1 percent owned) tantalizing power, or speculate that he’ll flop once again and grab potential replacement Wilson Betemit (1 percent owned) instead? I’m an optimist, so I’ll try Davis. Betemit is probably available in more AL-only leagues, though.
Shortstop
Standard Leagues: Zack Cozart (8.2 percent owned) is starting and batting second for the Reds. The highly regarded rookie had nine homers and nine stolen bases in 88 games between Triple A and the majors last season, but check his 2010 Triple-A stats: 17 homers, 30 steals and 91 runs. At age 26, Cozart isn’t likely to be a deer in the headlights. Look for a solid season.
Deep Leagues: Jason Donald (0.1 percent owned) will be a utility infielder and reserve outfielder for the Indians, and that could add up to 300 at bats. He also stole a base as a pinch runner on Sunday, and that type of contribution could help you on occasion. Donald has a little pop and modest speed for a shortstop, and is a decent AL-only claim.
Outfield
Standard Leagues: Alex Rios (11.5 percent owned) is the 69th most-owned outfielder in FOXSports.com leagues, but he was 48th at the position on my preseason draftboard. Sure, he was terrible last season, but he’s only 31 years old, and averaged 19 homers with 27 stolen bases from 2007-10. Go ahead and write Rios off if you want, but I’m betting on a rebound.
Deep Leagues: Ryan Sweeney (0.7 percent owned) will play quite a bit in the Red Sox outfield, at least while Carl Crawford remains out for the next few weeks. Sweeney has almost no power, but he carries a .283 career batting average, and will probably score and knock in decent numbers of runs when he plays. He might still be available in your AL-only league.
Starting Pitcher
Standard Leagues: Erik Bedard (5.6 percent owned) didn’t win his Opening Day duel with Roy Halladay, but he gave up just one run in seven innings while striking out four and walking one. The deal, as always, with Bedard is that he’ll be good as long as he’s healthy. As long as you factor in some DL time, or possibly a season-ending injury, you won’t be disappointed when that time comes.
Deep Leagues: A Rockies’ pitcher? Sure, why not. As a rookie, Juan Nicasio (0.8 percent owned) displayed solid strikeout and ground-ball rates with good control. A K/BB combo is the best way to succeed at Coors Field, so while you won’t want to trust Nicasio in standard leagues yet, try him in deeper mixed circuits. He had a strong first outing of 2012 on Sunday.
Relief Pitcher
Standard Leagues: Frank Francisco (8.3 percent owned) is always a decent bet to spend time on the disabled list, but until that happens, he’s the Mets’ closer. Frankie Frank is pretty good when he pitches, with a career strikeout rate of almost 10 per nine innings. He saved each of the Mets' first three victories over the Braves, and is on pace for 162 saves. How can you pass that up?
Deep Leagues: Looking to speculate on saves? If you already missed out on Vinnie Pestano (1.6 percent owned) after Chris Perez’s Opening Day meltdown, try Minnesota’s Glen Perkins (0.8 percent owned). Perkins sets up for one of fantasy’s shakiest closers. Matt Capps, and could be in line for saves sooner than you think.
See you here next week!
