Your 2017 Sleepers.

[Hornsby]

He hit a HR yesterday and drove in three.

Blind squirrel, meet acorn.

[DMT]

Blind squirrel, meet acorn.

In Theo We Trust.

[revo]

With revo's permission and editing skills, I'm going to take a swing at this in 2-3 weeks. It won't be as good as Ed did, but it'll at least be a platform for discussion.

You have my permission! And BTW Chance, I'd be more than happy to contribute if you still plan on doing it.

[chancellor]

You have my permission!

If I weren't poisoning myself with a lot of IPA tonight while trying to cheer the worst team in history into the NCAA tournament , you'd have my draft. As it is I'll try and get you something tomorrow.

[onejayhawk]

If I weren't poisoning myself with a lot of IPA tonight while trying to cheer the worst team in history into the NCAA tournament , you'd have my draft. As it is I'll try and get you something tomorrow.

Huzzah. My draft has seven rounds left. I can use a metal detector.

J

[revo]

If I weren't poisoning myself with a lot of IPA tonight while trying to cheer the worst team in history into the NCAA tournament , you'd have my draft. As it is I'll try and get you something tomorrow.

Perfect! Even better, maybe you can create it as a Google Doc?

[chancellor]

Perfect! Even better, maybe you can create it as a Google Doc?

Could be difficult. My only Google sign on is gir Pokémon Go.

Can you handle Word?

[revo]

Could be difficult. My only Google sign on is gir Pokémon Go.

Can you handle Word?

Sure.

[The Dane]

I don't like to think of them as sleepers, so much as guys who could be had for a lot less than they're worth. I try to focus on cheap plays, usually on bad-to-mediocre teams. So, this is mainly for deeper leagues.

There is no such thing as a bad buy for $1.

My take on the NL, for 2017...

ATL: Rio Ruiz is the next bat up, and I think he'll be useful, but not a stud. Mike Foltynewicz might become a force in the rotation as the season moves along. Mauricio Cabrera has an off-chance at saves and if you need deep middle relief (I have two leagues that do), Dan Winkler.
ARI: Daniel Descalso was better than expected last year. Sure, it was in COL, but he could still produce more than you expect from someone that likely won't cost you more than $1, even in deep leagues. Here's an odd one for you: Fernando Rodney. He's not that good, but ARI really doesn't have an heir-apparent. You could make an argument for Barrett, but I'm dubious. I wouldn't be surprised if Rodney played poorly, but still held the job until the trade deadline, and that's 20 saves, at least. Socrates Brito seems like a forgotten man, but he has some skills, and if he manages to get a roster spot, he could surprise. Deep middle relief: Tyler Jones
CHI: No one is sleeping on the Cubs. Look elsewhere.
CIN: I like Tim Adleman to possibly stick in that weakass rotation. He was serviceable before he got injured and is boring enough that most people ignore him. Depending on how his year in AAA goes, I think you could see a surprise callup in Eric Jagielo, maybe even before stud prospects Nick Senzel or Jesse Winker. CIN has a lot of moving parts so if someone gets injured or starts sucking, they can bring up just about anyone. On the whole, I really like CIN as a place to plumb for opportunity. They are a terribly constructed team, I think the worst in the NL, but that means that there will be adjustments on the fly and that means be ready to capitalize. Christian Walker, Dilson Herrera (who I really like), Phil Ervin and a ton of other so-so guys could get cracks at big league pitching. As far as CIN pitching goes... I like very little of it. There's certainly some upside, but it's tempered by the mess that is the roster. The one part of the pitching staff (and maybe the whole team, except for CI) that seems to be strong is the better half of the bullpen and they're talking about having four closers. It's a very stupidly-run team, in my opinion, but that means there are opportunities for value in spades there. So... they suck, but I love them this year.
COL: This is simple: Every COL hitter is a sleeper. Always. Know their roster. Ignore all of the pitchers when someone say $2. You can be forgiven for spending $1 on a COL pitcher in dollar days, but if you actually outbid someone on a COL pitcher that isn't named Gray or Ottavino, you deserve to lose.
LA: I like Andre Ethier to out-earn whatever his salary is. The offense isn't spectacular, but it's pretty deep, so it's hard to tell what will happen. Whoever doesn't make the team out of ST will have to stay on your radar. The Dodgers are where you mine for SPs. Hill is an injury just waiting to happen and Urias will not pitch a full season. That means Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, Brock Stewart, and maybe even Trevor Oaks will get starts for LA.
MIA: I like their bullpen to get wins this year. Their starters are terrible and their offense is pretty good. Any of those guys are targets. Deep middle relief: Nick Wittgren
MIL: I'm high on a lot of these guys. I think Andrew Susac will impress and be the top of the lower tier of catchers. Chase Anderson is not worth $2, but if you could get him for $1 and caught a hot streak or two, he might have value. That offense looks like it may click. I like their left-right balance and the new additions of Travis Shaw and Eric Thames. The rotation is terrible, so they won’t be, ya know, winning games or anything, but they could score a lot of runs. I know he won’t be cheap, but Keon Broxton has serious speed and MIL likes to run. He could end up top-5 in SBs in the NL.
NYM: Wilmer Flores never seems to get his due, but I think he out earns what he costs in any league outside of Queens. Their rotation is extremely fragile so SPs that don’t make the team will likely get starts, guys like Rafael Montero, Seth Lugo, and maybe even Tyler Pill, but they could also stretch out Sean Gilmartin. They’ve got an extra OF floating around, but if disaster strikes, or Bruce gets traded, I could see Travis Taijeron get a look. He’s old and not a prime prospect, but that’s why he’s widely ignored.
PHI: This is another team that isn’t really good, but is pretty deep. They seem to have useful mediocrity up and down. This makes it extra hard to predict from where value may come. They do have a ton of very interesting starters who won’t make the rotation, namely Ben Lively, Adam Morgan, Jake Thompson and Mark Appel. None of them are all that great, but they could have positive value that comes from their depth.
PIT: I love Juan Nicasio out of the pen. Love. He’s probably not going to slip through unnoticed in any of my leagues, but if you need a middle reliever with few saves chances, I like him to be worth what it takes to get him. I also really like their bench, especially Alen Hanson, who could get a ton of SBs if he gets opportunities to run, and Adam Frazier, who may have a better bat lurking in there somewhere. Here’s an off-the-cuff and out-on-the-limb prediction for you: Tyler Glasnow won’t make the rotation out of ST, but will ultimately out-earn every starter that isn’t Gerrit Cole.
SD: I’m already on the record for liking the upside of the SD offense. Don’t forget Luis Sardinas. He could surprise for $1. Allen Cordoba is a Rule 5 pick who has enough talent and positional use to be kept on the active roster all season. Barring injuries, of course, I like the Padres to stick with the bunch that makes it out of ST for the most part. There are no reinforcements, outside of Carlos Asuaje, on the horizon. I like Carter Capps until his arm explodes.
SF: If you aren’t high on Derek Law, get it together. SF usually goes with old guys before young, so retreads and long-time minor leaguers usually have the leg up over the young star. So, it should be no surprise that the Giants employ Michael Morse, Justin Ruggiano, Jimmy Rollins, Gordon Beckham, and Chris Marrero. Expect a couple of those guys and Kelby Tomlinson to be of marginal value. I have no idea which ones they might be, but you just know that those are players Bochy and Sabean are looking at when it comes time to replace someone. Lesser Giants pitchers are always a better risk that most other teams, so if Clayton Blackburn, Chris Stratton or Ty Blach get called up to start, go there before most other teams.
STL: Not a whole lot of depth in their offense, so I like Harrison Bader and maybe even Todd Cunningham to be worth something in 2017. If, when you’re looking for relief pitchers, you don’t see if there are Cardinals available first, you are a dumbass. Middle relief pick-to-click: Miguel Socolovich. He’s old and lacks a pedigree and won’t get a ton of Ks, but he’s always pitched well. That, and he shares a birthday with me and Barry Bonds. Important things to consider here.
WAS: I like AJ Cole to be the first arm up and to hold a spot once he gets it. You can probably get him for $1. Like the Giants, WAS also has a bunch of old guys and career minor leaguer types. Hard to say who might emerge with some value out of that group, but Dusty loves his old guys, so bet on Brandon Snyder, Vance Worley, Neftali Soto, Emmanuel Burriss, Brian Goodwin and Michael Taylor before Wilmer Difo (although he seems to have caught Dusty’s eye in ST) and the other young bucks.

Wow. That was way more than I intended...

[cavebird]

Mauricio Cabrera in the Atlanta pen, I assume you mean?

[The Dane]

Mauricio Cabrera in the Atlanta pen, I assume you mean?

Fixed. I'm really terrible with first names of players.

[cavebird]

Sorry. Wasn't trying to be an a$$, I just really liked the idea of Miggy playing for the Braves---even though that would be silly because our one star hitter and Miggy can only play the same position.

[revo]

Heard Theo on Sirius this morning and he says we all better not sleep on Jason Heyward. Says he's made swing adjustments, has been utterly crushing the ball, and should score a shit-ton of runs where they plan on hitting him, he'll run a lot, etc.. Now, this may just be a GM trying to talk himself off the ledge after giving a player eleventy bajillion dollars and watching him fall flat, but Theo also doesn't have to prove himself to anyone, anymore, so I'd take him at his word. Maybe not a sleeper, per se, but a post-hype kinda player...possibly...

Love Heyward this year.

[revo]

I don't like to think of them as sleepers, so much as guys who could be had for a lot less than they're worth. I try to focus on cheap plays, usually on bad-to-mediocre teams. So, this is mainly for deeper leagues.

There is no such thing as a bad buy for $1.

My take on the NL, for 2017...

ATL: Rio Ruiz is the next bat up, and I think he'll be useful, but not a stud. Mike Foltynewicz might become a force in the rotation as the season moves along. Mauricio Cabrera has an off-chance at saves and if you need deep middle relief (I have two leagues that do), Dan Winkler.
ARI: Daniel Descalso was better than expected last year. Sure, it was in COL, but he could still produce more than you expect from someone that likely won't cost you more than $1, even in deep leagues. Here's an odd one for you: Fernando Rodney. He's not that good, but ARI really doesn't have an heir-apparent. You could make an argument for Barrett, but I'm dubious. I wouldn't be surprised if Rodney played poorly, but still held the job until the trade deadline, and that's 20 saves, at least. Socrates Brito seems like a forgotten man, but he has some skills, and if he manages to get a roster spot, he could surprise. Deep middle relief: Tyler Jones
CHI: No one is sleeping on the Cubs. Look elsewhere.
CIN: I like Tim Adleman to possibly stick in that weakass rotation. He was serviceable before he got injured and is boring enough that most people ignore him. Depending on how his year in AAA goes, I think you could see a surprise callup in Eric Jagielo, maybe even before stud prospects Nick Senzel or Jesse Winker. CIN has a lot of moving parts so if someone gets injured or starts sucking, they can bring up just about anyone. On the whole, I really like CIN as a place to plumb for opportunity. They are a terribly constructed team, I think the worst in the NL, but that means that there will be adjustments on the fly and that means be ready to capitalize. Christian Walker, Dilson Herrera (who I really like), Phil Ervin and a ton of other so-so guys could get cracks at big league pitching. As far as CIN pitching goes... I like very little of it. There's certainly some upside, but it's tempered by the mess that is the roster. The one part of the pitching staff (and maybe the whole team, except for CI) that seems to be strong is the better half of the bullpen and they're talking about having four closers. It's a very stupidly-run team, in my opinion, but that means there are opportunities for value in spades there. So... they suck, but I love them this year.
COL: This is simple: Every COL hitter is a sleeper. Always. Know their roster. Ignore all of the pitchers when someone say $2. You can be forgiven for spending $1 on a COL pitcher in dollar days, but if you actually outbid someone on a COL pitcher that isn't named Gray or Ottavino, you deserve to lose.
LA: I like Andre Ethier to out-earn whatever his salary is. The offense isn't spectacular, but it's pretty deep, so it's hard to tell what will happen. Whoever doesn't make the team out of ST will have to stay on your radar. The Dodgers are where you mine for SPs. Hill is an injury just waiting to happen and Urias will not pitch a full season. That means Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, Brock Stewart, and maybe even Trevor Oaks will get starts for LA.
MIA: I like their bullpen to get wins this year. Their starters are terrible and their offense is pretty good. Any of those guys are targets. Deep middle relief: Nick Wittgren
MIL: I'm high on a lot of these guys. I think Andrew Susac will impress and be the top of the lower tier of catchers. Chase Anderson is not worth $2, but if you could get him for $1 and caught a hot streak or two, he might have value. That offense looks like it may click. I like their left-right balance and the new additions of Travis Shaw and Eric Thames. The rotation is terrible, so they won’t be, ya know, winning games or anything, but they could score a lot of runs. I know he won’t be cheap, but Keon Broxton has serious speed and MIL likes to run. He could end up top-5 in SBs in the NL.
NYM: Wilmer Flores never seems to get his due, but I think he out earns what he costs in any league outside of Queens. Their rotation is extremely fragile so SPs that don’t make the team will likely get starts, guys like Rafael Montero, Seth Lugo, and maybe even Tyler Pill, but they could also stretch out Sean Gilmartin. They’ve got an extra OF floating around, but if disaster strikes, or Bruce gets traded, I could see Travis Taijeron get a look. He’s old and not a prime prospect, but that’s why he’s widely ignored.
PHI: This is another team that isn’t really good, but is pretty deep. They seem to have useful mediocrity up and down. This makes it extra hard to predict from where value may come. They do have a ton of very interesting starters who won’t make the rotation, namely Ben Lively, Adam Morgan, Jake Thompson and Mark Appel. None of them are all that great, but they could have positive value that comes from their depth.
PIT: I love Juan Nicasio out of the pen. Love. He’s probably not going to slip through unnoticed in any of my leagues, but if you need a middle reliever with few saves chances, I like him to be worth what it takes to get him. I also really like their bench, especially Alen Hanson, who could get a ton of SBs if he gets opportunities to run, and Adam Frazier, who may have a better bat lurking in there somewhere. Here’s an off-the-cuff and out-on-the-limb prediction for you: Tyler Glasnow won’t make the rotation out of ST, but will ultimately out-earn every starter that isn’t Gerrit Cole.
SD: I’m already on the record for liking the upside of the SD offense. Don’t forget Luis Sardinas. He could surprise for $1. Allen Cordoba is a Rule 5 pick who has enough talent and positional use to be kept on the active roster all season. Barring injuries, of course, I like the Padres to stick with the bunch that makes it out of ST for the most part. There are no reinforcements, outside of Carlos Asuaje, on the horizon. I like Carter Capps until his arm explodes.
SF: If you aren’t high on Derek Law, get it together. SF usually goes with old guys before young, so retreads and long-time minor leaguers usually have the leg up over the young star. So, it should be no surprise that the Giants employ Michael Morse, Justin Ruggiano, Jimmy Rollins, Gordon Beckham, and Chris Marrero. Expect a couple of those guys and Kelby Tomlinson to be of marginal value. I have no idea which ones they might be, but you just know that those are players Bochy and Sabean are looking at when it comes time to replace someone. Lesser Giants pitchers are always a better risk that most other teams, so if Clayton Blackburn, Chris Stratton or Ty Blach get called up to start, go there before most other teams.
STL: Not a whole lot of depth in their offense, so I like Harrison Bader and maybe even Todd Cunningham to be worth something in 2017. If, when you’re looking for relief pitchers, you don’t see if there are Cardinals available first, you are a dumbass. Middle relief pick-to-click: Miguel Socolovich. He’s old and lacks a pedigree and won’t get a ton of Ks, but he’s always pitched well. That, and he shares a birthday with me and Barry Bonds. Important things to consider here.
WAS: I like AJ Cole to be the first arm up and to hold a spot once he gets it. You can probably get him for $1. Like the Giants, WAS also has a bunch of old guys and career minor leaguer types. Hard to say who might emerge with some value out of that group, but Dusty loves his old guys, so bet on Brandon Snyder, Vance Worley, Neftali Soto, Emmanuel Burriss, Brian Goodwin and Michael Taylor before Wilmer Difo (although he seems to have caught Dusty’s eye in ST) and the other young bucks.

Wow. That was way more than I intended...

Boom! Great post, Dane!

[Sharky]

I don't like to think of them as sleepers, so much as guys who could be had for a lot less than they're worth. I try to focus on cheap plays, usually on bad-to-mediocre teams. So, this is mainly for deeper leagues.

There is no such thing as a bad buy for $1.

My take on the NL, for 2017...

ATL: Rio Ruiz is the next bat up, and I think he'll be useful, but not a stud. Mike Foltynewicz might become a force in the rotation as the season moves along. Mauricio Cabrera has an off-chance at saves and if you need deep middle relief (I have two leagues that do), Dan Winkler.
ARI: Daniel Descalso was better than expected last year. Sure, it was in COL, but he could still produce more than you expect from someone that likely won't cost you more than $1, even in deep leagues. Here's an odd one for you: Fernando Rodney. He's not that good, but ARI really doesn't have an heir-apparent. You could make an argument for Barrett, but I'm dubious. I wouldn't be surprised if Rodney played poorly, but still held the job until the trade deadline, and that's 20 saves, at least. Socrates Brito seems like a forgotten man, but he has some skills, and if he manages to get a roster spot, he could surprise. Deep middle relief: Tyler Jones
CHI: No one is sleeping on the Cubs. Look elsewhere.
CIN: I like Tim Adleman to possibly stick in that weakass rotation. He was serviceable before he got injured and is boring enough that most people ignore him. Depending on how his year in AAA goes, I think you could see a surprise callup in Eric Jagielo, maybe even before stud prospects Nick Senzel or Jesse Winker. CIN has a lot of moving parts so if someone gets injured or starts sucking, they can bring up just about anyone. On the whole, I really like CIN as a place to plumb for opportunity. They are a terribly constructed team, I think the worst in the NL, but that means that there will be adjustments on the fly and that means be ready to capitalize. Christian Walker, Dilson Herrera (who I really like), Phil Ervin and a ton of other so-so guys could get cracks at big league pitching. As far as CIN pitching goes... I like very little of it. There's certainly some upside, but it's tempered by the mess that is the roster. The one part of the pitching staff (and maybe the whole team, except for CI) that seems to be strong is the better half of the bullpen and they're talking about having four closers. It's a very stupidly-run team, in my opinion, but that means there are opportunities for value in spades there. So... they suck, but I love them this year.
COL: This is simple: Every COL hitter is a sleeper. Always. Know their roster. Ignore all of the pitchers when someone say $2. You can be forgiven for spending $1 on a COL pitcher in dollar days, but if you actually outbid someone on a COL pitcher that isn't named Gray or Ottavino, you deserve to lose.
LA: I like Andre Ethier to out-earn whatever his salary is. The offense isn't spectacular, but it's pretty deep, so it's hard to tell what will happen. Whoever doesn't make the team out of ST will have to stay on your radar. The Dodgers are where you mine for SPs. Hill is an injury just waiting to happen and Urias will not pitch a full season. That means Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, Brock Stewart, and maybe even Trevor Oaks will get starts for LA.
MIA: I like their bullpen to get wins this year. Their starters are terrible and their offense is pretty good. Any of those guys are targets. Deep middle relief: Nick Wittgren
MIL: I'm high on a lot of these guys. I think Andrew Susac will impress and be the top of the lower tier of catchers. Chase Anderson is not worth $2, but if you could get him for $1 and caught a hot streak or two, he might have value. That offense looks like it may click. I like their left-right balance and the new additions of Travis Shaw and Eric Thames. The rotation is terrible, so they won’t be, ya know, winning games or anything, but they could score a lot of runs. I know he won’t be cheap, but Keon Broxton has serious speed and MIL likes to run. He could end up top-5 in SBs in the NL.
NYM: Wilmer Flores never seems to get his due, but I think he out earns what he costs in any league outside of Queens. Their rotation is extremely fragile so SPs that don’t make the team will likely get starts, guys like Rafael Montero, Seth Lugo, and maybe even Tyler Pill, but they could also stretch out Sean Gilmartin. They’ve got an extra OF floating around, but if disaster strikes, or Bruce gets traded, I could see Travis Taijeron get a look. He’s old and not a prime prospect, but that’s why he’s widely ignored.
PHI: This is another team that isn’t really good, but is pretty deep. They seem to have useful mediocrity up and down. This makes it extra hard to predict from where value may come. They do have a ton of very interesting starters who won’t make the rotation, namely Ben Lively, Adam Morgan, Jake Thompson and Mark Appel. None of them are all that great, but they could have positive value that comes from their depth.
PIT: I love Juan Nicasio out of the pen. Love. He’s probably not going to slip through unnoticed in any of my leagues, but if you need a middle reliever with few saves chances, I like him to be worth what it takes to get him. I also really like their bench, especially Alen Hanson, who could get a ton of SBs if he gets opportunities to run, and Adam Frazier, who may have a better bat lurking in there somewhere. Here’s an off-the-cuff and out-on-the-limb prediction for you: Tyler Glasnow won’t make the rotation out of ST, but will ultimately out-earn every starter that isn’t Gerrit Cole.
SD: I’m already on the record for liking the upside of the SD offense. Don’t forget Luis Sardinas. He could surprise for $1. Allen Cordoba is a Rule 5 pick who has enough talent and positional use to be kept on the active roster all season. Barring injuries, of course, I like the Padres to stick with the bunch that makes it out of ST for the most part. There are no reinforcements, outside of Carlos Asuaje, on the horizon. I like Carter Capps until his arm explodes.
SF: If you aren’t high on Derek Law, get it together. SF usually goes with old guys before young, so retreads and long-time minor leaguers usually have the leg up over the young star. So, it should be no surprise that the Giants employ Michael Morse, Justin Ruggiano, Jimmy Rollins, Gordon Beckham, and Chris Marrero. Expect a couple of those guys and Kelby Tomlinson to be of marginal value. I have no idea which ones they might be, but you just know that those are players Bochy and Sabean are looking at when it comes time to replace someone. Lesser Giants pitchers are always a better risk that most other teams, so if Clayton Blackburn, Chris Stratton or Ty Blach get called up to start, go there before most other teams.
STL: Not a whole lot of depth in their offense, so I like Harrison Bader and maybe even Todd Cunningham to be worth something in 2017. If, when you’re looking for relief pitchers, you don’t see if there are Cardinals available first, you are a dumbass. Middle relief pick-to-click: Miguel Socolovich. He’s old and lacks a pedigree and won’t get a ton of Ks, but he’s always pitched well. That, and he shares a birthday with me and Barry Bonds. Important things to consider here.
WAS: I like AJ Cole to be the first arm up and to hold a spot once he gets it. You can probably get him for $1. Like the Giants, WAS also has a bunch of old guys and career minor leaguer types. Hard to say who might emerge with some value out of that group, but Dusty loves his old guys, so bet on Brandon Snyder, Vance Worley, Neftali Soto, Emmanuel Burriss, Brian Goodwin and Michael Taylor before Wilmer Difo (although he seems to have caught Dusty’s eye in ST) and the other young bucks.

Wow. That was way more than I intended...

Way to go, Dane! A very balanced assessment. No dramatic calls, but tons of people who are likely to be undervalued by "the market" (whatever that is).