2014 Comeback candidates

[Trader Mac]

Who are you guys targeting as sleepers for 2014? Maybe those who had a down year last year (or two)? Or those young players who haven't lived up to their hype yet that you see breaking out this year?

TIA

[Moonlight J]

Josh Johnson would be at the top of my list

[chancellor]

Yoenis Cespedes - I just think he's too talented to hit this poorly again next year. He does have to improve his BB:AB ratio.
Asdrubal Cabrera - The amount of whining I've seen about him is amazing. I know Shandler talked him up quite a bit, and he didn't get near his projected BA/OBP/SLG. But his counting numbers were almost identical to last year, and with some improvement in his eye/BB rate, I see him taking a notable step forward in that lineup.
Michael Morse - Wow, he sucked canal water this year. I just don't think he's this bad, and I wonder how much Seattle's stadium got in his head. That being said, he was so awful, he's not guaranteed a starting gig, so watch carefully.
John Danks - He rushed back, and flat ran out of gas his last four outings. An offseason to build up some more strength and get his fastball velocity back to the 91ish range I think will be very beneficial. He's not an ace or anything, but he may well go very cheap in an AL-only auction league and deliver decent value.
Oscar Tavares - Yeah, he was overhyped. Yeah, he burned every manager who hoped for him to come up in 2013 and be some unholy combination of Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera in their primes. He may well not be the next awesome hitter, but it's pretty clear John Jay ain't the answer. I think he gets regular ABs next year, and may be at a discount due to his awful year last year.
Avisail Garcia - Will get talked down since his strike zone encompasses half of whatever area code he's hitting in. But there's real hitting talent here, along with some real speed. If he grows his plate discipline, he'll be a beast in Chicago, IMO. If he doesn't, he'll still be decent in traditional (non-OBP) leagues. I traded him in my auction league to make a run, and it's gonna hurt to see him on another team next year.

[Controller Jacobs]

I don't know that I'd target anyone specifically, but there are some that should benefit from personal and team rebounds.
Yankees, including Mark Teixeira, Curtis Granderson
Royals, including Billy Butler, Alex Gordon
Angels, besides the obvious there's Howie Kendrick (r+rbi stats should rise if pujols and hamilton are hitting)
Jose Altuve (I think he was asked to do too much, obp + runs should rise as the team develops and adds some talent)
Ryan Howard (maybe not likely, but he still shows the power)
Matt Wieters (not a comeback per se, but certainly could bounce back up)
Braves - Jason Heyward, B.J. Upton, Dan Uggla - that team could explode

[Kevin Seitzer]

Jose Altuve (I think he was asked to do too much, obp + runs should rise as the team develops and adds some talent)

He also dealt with a quad injury that dogged him through the whole month of August.

[Hornsby]

Logan Morrison - Still one of the best eye's in a young hitter that I've seen...and a potential to really increase his power now that he'll have his base back under him.
BJ Upton - he's already been mentioned, but really, nobody has that much talent and remains that bad, nobody.
Albert Pujols - I think that we see a good approximation of the old albert this year. If the foot's really healed, he'll be back to .300/35/100...book it.
Joe Mauer - Last year to cash in on that catcher eligibility, so now's the time to buy. I think Riff nailed it the other day with the Olrued comp...look for more power, more RBI, and the same .300+ average.

ETA:

Curtis Granderson - Lost year, still young enough to go 40/100/100/20 steals in the right situation.
Franklin Gutierrez - IF, and that's the big if, he can ever stay healthy for 140 games, he'll be the bargain of the year for some smart team.
Dustin Pedroia - Had a good year, but played with a bad thumb all season...surgery corrects that and the teens to twenty HR power comes back into his game.

[madducks]

Ryan Braun. Does he qualify?

[TranaGreg]

Josh Johnson would be at the top of my list

well I'll take a different position on JJ. I saw him pitch three times in person last year - a few observations: his fb topped out consistently at 93 (obviously very unscientific but i don't think I ever saw him throw 94). His secondary pitches are good but not great - the only games he had any kind of success was when he had great control locating all his pitches, which is not a JJ trademark. When he had most success in previous years it was his fb that got him there.

If the minor surgery he had at the end of the season (bone spurs in elbow) can help him get a few mph back he could be a monster, but if not, unless he suddenly learns how to be a great pitcher (as opposed to a thrower), I'm not biting.

[Moonlight J]

My thoughts on Johnson were posted at Fangraphs today - http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/the-j...hnson-dilemma/

[DJBeasties]

Corey Hart
Jason Heyward
Starlin Castro
Brett Lawrie
Cameron Maybin