Fantasy: Top-Five Week Five Offensive Free Agents

By Benjamin Christensen on Friday, May 2nd 2014
Fantasy: Top-Five Week Five Offensive Free Agents

It’s Week Five, and there is no better time than the present to make a difference (for the better) to your fantasy. As April came to screeching halt the talent pool parted and out from the clutter has come a fine bunch of hitters who owners have otherwise paid no attention to. With that, this is your chance to make some moves to fully equip your team at every position.

 

Derek Norris - Catcher, Oakland Athletics

Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or this is your first year playing fantasy baseball the one thing that is virtually indisputable is that drafting a catcher who will give you a consistent offensive output is one of the hardest positions to fill. Within the first five rounds heavy-hitters like Joe Mauer, Buster Posey and Yadier Molina were scooped up, leaving the rest to be fought over in the later rounds like vultures on a dead antelope. Yet somehow, a full month into the season, one diamond in the rough still sits on the free agent wire as only five percent of all leagues have taken notice to Mr. Norris’ accomplishments. Even though he is a platoon catcher, which will more than likely change soon, Norris is batting a dominating .386 with an especially stifling .444 on-base percentage. Only Devin Mesoraco beats him in that category, barely. In 57 at-bats Norris has 22 hits, seven of which have been for extra bases (five doubles and two home runs). On top of that Norris has plated 12 runs and scored eight himself. All of this is coming with 35 or more fewer at-bats than most.

 

Marcell Ozuna - Outfielder, Miami Marlins

It’s shocking to the point of almost being criminal when a dude who is clearly lighting up the league isn’t on anyone’s roster, and Ozuna is one of those players. Ozuna played in 70 games for the Marlins in 2013 and even then proved that he was going to be a necessary component to any kind of the team’s success with his .265 average, 17doubles, three home runs and 32 RBI. In 29 games thus far Ozuna is batting .310 with four home runs and exactly half of his RBI total (16) from last season. The one thing to note about Ozuna is that he has terrific protection in the lineup from the surging Giancarlo Stanton and breakout stars in Christian Yelich and Casey McGehee. Ozuna is currently owned by 33 percent of all leagues.

 

Yangervis Solarte - Infielder, New York Yankees

Right off the bat, the fact that Solarte can be used at three positions and is only owned in 36 percent of all leagues should be an indicator of how not to play fantasy baseball. The alleged second coming of Derek Jeter is currently hitting .303 and posting an on-base percentage of .404. Solarte has gone yard once this season and has plated 13 runs on top of scoring eight himself. As young, durable and reliable as he is Yankees’ manager Joe Girardi is doing everything he can to make sure Solarte is in the lineup every game. Kind of like what you should be doing as well.

 

Alberto Jose Callaspo - Infielder, Oakland Athletics

Once again, fortune favors those who stock their team with players who can be used at multiple positions. Callaspo has been a household name since his days with the Los Angeles Angels; however, he has never really come out of his shell until this season. Athletics’ manager Bob Melvin loves switch hitters and he especially loves what Callaspo can do offensively. Even though Callaspo is currently hitting .269, he makes every at-bat count, which is why he’s currently fourth on the team in RBI (15) and has knocked three pitches out of the park. One other thing to keep in mind is that Callaspo has been batting in the six-hole, which based on the Athletics sitting with the fourth-most runs (148) and the second-best on-base percentage in the majors (.351), it’s certainly not a bad spot to be in. Callaspo is currently owned in roughly 12 percent of all leagues.

 

Juan Uribe - Third Baseman, Los Angeles Dodgers

At an abysmal 32 percent ownership, Uribe is lighting it up for the Dodgers and very few people have taken notice. Uribe is currently hitting .305, which extraordinary when considering the fact that he is a career .275-hitter in the months of March and April combined. Uribe has also gone yard four times this season, knocked-in 12 runs and currently sits at 52 total bases, which is the highest for free agents in most fantasy leagues. And talk about protection in the lineup. You’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t scoop him up after reading this.

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