Preseason indications pointed to a solid 2013 for these 10 players, as all were ranked in the Top-200 in the game heading into this year’s fantasy draft. However, injuries and extended slumps have proven predictions wrong thus far. Every fantasy owner can agree, it’s most difficult to cut ties with a player you drafted high, making us wish that fantasy baseball had the same 60-day return policy as Best Buy. Drop these under-performing stars for some lesser-known options now, before your lineups and pitching staffs suffer the effects of these gaping holes.
Brett Lawrie, Third Base, Toronto Blue Jays
Lawrie posted a solid, if not spectacular .273/.324/.405 batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage line in his first full season in the bigs in 2012, despite sitting out most of August with an oblique injury. It’s safe to say that despite Lawrie only having 644 at bats under his belt before entering 2013, nobody predicted him to regress quite as badly as he has. In Lawrie’s first 30 games - he missed the first two weeks of April with a rib injury - he has batted an abysmal .193, shown a complete inability to draw walks, and has contributed only nine extra-base hits.
B.J. Upton, Center Field, Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves shook the baseball world during the offseason with the announcement that after signing free agent B.J. Upton, they had also made a deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks to bring his brother Justin Upton to the Atlanta outfield. While the younger Upton has flourished with the change of scenery, B.J. has stuggled mightily, batting .143 with three home runs and only six runs driven in. The Braves have been forced to slot defensive wunderkind Andrelton Simmons in the leadoff position, as Upton has reached base only 24 percent of the time this season. As a result of his inability to get on first, his stolen base total this season has stalled at only three. Ranked No. 48 by ESPN heading into the 2013 fantasy baseball draft, keeping Upton on your roster now will hurt your numbers.
Roy Halladay, Starting Pitcher, Philadelphia Phillies
Indications that the 36-year-old Halladay had come down to earth were evident last season, though the two-time Cy Young Award winner’s track record earned him a No. 76 ESPN preseason ranking among all fantasy players. In 2012, Halladay’s earned run average rose above 3.00 for the first time in nearly half a decade, and he walked more batters in 156.1 innings (36) than he did during his 2010 Cy Young campaign in 250.2 innings (30.) Above all, Halladay’s shoulder injury and subsequent surgery are reason enough to drop him from your roster today - he has plans on returning this season, but at his age, there are no definites. Much as it pains the baseball world to see arguably the best pitcher of the era on a stark and steady decline, Halladay’s future looks bleak.
Ike Davis, First Base, New York Mets
What is wrong with Ike Davis, and how long are the New York Mets willing to let him play through his struggles? Last season, Davis’ average remained below .200 until the fourth of July when he began to heat up, hitting .254 with 20 home runs and 45 Runs Batted in after Independence Day to salvage his season totals and remain a starter. Feeling the aftermath of a gruesome ankle injury and a bout with Valley Fever, Davis’ ugly start to 2012 certainly came with an explanation. This season, it is his at-bats that inflict great pain on Mets fans and Davis fantasy owners alike, with a .152/.234/.254 batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage slash line that begs the question of when the Mets are planning to pull the plug on their first baseman. Without the confines of a $3.13 million investment in the struggling hitter, fantasy owners should feel confident making this decision now.
Dan Uggla, Second Base, Atlanta Braves
Despite two consecutive seasons with the Atlanta Braves that left fans shaking their heads in confusion and disappointment, Uggla continues to garner a high preseason ranking at a shallow offensive position. Uggla, after the All-Star break in 2011, went on an epic hot streak that returned his numbers to respectability and gave manager Fredi Gonzalez reason to keep running the then 31-year-old out to second base. Last season, the halves were reversed, as the bulk of Uggla’s production (12 home runs and 45 Runs Batted In) came before the Midsummer Classic, only to hear cries of “Bench him!” from Braves fans as the season bore on. This season, Uggla has lived up to his new reputation as a power threat and little else, with eight home runs and 16 RBI's to go along with a .184 average. He should be dropped in favor of a more consistent option at second, though he is worth watching in case he streaks again.
Tim Lincecum, Starting Pitcher, San Francisco Giants
Lincecum’s demise has been, for the most part, confounding. Diminished velocity and life on his fastball was the unspoken story coming out of 2012 Spring Training, and when he failed to gain Miles Per Hour into the summer months, fans and experts had to question if the downhill trend had begun. Last season, Lincecum toiled through 33 starts, posting a 10-15 record and a 5.18 Earned Run Average, showing a lack of both command (as evidenced by his career-high 23 home runs given up) and control (90 walks and 17 wild pitches allowed.) His average velocity has been up a few ticks in 2013, but the problems locating have remained. With a 3-3 record and 4.70 ERA for the defending World Champions, Lincecum still looks to have his starting job on lock - which means holding onto him all but guarantees a wild ride into October.
Danny Espinosa, Second Base/Shortstop, Washington Nationals
Espinosa, like Dan Uggla is a serially impatient, high-power potential middle infielder who continues to receive early-round picks because of his production at a shallow position. Nationals fans and fantasy owners were collectively shocked at the offseason news that not only did Espinosa have a torn rotator cuff in his left shoulder, but he would be playing through the injury in 2013 rather than addressing it with surgery. Whether his shoulder, or a continuation of negative trends in his approach at the plate are the cause of his upsetting 2013 remains to be seen. Through the first two months of this season, Espinosa is hitting .163 with an On-Base Percentage of .191 and a slugging percentage of .296. He has only 12 extra-base hits on the season, and after two seasons of 166 and 189 strikeouts, respectively, he looks on pace to continue to whiff at an unacceptable rate. Espinosa needs to fix himself - by whatever means necessary - before earning a spot on your fantasy roster.
Jason Kubel, Left Field, Arizona Diamondbacks
Kubel’s first season in Arizona was a nice surprise for the Diamondbacks, as the big left fielder put up power numbers that were atop the league leaders for much of 2012. In his age-30 season, he hit 30 home runs and drove in 90 runs - though his high strikeout total and distaste for taking walks (151 and 57 respectively in 2012) drove his average and On-Base Percentage down somewhat. More bothersome this season, however, is that Kubel’s pop has vanished to the tune of only three home runs and ten runs batted in 2013. He missed two weeks with a quad injury in mid-April, and the effects appear to have lingered into May. A power hitter without a lot of patience at the plate like Kubel is a hole in your fantasy lineup, especially when the one tool that made him so valuable last season is gone.
Pedro Alvarez, Third Base, Pittsburgh Pirates
It is high time that we, as fantasy owners, guard our optimism that Alvarez is ever going to become Mike Schmidt. Last season, the Vanderbilt star and second-overall pick of the 2008 draft’s batting average was below the Mendoza Line heading into June, when his production finally began to rise. From June 17 on, Alvarez hit 20 home runs and drove in 57, contributing a respectable .271 batting average and .348 On-Base Percentage. Beneath the surface, however, his average on Balls In Play (BABIP) was a .350, a whopping 79 points above his batting average, indicating that his success was unlikely to continue. 2013 has been just another chapter in the Alvarez saga in Pittsburgh, as the 26-year-old third baseman is hitting just .201, while continuing to lead the team in both home runs (8) and strikeouts (46.)
Matt Harrison, Starting Pitcher, Texas Rangers
Signed to a five-year, $55 million contract in the offseason on the heels of an 18-11 campaign in 2012, Harrison’s 2013 has hardly lived up to the billing. Never a pitcher who impressed with high strikeout numbers, Harrison’s No. 173 preseason ranking was largely due to his good control and ability to eat innings (59 walks in 213.1 innings in 2012.) Of course, a “workhorse” type starter’s value sinks the moment he is unable to pitch every fifth day, and Harrison has missed a good portion of the season so far, undergoing two surgeries on a herniated disc in his back. The lefty expects to return to the mound in three months, but fantasy owners should feel safe dropping him from their rosters until he proves he can stay healthy.