I’m willing to bet all of us have a “friend” (that’s in quotations because all too often said “friend” is actually us) who goes out drinking, drinks too much, and invariably says, “I PROMISE never to do that again…” only to end up doing the same thing three months later. Well, I’m like that with fantasy baseball. I’ve definitely said, “This is the last year I play fantasy baseball.” My leaguemates have yet to take me seriously, though, because this is the fourth year in a row I’ve said that.

So yes, I still keep coming back. Why? Maybe it is because “Every time I get out, they keep pulling me back in!” Well, if “they” is a keeper with such tremendous upside, I can’t ignore the opportunity to see what happens, then maybe that is the answer.

Jon Williams did a great job in his regular article last week, talking about potential keepers. However, those players are probably already on someone’s team. Let us look at a few guys who probably are not. Test your keeper-league aptitude and see if you can name them before I do:

He’s a hot young pitcher in the Tampa Bay organization. He is part of the reason Tampa could not pull off a major deal before the deadline, because they refused to trade this gentlemen when asked. His numbers have sparkled--he had 165 Ks in 2006 when he spent the entire year in Single A. Last year, when he moved to AA, he had a 3.15 ERA and struck out more than a batter an inning. And since he made the move to AAA? He’s doing just fine, with 40 Ks in 41 innings and a tidy 3.07 ERA. If you guessed David Price, please return to enjoy the company of the uneducated masses. Remember, we’re talking about guys who are probably NOT on most keeper team rosters. Congratulations, however, if you guessed Wade Davis. Between Davis and Price, I guarantee you that Edwin Jackson’s time in the Tampa Bay rotation is drawing nigh. But Davis is not the only one chasing Jackson down. He does not have the fireballs that Davis and Price have, but Jeff Niemann has also been impressive, posting a 1.16 WHIP and solid 3.55 ERA in AAA this year. With James Shields and Scott Kazmir starting locks, and Andy Sonnanstine and Price likely to be the three and four pitchers, Niemann might find himself in long relief. But remember, we’re talking about keepers and long term here. Lock up Niemann (and Davis if possible) cheaply while you still can.

In 395 career minor league innings Yovani has a 2.59 ERA, 457 K and only 303 hits.  Photo Credit:  Icon SMI

Tell me if this piques your interest—three-year averages of a 3.46 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 11 wins, and 123 Ks, including his most recent of 160. He’s probably not on anyone’s roster. Want him on yours? Yes? Well, guess what, you just put the 32-year-old labrum surgery-recovering Kelvim Escobar on your roster. Hopefully it's an AL-only league. Forgot about him, didn’t you? But unlike guys like Yovani Gallardo or Tim Hudson, your leaguemates did too. So what if he burns up a DL spot on your team in the offseason. If he’s not ready to return soon enough, you can drop him. Is Escobar an ace? No, but you could do a lot worse as your potential #4 in your keeper AL-only league.

You’d be interested in a hitter who hit .295/.346/.457 last year with 20 HRs in 139 games, which was his fourth season in a row with at least 20 HRs, right? And he won’t get pulled in the late innings because he is a better than average fielding shortstop, too. That’s right--I said a shortstop with both average and power. So, what’s the catch? He plays for the Yomiuri Giants. However, he is a free agent at the end of the season, and the Giants might be very happy to see Tomohiro Nioka go after reports surfaced of his affair with a Japanese TV newswoman. (I like him already!) Of course, he might not be available in your site’s database, or your league might have some restrictions about grabbing Japanese players. However, this could be the perfect opportunity to expose the loophole in your rules (which of course is your civic responsibility as an owner, isn’t it?). Or it could be like my league, where you announce the foreign player you’re claiming, but you must keep an open roster spot and can add him if/when he becomes a MLB player. Either way, if you’re playing for next year, what’s the harm in trying to grab Nioka?

Okay, I can tell you want someone a little less sneaky. I was hesitant to include this next player, because he could very well be on a keeper roster already. After all, he’s been tearing it up in the minors. But he was only recently added in my keeper league, and EVERYONE in my primary keeper league knows who he is--it was even an ongoing joke at our draft that someone was going to grab him. Maybe there was some pessimism, but it was ill-founded. Not only has this player been playing well, but the amazing thing is that he continues to dominate, actually putting up better stats as he moves up the minor league ladder. After hitting .345 with 15 HRs and an OBP of .448 at Single A, his numbers had to go down a little, right? Nope. He moved to AA Bowie and is hitting .357 with 11 HRs (in fewer at-bats, but his slugging percentage is 50 points higher!) with a .455 on-base percentage. Not bad for a guy drafted less than two years ago! And the best news—he’s a catcher! This kid can play! That kid, of course, is Matt Wieters. However, Orioles management has already said he will not be making a major league appearance when rosters expand next week. But that should be irrelevant when you’re playing for next year. For those of you non-contending in two-catcher leagues that can pick up minor leaguers, go get him, and do it before it is too late. Don’t make me go all Schwarzenegger on you (“Do it NOW!”).

Lastly, speaking of those with Austrian names, I’d like to talk about a guy I hope makes it. He’s one that Jason Revelia, our minor league guru, hasn’t even profiled: Stephen Strasburg. I am aware that his last name and mine are not the same, but close enough! When the closest ballplayer’s name to mine has been Hank Greenberg, and 60% of the Jewish population can make the same claim, I’ll take what I can get! But boy, would that be cool. You might have seen Strasburg recently pitching against the best in the world—in the medal round of the Olympics for Team USA. He posted some pretty impressive stats during the summer games: seven IPs, 11 Ks, and a .285 WHIP. Not 1.285, mind you, but 0.285. And while the more experienced and possibly better known Trevor Cahill and Brett Anderson had a BAA of over .200, Strasburg’s BAA against was only .045

One last thing I must mention, and apologize for, is quite the egregious error pointed out by one of my readers that I made in last week’s column. Sarah is not the name of my third daughter, but my second. My third daughter’s name is Lila. I PROMISE never to make that mistake again. Wait. That sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

NEXT WEEK: Schoolhouse Rock

Mark Strausberg still can’t believe the U.S. Women lost in softball but is more than willing to give Jenny Finch a shoulder to cry on if she needs it. He won’t give you his shoulder, but he’ll answer your fantasy baseball and football questions, so email him at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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