September is a strange time to be a fantasy sports enthusiast. If you’re engaged with both baseball and
Washington Nationals left fielder Roger Bernadina catches a ball hit by Chicago Cubs Aramis Ramirez during the sixth inning of their baseball game at Nationals Park in Washington, Monday, Aug. 23, 2010. The Cubs beat the Nationals, 9-1. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
football, your baseball league is deciding playoff positioning or potentially already in playoff mode depending on league formatting. While the playoffs may be lurking, one must fight the urges to become fully enthralled by the upcoming fantasy football season.
I’m here to tell you that your football mock drafts and preparation pales in comparison to the end of your fantasy baseball season. If you’re in contention or in the playoffs already, you don’t want to throw your entire season down the drain by neglecting your team for that football draft. Baseball is a 7-month, 162 game grind and you’re almost at the finish line. With a little less than a month remaining on the season, we’ll take a look at a few options that are heating up just in time for your playoff hunt.
Percentage of players available taken from Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball leagues
Roger Bernadina (WAS-OF): 4 percent owned:
Have you had anyone ever tell you that nothing good in life is free? Well, I’d like to introduce you one of the best things in fantasy baseball that is 94 percent free. OK, so he’s not completely free but at that rate in fantasy baseball, it’s the closest thing to free there is. Roger Bernadina has a serious set of skills and is making the most of his playing time after Josh Willingham went down for the season with a left knee injury. Over the past two weeks, Bernadina has been scorching, batting .286 (16/56) while swatting three homers and driving in nine runs. Bernadina has been a nice surprise, supplying owners with both power and speed, snatching 4 bags over the last two weeks, adding to his 13 steals on the season.
Daric Barton (OAK-1B): 8 percent owned:
Oakland’s first baseman has been hot of late, hitting three of his eight homers on the season last week against Texas and the Yankees. Barton played exceptionally well in August, smashing 27 hits with three homers, nine RBI and two stolen bases to complement 17 runs scored over the month. This production at this price tag is rare to come by this deep in the season and owners in deeper leagues could use Barton at 1st or corner infield position if league settings permit such usage.
Neil Walker (PIT-2B, 3B): 21 percent owned:
Pittsburgh Pirates' Neil Walker, right, hits a ball from St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Jake Westbrook for a triple with the bases loaded in the third inning of the baseball game in Pittsburgh, Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010. Cardinals catcher Bryan Anderson, left, looks on. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)
Neil Skywalker (too easy) has been a diamond in the rough for a majority of the season and fantasy owners are starting to take notice. After the all-star break, Walker is hitting .331 with five homers and 36 runs batted in. Walker has hit safely in his last eight contests including a monster performance against the Cubs last night, going 4 for 5 with a homer and 4 RBI. While the Pirates have been mired in another pitiful season, fantasy standouts Neil Walker and Jose Tabata provide hope for brighter days in the Steel City.
