By R.J. Anderson //

As the offseason nears, it’s time to start compiling a list of 2012 players to keep your eyes on. Catcher is often one of the more difficult positions to find a worthwhile bat at, so any glimpses of good value should be treated with interest. Sometimes that can mean gambling on variables like playing time and continued player development. If you’re willing to do that, then add Jarrod Saltalamacchia to your list.

Not long ago, Saltalamacchia was a consensus top-50 prospect. Baseball America even ranked him in the top 20 prior to the 2006 season. He made his debut during the 2007 season before being dealt to the Rangers. From there, his struggles (including a battle with the yips) are well-established. His season with Boston, however, is giving everyone a new reason for hope, thanks to his .240/.295/.466 line and 16 home runs.

Power is the key to Saltalamacchia game, if that wasn’t evident, and he flashed plenty in recent months by slamming eight homers in July and August. The problem with Saltalamacchia is that he has issues putting the bat on the ball. His career strikeout rate is nearly 29 percent and he doesn’t walk enough (eight percent career) to post decent on-base percentages. Still, the ball can go a long way when he makes contact, and that makes him an attractive option.

Fueling the sex appeal is an increased output of power this season too. It’s not unexpected for a player moving into Fenway, but remember that Saltalamacchia played his home games in hitter-friendly Arlington prior to this season. Saltalamacchia is running a career-high ISO (.226; career: .164) and percentage of hits that go for extra bases (51 percent; career: 38 percent) during his age-26 season. Since players tend to begin their statistical peak around this time in their careers, it isn’t impossible to think Saltalamacchia’s power is a genuine skill set shift rather than a flash in the pan.

The other big concern for Saltalamacchia’s fantasy value, and the reason he isn’t owned in more than nine percent of ESPN leagues, is playing time. Jason Varitek is still getting reps, and that means Saltalamacchia’s value isn’t as high as it could be. Time is working against Varitek and you have to think the Red Sox are pondering what Saltalamacchia can do with even more plate appearances. Catchers with the potential to post 20-plus home runs and ISO well over .200 That’s why you should tuck him away for the 2012 draft.

For more on potential 2012 bargains, check out Bloomberg Sports.

By Tommy Rancel //

Prior to the 2011 season, I wrote the following about Mike Stanton onthe Bloomberg Sports’ blog:

“With 30-plus home run power (35 projected by Bloomberg Sports’ Fantasy Tool), the likelihood of an equal amount of doubles, and an increase in RBI opportunities, Stanton could be a fantastic power and RBI source in 2011. Set your target around the eighth round in a standard 12-team mixed-league, but if there is a sudden run on outfielders don’t be afraid to pull the trigger a round earlier.”

Stanton has lived up to those lofty expectations despite the fact he will not turn 22 for another two months. Perhaps the owner of the rawest power in the majors, Stanton has smashed 34 home runs in his first full season of play.  In addition to the long balls, he has 27 doubles – and although he does not possess much speed – five triples.  The 66 combined extra-base hits are the sixth most in the National League.

One knock on Stanton’s offensive game coming into the season was batting average. A free-swinging slugger like Stanton is not prone to hit for a high average. Not surprisingly, he has hit just .265 this season. Meanwhile, he showed improvement in his plate discipline; an encouraging sign moving forward.

Stanton struck out in more than 31% of his plate appearances as a rookie. He struck out in just over 27% of his PA this season; however, a four percent decrease is nothing to overlook. In addition to fewer punch-outs, he increased his walk total from under 9% to just over 11%. Because of his ability to take a free pass, he has maintained a healthy .357 on-base percentage despite the pedestrian average.  He will still chase at pitches out of the zone, and does whiff quite a bit, but is headed in the right direction as far as rates go.

As we shift focus to the 2012 season, Stanton is a name you need to move near the top of your draft board. Because he doesn’t hit for a high average or steal many bases, he narrowly misses the top-tier of outfielders; however, his power is unquestioned and he can get on base in other ways even if he does not hit .280.

The one question mark for 2012 is Stanton’s home ballpark. The Marlins will open a new stadium next season, so we do not know what type of environment he is walking into. Meanwhile, his current home is a pitcher-friendly park and he had no problems clearing the walls on a regular basis. Stanton was drafted between rounds 8-10 this year. I may be bullish than others, but I’d bump him up at least two rounds going into 2012.

For more on Stanton and other Bloomberg Sports’ favorites, check out the Front Office tool

By R.J. Anderson //

Although the Cubs chose against moving Carlos Pena at the deadline, don’t be surprised if someone else on their roster is in the running for becoming the team’s starting first baseman in 2012. The dark horse candidate is a fellow by the name of Bryan LaHair, and because he could become an intriguing option heading into the winter, here’s what you should know about him.

LaHair, who turns 29 in November, was drafted by the Mariners in 2002 out of Holy Name Central Catholic in Worcester, Massachusetts. Until January 2010, LaHair had spent the entirety of his career within the Mariners organization, and even reached the majors in 2008 for 150 plate appearances (during that span he hit .250/.315/.346). After the 2009 season, LaHair became a minor league free agent and signed with the Cubs, with whom he has played for since.

After an impressive 2010 season in Triple-A Iowa, LaHair raised the stakes further in 2011 by hitting 38 home runs and driving in 109 runs. Those numbers came in the Pacific Coast League, but so ha the numbers LaHair had accumulated over much of the previous five seasons, and nothing quite stuck out like his 2011 campaign. The question then becomes whether LaHair has legitimately improved, or if enough repetition and familiarity can lead to some unsustainable success. Perhaps, as is so often the case, reality has it as a mixture of both.

LaHair exited the 2007 season with a .156 ISO, and yet his ISO has increased in each subsequent season; from .156 to .202, from .202 to .241, from .241 to .249, and then from .249 to .333. It could be the league’s offensive-friendly environment playing tricks, but it’s rare to see ballparks provide a steady improvement like the one LaHair is experiencing with his power outputs. That is a reason for optimism. Now, whether the power will translate to the major leagues is another question, and a question without a known answer.

There are murmurs that the Cubs will re-sign Pena, but given the Cubs willingness to slot LaHair into the lineup as an outfielder, he could still become a fantasy contributor if given the playing time.

For more on potential 2012 bargains, check out Bloomberg Sports.

By Eno Sarris // 

Those of you in head-to-head leagues are in the midst of your playoffs, and it’s all hands on deck time. You might not have streamed all year, but you’re streaming now. Scanning the schedules on your lunch break might not immediately provide the best results though. So we’ll do something a little different today. We’ll do that work for you, and give you a mixed league and deep-league starter or two for every day between now and Sunday. One-stop (streamer) shopping!

Thursday

For our mixed leaguer, Alexi Ogando might be out there and is tempting. But he’s really been flagging, and his strikeout rate falls to 5.54 against lefties, and his repertoire suggests that he might have trouble against lefties going forward. Cleveland boasts Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner,Jason Kipnis, Kosuke Fukudome, and Lonnie Chisenhall as good lefties that might tee off in Texas. He makes for a decent option in what might be his final start, but instead you could go toJhoulys Chacin if he’s available in your league. Chacin hasn’t been so great in the second half (4.60 ERA, 1.53 WHIP), but he’s still getting ground balls (56.1%) and enough strikeouts to matter (7.29 K/9). Oh, and he’s facing the Giants on Thursday.

Deep league streamers are sort of screwed on short-schedule days. If Homer Bailey is available, he’s an interesting pickup for his matchup against the Cubs. With his above-average swinging strike rate (9.2%) he could be striking out more batters than he is (6.71 K/9). His control is at a career-best level and Bailey is coming off a good stretch through August and September so far. If he’s gone, then consider Dana Eveland. There’s not much nice to say about Eveland other than he’s a lefty pitching at home in Los Angeles, which suppresses home runs from righties by 8%. Oh, and he’s facing the Buccos, which are having a hard time scoring runs.

Friday

Javier Vazquez faces Washington, but if you were reading last week, he’s probably already on your roster. Tim Stauffer has been scuffling over the second half, but he still has a 2.76 ERA and 1.17 WHIP at home… and that’s where he’ll face the Diamondbacks on Friday. To finish off a trio of mixed-league spot starters, Doug Fister faces Oakland at home in Detroit. One of these three guys will be available in your standard league, and they’re listed here in order of safety, so that should help you find a streamer. Well, Fister might be more solid than Stauffer, but his five-ish K/9 is not very exciting (even if his control is excellent).

Deep leaguers have a decent selection to choose from. Alex White is a rookie with a six-plus ERA pitching in Colorado, so he may not seem very exciting, but there are some hints of future success in his peripherals. He had decent ground-ball rates in the minors (57.2% in Double-A) and had close to a 55% rate in Cleveland. He hasn’t quite shown that in Colorado yet, but those grounders are coming. He also gets whiffs at an average rate and had great control in the minor leagues. He has promise… and he’s facing the Giants. Kevin Slowey against the Indians at home is also a decent idea. He hasn’t been getting the whiffs so far this year, but at least you know he won’t walk many.

Saturday

Speaking of great control, you wouldn’t think a knuckleballer would be known for his ability to keep that thing in the zone, but R.A. Dickey has now walked about two batters per nine for two straight years. He may not seem safe, but he also gets more than half of his contact on the ground and is facing the Braves, which often struggle to score runs. He’s safer than non-knuckler Rick Porcello, even if Porcello draws the Athletics. The best spot starter of the day may not be available, but if he is, jump on Colby Lewis. He’s facing Seattle, but most importantly, it’s in Seattle. He’s a fly-ball guy that has trouble with home runs sometimes, and that won’t be an issue Saturday.

In deep leagues, it might make sense to look to the game in Los Angeles again. James McDonald is facing Ted Lilly, who likes pitching at home, so he may not get the win. But the park will help keep the homers down, and he’s been showing better control in the second half. Drew Pomeranz is an exciting young lefty facing the Giants in Colorado, so that’s even a little more enticing than Alex White really. Everett Teaford of the Royals faces Zach Stewart of the White Sox, and good luck picking the right spot-start there. Teaford had a good debut, but it was against the Mariners in Seattle. Stewart has had two good starts that followed two terrible starts. His ground-ball rate and good control probably makes him the pick.

Sunday

Maybe John Danks is available in your league? He hasn’t been good in September, but he likes facing the Royals in his career. Aaron Harang is at home against the Diamondbacks in multiple senses of the phrase. Otherwise, Sunday is a little light on safe candidates. Brandon Beachyshould be owned, and so should Justin Masterson. But if someone dropped Masterson after his bad start earlier this week, his matchup against Minnesota is a good one. Make sure he’s owned before moving on to the deep league paragraph for your starter.

Joe Saunders takes on the Padres in San Diego, which helps makes him a passable play. Brad Lincoln is not very sexy himself, but he’s taking on the rapidly imploding Chad Billinsgley in Los Angeles, so that’s sort of interesting, too. Matt Harrison is way too average across the board to be a great pitcher most days — but he’s in Seattle on Sunday. He’s probably the best start in this paragraph, actually. If these guys are all owned, try Dillon Gee. He likes pitching at home and takes on the on-again and off-again Braves offense. If he’s owned… pray. Maybe Dontrelle Willis won’t walk the lineup against the Brewers?

It’s difficult to stream. Hopefully this guide will help you make it to the next round in your playoffs!

By Tommy Rancel //

Ian Kinsler is having one of the best seasons in baseball that no one is talking about. The Texas Rangers second baseman has smashed 65 extra-base hits – including 28 home runs – with 24 steals and has played fantastic defense at the keystone position. The main reason nobody is talking about Kinsler as a top-5 MVP candidate is a .253 batting average which is a no-no in the mind of award voters.

As you know by now, batting average is a misleading statistic. Although Kinsler’s average is more than 20 points below his career average, his .352 on-base percentage is almost a match of his career .355 mark. Despite the dip in average, Kinsler has maintained a healthy OBP because of a 12% walk rate. He is also striking out at the lowest rate of his career.

Commonly, BABIP (batting average on balls in play) is used as a crutch for luck. Is your batting average down? Maybe you’ve been unlucky with BABIP. Hitting out of your mind?  The luck dragons have showered you with good fortune. It is important to look at other things related to BABIP before declaring it just blind luck.

In Kinsler’s case, he has improved his plate discipline while maintaining a similar batted-ball profile. His line drive rate, groundball rate, and flyball rate are all within two percent of his career levels. Yet, his .243 BABIP is 40 points lower than his career .283 average. Considering the lack of movement in batted-ball data and the better discipline, it looks like Kinsler has a case of the bad mojo this season more than any fundamental flaw in his game.

The good news is BABIP tends to regress toward career levels, meaning Kinsler’s 2012 season should be even better than his 2011 season. If you have Kinser in a keeper league, and have been disappointed by the average, relax. He has above-average power for his position. He’s turned into one of the more disciplined hitters in the league. He swipes 25-30 steals a season. Oh, and he is a prime candidate for positive batting average regression next season. If you can pry Kinsler away from his current owner or participate in non-keeper leagues, put Kinsler near the top of your 2012 wish list, ignoring preseason projections or perceptions based on a .250 average.

For more on potential 2012 bargains, check out Bloomberg Sports.