Tag: Oscar Taveras

Selling High- Polanco

Gregory Polanco went 1 for 5 with a run scored in his first big league game. He will be a toolsy fantasy player in the near future but the smart play here is to sell and sell high. Keep in mind my June 1st article- “Selling High- Taveras.” Oscar Taveras is hitting .194 at the moment with two extra base hits in ten games played. Taveras was the “it guy” on the wire much like Polanco is now.

Analysis: I like the future of Gregory Polanco a lot more than that of Taveras. Taveras may turn onto the Fernando Martinez exit if he isn’t handled properly. Taveras doesn’t have much speed and his power is good not great.

Then you have Gregory Polanco… a future fantasy stat stuffer. Polanco has Hanley Ramirez like tools.  He hit second in the order in front of Andrew McCutchen in his debut but who knows for how long? Polanco needed more time in the minors for the sake of plate discipline, period. His BABIP numbers are inflated as well. He has a .399 BABIP in Triple-A this year and a .350 plus BABIP in the other stops where he hit over .300 in the minors. This is a concern.

Polanco can and should contribute this year but he isn’t a fantasy savior. It’s best to sell high and maximize value/return.

Selling High- Taveras

Oscar Taveras is the “it guy” in fantasy baseball right now. He homered in his first major league game on Saturday afternoon against the Giants. Many are saying he is a must start in mixed leagues but there is reason to sell high and maximize your return.

Analysis: Taveras will develop into a solid if not great player but there are a few red flags. He has always been a low walk rate guy which will be a concern when pitchers pitch around him and/or give him a heavy dose of the off speed stuff. Secondly, we have to consider that he is still just twenty-one years old. For every Mike Trout and Ryan Braun who had success early on- there are thousands more like Alex Gordon and Delmon Young. Gordon and Young had the upside and needed time to put it together and this may be the case with Taveras. And for every Alex Gordon and Delmon Young there are even more like Travis Snider, Brandon Wood and Andy Marte. This is just a friendly reminder from the guy that told you to pass on the Profar hype last year and sell him high.

Will Oscar Taveras have a great season in the bigs or will he be just another mediocre fantasy outfielder this year? Who knows, but selling high doesn’t sound that bad when guys like Revere, Markakis, Zobrist and Bourn are available on the wire.