If You're Hardcore: Tracy worth an add in NL-only leagues
It's understandable if fantasy owners have looked past Chad Tracy this season. After all, he has had fewer than 275 at-bats in each of the past two seasons thanks to a serious knee injury that required microfracture surgery, and his rehab was further complicated by a blood clot that required him to take blood thinners. His numbers also haven't jumped off the page thus far this season.
Still, this is the "hardcore" column focused on the deep AL-only and NL-only leagues, and for those NL players, Tracy could be an undervalued asset.
Although he came back in May last year, he still wasn't quite 100 percent because he really wasn't ready to play third base except in a pinch. That somewhat limited his opportunities to get into the lineup and didn't help him find his swing again after a long layoff.
Let's not forget that before the injury, Tracy put up a 2005 season in which he hit .308 with 27 homers and a 2006 campaign in which he hit .281 with 20 jacks. Although the '05 season might have been a case when everything broke right, the capability remains for Tracy to be an impact hitter for NL fantasy players.
Tracy's knee has no more limitations, and he can just focus on his swing without having to worry about it anymore. He swung the bat well in spring training and showed he could handle the hot corner again without problems.
Through 15 games and 46 at-bats, Tracy has hit .260 with one homer and six RBIs. While the entire D-backs offense has gone through a deep malaise, Tracy has looked pretty good at the plate with a slightly altered stance that gives him a little bit more of a crouch. His decent performance just hasn't quite shown up in the numbers just yet.
Tracy is staying on the ball better on the outer half of the plate this season. He also isn't pulling off breaking balls the way he was last year.
"That's definitely been a conscious thing," Tracy said. "I worked a lot this offseason on trying to cover that outer half more and getting back to driving the ball to the opposite gap. I've always been able to cover the inner part of the plate, but it's been getting back to being able to work the other way."
Some encouraging signs: Half of Tracy's hits have gone for extra bases (he has five doubles), and he has struck out just four times so far for the best contact rate of his career.
"Right now, it's pitch selection," Tracy said. "If I find the pitch, before I get to two strikes, to try and do some damage on, I just try and stay nice and easy, trust my hands and my swing and not try to do too much. It's kind of letting your swing do the work for you. When it's two strikes, it's just battle mode, trying to just put the ball in play."
Just as Jody Gerut came back from two years of knee problems to become fantasy-relevant, Tracy is well worth acquiring on the cheap at the moment in NL-only formats. The lineup machinations in Arizona at the moment leave Tracy on the bench against a lot of left-handed starters, which means he's not really a play in mixed leagues except for the real deep ones. When he regains third-base eligibility, he'll become more of a potential option. As anyone who needed to hit the free-agent pool a week ago to replace Alex Gordon in deep mixed leagues realized, the pickings at third are slim in many of them.
Given Tracy's past offensive output, return to health and eventual eligibility at both corner infield positions in a season when the overall depth at both is relatively weaker than in recent seasons, Tracy is a good buy-low trade target for NL-only fantasy players.
Based on the examination of multiple deep AL- and NL-only leagues, here are some players that could be in your free agent pool that could be worth picking up. Slim pickings this week, but there are a couple of potentially useful players.
American League
Brad Bergesen, SP, Orioles: I profiled Bergesen extensively after his first start, and although the offenses in his division will do him no favors, he could have some value in AL-only formats.
Lou Montanez, OF, Orioles: This 27-year-old ripped Triple-A pitching to the tune of a .335 average and .601 slugging percentage last year and won the Eastern League Triple Crown. He held his own in a late-season stint in the big leagues, hitting .295 and slugging .446 in 112 at-bats. If he falls into some semiregular playing time somehow, you could be glad you stashed him away.
Brian Bannister, SP, Royals: He didn't pitch quite as badly in 2008 as his horrible numbers (5.76 ERA, 1.50 WHIP) indicated, nor as well in 2007 as his good numbers (3.87 ERA, 1.21 WHIP) showed. The truth lies somewhere in the middle, as it often does. He can have some value if placed in your lineup judiciously, such as spot-starting him against weaker lineups.
National League
To get the full list of NL-only additions, sign into your ESPN Insider account, or join ESPN Insider today!I didn't find Brandon Jones of the Braves, who will be at least a platoon outfielder, available in any leagues, but if he somehow is in yours, pick him up.
J.R. Towles, C, Astros: He's not likely to see many at-bats backing up Ivan Rodriguez, but many NL-only fantasy teams are looking for catchers this week after losing Brian McCann or Ryan Doumit. If Towles is in the free-agent pool, he should be your top target because he has offensive upside, even if he didn't show it in the big leagues last season.
Robinzon Diaz, C, Pirates: Diaz can put the bat on the ball and at least has a chance to put up a good batting average if he gets some at-bats, but he will do absolutely nothing else on offensive. He won't help that much but shouldn't hurt you, and sometimes that's all you're looking for. If you can't get Towles or Koyie Hill, Diaz should be the next option ahead of the Braves' Clint Sammons. I'm seeing Hill available in few NL-only leagues, but if for some reason he is in yours, he should be the best option.
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