With the second half of the 2011 Fantasy Baseball season quickly approaching, it’s time to take a look at some young guys who could make a big impact.
Guys like Desmond Jennings, Mike Trout and Brett Lawrie don’t have a Major League at-bat yet, but should get called up in August, if not sooner.
Meanwhile, Dustin Ackley and Jemile Weeks are already in the big leagues and should continue to improve, making them guys you want on your fantasy baseball rosters.
- Desmond Jennings, OF, Tampa Bay Rays (10% owned) – Maybe the reason the Rays didn’t try too hard to resign Carl Crawford was that they have a player in their minor league system that has been called a “Crawford with better plate discipline.” Jennings could be a five-tool player in the majors, combining speed, power and average at the plate. He should be called up sooner rather than later and could make a big impact in the second half.
- Dustin Ackley, 2B/OF, Seattle Mariners (36%) – Ackley already has 50 Major League at-bats under his belt, and he’s made the most of them. He’s hitting .300 with three home runs, eight RBI and two stolen bases. The Mariners don’t hit the ball very well, so they should find it harder and harder to keep Ackley’s bat out of the lineup as the season progresses.
- Jemile Weeks, 2B, Oakland A’s (22%) – Weeks has 101 Major League at-bats to his name, and he’s done pretty well for himself too. He’s currently hitting .307 with seven RBI and six stolen bases. He’s certainly not a power hitter, but there’s no reason to think he can’t maintain a .300 average and steal 20 bases by the end of the season.
- Mike Trout, OF, Los Angeles Angels (2%) – Trout is tearing it up at AA and is probably just an injury in the Angels’ outfield away from receiving a call-up. Trout’s biggest asset is his speed, but he also hits for decent power and can drive in runs. Oh, and he’s currently hitting .330. He’ll be a star in the Majors for a long time.
- Brett Lawrie, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays (5%) – Lawrie is hitting over .350 at AAA this season, with 15 homers, 49 RBI and 11 stolen bases. With Aaron Hill struggling this year, you’d think Lawrie would get a chance to play in the big leagues during the second half of this season. He’s also been playing a lot of third base this season. If he can play third base for the Jays, he could solve their problem at that position.