LestersLegends.com

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Cameron Maybin is in the midst of a nine-game hitting streak that has allowed his average to climb twenty points from .259 to .279. His boost in average has been aided by his five multi-hit games during the stretch. Maybin has scored in all but one game (ten runs over all) during the stretch, which accounts for over 20 percent of his runs scored on the season.
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Maybin hasn’t been contributing in the power department as he only has one home run and six RBI over the hot streak, but his owners have been more interested in his .405 average and his nine stolen bases. He has swiped a bag in all but two games during the streak, and those nine account for over 40 percent of his season total.
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He obviously can’t keep this type of tear up, but can he continue to provide for fantasy owners?
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Maybin’s success hasn’t been limited to those nine games. He had mixed results in April hitting .239, but picking up six stolen bases. From there his average grew to .263 for May. He only stole one base though. In June he really started to put it together batting .288 for the month with four stolen bases. It was his third straight month with double-digits runs scored, but he was far from a must-start for fantasy baseball owners.
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Then came July.
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Maybin is hitting .324 for the month with 13 runs, six RBI, and nine stolen bases. Now that he’s contributing in three categories, especially a vital category like stolen bases, it’s hard not to have him in your fantasy lineup.
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His hot streak won’t last forever, but you owe it to yourself to keep using him while he’s red hot.
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Image courtesy of Icon SMI

Cameron Maybin was on the short list of potential 2009 NL Rookies of the Year. In retrospect, that was a pretty silly prediction given his track record. He hadn’t played Triple-A ball prior to last year, and he had mixed results in for Double-A Carolina in 2008.

He had impressive numbers like 73 runs, 8 triples, 13 HRs, and 21 SBs in 390 ABs. He did, however, hit just .277, which is fine by big league standards, but far from elite in Double-A ball. Even worse were the 124 strikeouts. He struck out once every 3.1 at bats. For a player with his gift of speed, not putting the ball in play is a crime.

He was sent down to Triple-A New Orleans where he hit .319, but wasn’t the force he was in Double-A with just 44 runs, 3 HRs, and 8 SBs in 298 ABs. He did, however, manage to cut his strikeout total down to 58, or once every 5.1 at bats.

He was able to translate those numbers to the majors when he received his September call-up from the Marlins. He hit .293 with 19 runs, 3 HRs, and 10 RBIs in 92 at bats. Even more importantly he struck out just 20 times, or once every 4.6 at bats.

Prediction:  .265, 70 runs, 10 HRs, 40 RBIs, 20 SBs

Past profiles:
Arizona Diamondbacks:  Brandon Webb
Atlanta Braves: Yunel Escobar
Baltimore Orioles:  Adam Jones
Boston Red Sox:  Clay Buchholz
Chicago Cubs:  Geovany Soto
Chicago White Sox:  Jake Peavy
Cincinnati Reds:  Joey Votto
Cleveland Indians:  Grady Sizemore
Colorado Rockies: Ubaldo Jimenez
Detroit Tigers: Miguel Cabrera