LestersLegends.com

.
Torii Hunter is chewing up American League pitching this month to the tune of a .392 batting average, 16 runs, five home runs, and 15 RBI. He is a streaky player so the question is whether or not he can stay hot.
.
Hunter entered the month batting .232. His torrid pace has improved his average to .259, which isn’t exactly what fantasy owners are looking for, but certainly a vast improvement from his slow start.
.
After not hitting a home run in June, Hunter has five in each of the past two months (with six games to play in August). That gives him 18 on the year making him a virtual lock to reach 20 for the sixth straight year and tenth time in eleven years.
.
Hunter has 15 RBI for the month, giving him 66 on the year and double-digits in four of the five months. He has scored a season high 16 runs this month, which is the third time he reached double-figures. Neither his run (59) or his RBI (66) total are strong totals. With just three stolen bases on the year, he’s not thriving in that category either.
.
Basically he has become a one-trick pony of sorts, much like Alfonso Soriano. If you’re looking for power, Hunter can help. He is not a player to build your team around anymore, but he can be useful.
.
Hunter hit .242 after August last year and .254 in 2009. It’s very conceivable that he’ll fade down the stretch once again. Until then, keep riding the hot hand.
.
.

Also check out:

• Fantasy Baseball Free Agent Pool – 2011 Strikeout Kings Vol. 9
• Will the Move to Detroit Salvage Delmon Young’s Season?
• Fantasy Baseball Free Agent Pool – 2011 Run Scorers Vol. 9
• The Bruce Is Loose
• Fantasy Baseball Free Agent Pool – 2011 Speed Demons Vol. 9

.
By Jordan Hall
.
Friday marks to arrival to the Big Leagues of Mike Trout. He has long been considered the best prospect in all of the minor leagues. While this signifies that the future is now in Los Angeles, it more importantly gives you an opportunity to add an impact outfielder to your fantasy team. While there will undoubtedly be some ups and down with Trout, he is a guy that you can add now and expect some real production. There are five well owned outfielders that I would drop immediately to add Trout.
.
Alfonso Soriano, Chicago Cubs
Soriano is a lightning rod for fantasy controversy. He has power and tantalizing speed, yet he never actually puts it together. I think that Trout will give you steals and a good amount of power early. As the Cubs go downhill, they will be calling up Brett Jackson and giving him a lot more time in the outfield and Soriano will sit more.
.
Ryan Roberts, Arizona Diamondbacks
Roberts has primarily been playing third, but he qualifies as an outfielder. He started the year hot, but has struggled of late and has fallen into a platoon with Sean Burroughs. Trout will be playing every day and has far more natural talent that Roberts. I don’t think their second half production will be close.
.
Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels
For Trout to get playing time, somebody has to lose it in the Angels’ outfield. I think that all three incumbent outfielders will lose a little, but Hunter more than most. They are not calling Trout up for him to be the fourth outfielder; they’re calling him up to play. Hunter has been disappointing this season anyway, if given the chance, I would definitely drop him for Trout.
.
Alex Rios, Chicago White Sox
So much talent, so little production. So far, Rios has put up six bombs and six stolen bases, far fewer than what his owners expected when they drafted him. There is always potential for him to break out, but honestly, I think there is much more potential for Trout to break out this season. 15 and 15 over the course of the second half is not unreasonable.
.
Austin Jackson, Detroit Tigers
Austin is not your prototypical leadoff hitter. He doesn’t take walks, he never steals, and currently is hovering around .250. Jackson is an overrated fantasy hitter that is expendable. There are no guarantees that Trout becomes Mickey Mantle this season, but there is definitely no guarantees that Jackson will play himself into relevance. Trout will definitely out perform him during the second half.
.
.

Also check out:

• Fantasy Baseball Free Agent Pool – 2011 RBI Guys Vol. 6
• Fantasy Baseball Free Agent Pool – 2011 Strikeout Kings Vol. 6
• Fantasy Baseball Free Agent Pool – 2011 Run Scorers Vol. 6
• Has Ricky Nolasco Turned the Corner?
• Should You Trust Colby Lewis?

.
.
You can follow Jordan on Twitter @ twitter.com/#!/lefthandsmoke23

.
The news keeps getting worse dor Kendrys Morales. The slugger’s season is over before it started after it was revealed he will require additional surgery to remove scar tissue in his ankle. All of this on a freak accident while celebrating a walkoff home run. Mark Trumbo will continue to start at first base.
.
It’s hard to imagine Morales will ever be the same.

When will Kendrys Morales return?
.
.
Kendrys Morales’ return from his walkoff home run celebration that abruptly ended his 2010 season will be delayed into the 2011 season as Morales starts the season on the disabled list. Mark Trumbo, who is hitting .340 this spring with five home runs and 13 RBI this spring, will start the year as the Angels’ first basemen. Things will get complicated for the Angels when Morales returns as they will have Morales, Trumbo, Vernon Wells, Torii Hunter, Bobby Abreu, and Peter Bourjos to occupy first base, designated hitter, and the three outfield spots. Until then, Trumbo is a good cheap power option.
.
Last year Trumbo hit .301 with 36 HR and 122 RBI for Triple-A Salt Lake.

.
2009 was a disaster for the New York Mets. It seemed that if something could go wrong, it did. 2010 wasn’t much better for the Mets, but at least David Wright (.283-87-29-103-19) and Jose Reyes (.282-83-11-54-30) rebounded. Now the question is can Jason Bay and Carlos Beltran do the same?
.
Jason Bay was a disappointment coming over from Boston and posting a forgettable .259-48-6-47-10 line. He was limited to 95 games due to a concussion, similar to Justin Morneau, who also coincidentally hails from Canada.  When he did play, he was mediocre at best, the only saving grace was the double-digit stolen bases.
.
That doesn’t mean he’s a lost cause. David Wright struggled with the long ball in his first season in CitiPark, but rebounded nicely last year. Perhaps he just has to attack the park differently.  Prior to last year Bay averaged 100.6 runs, 31 HRs, 102.8 RBI, and 11.8 SBs in the five previous seasons so I’m hopeful for a rebound. His ADP, according to Mock Draft Central, is 142 overall and 37th outfielder. He’s a pretty solid option in the 12th round of fantasy drafts.
.

.
Beltran is less of a risk based on his ADP of 223 (51st outfielder), but his knees have cost him the better part of two seasons. He hasn’t had fantasy relevance since 2008. Last year Beltran posted a .255-21-7-27-3 line in 64 games. He did end the year on a high note going 25 for 78 (.321) with 12 runs, five HRs, 13 RBI, and two SBs in 78 September at bats. His OPS of .968 was particularly encouraging.
.
If he can stay healthy, the power and the average could return. I’m not confident that a player with bad knees that’s turning 34 in April will terrorize the basepaths again, but if he can manage 8-10, that would be a nice contribution. His ADP puts him in the 19th round. I say why the heck not take a shot on him there.
.
I wouldn’t bet the farm that one or both of these former five-tool outfielders returns to form, but I would definitely say they are worth the risk. I realize that Bay could be out for a long time if he suffers another concussion and Beltran’s knees are a risk, but they are calculated risks and worth the gamble.
.
What are your thoughts on Bay and Beltran?
.
.

Also check out:

• 2011 Fantasy Baseball Profiles
• 2011 Fantasy First Basemen Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Second Basemen Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Third Basemen Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Shortstop Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Catcher Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Outfielder Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Starting Pitcher Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Closer Rankings

.
Vernon Wells was finally healthy last year and smacked 30+ home runs for the first time since 2006. He finished with a solid .273-79-31-88-6 line. I certainly wouldn’t say at 32 that it would be hard to match those power numbers, but he does have some things working against him.
.
For starters, he went from a team that lived and died by the long ball. Jose Bautista hit .260 with 54 HRs. Aaron Hill hit .205 with 26 HRs. Adam Lind hit .237 with 23 HRs. Edwin Encarnacion hit .244 with 20 HRs. Lyle Overbay hit .243 with 20 HRs. The Angels don’t rely on the long ball like Toronto does so Wells won’t be swinging for the fences as often.
.
The Angels scored 74 fewer runs and smacked 102 fewer home runs. Part of it is simply the ball park factor. The Rogers Centre ranked fourth with a 1.358 HR ball park factor while Angel Stadium of Anaheim ranked 23rd with a .825 factor.
.
Does that mean Vernon Wells will see a dip in his home run total? My guess is yes, but not significantly, and while he declines in HRs, he’ll likely gain in stolen bases.
.
Wells had just six stolen bases in 2010, but had 17 in 2009 and has been in double-digits in three of the past five seasons. The Angels are much more inclined to turn their baserunners loose having stolen 46 more bases last year.
.
Wells started off the year on a tear hitting 19 home runs in the first three months. He cooled off in the summer, combining for four HRs in July and August. Concerns might have crept in, but he responded with eight in September.
.
The injuries are a concern but, aside from 2008, he’s been able to play through them for the most part. He’s not too big of a risk in fantasy drafts as he’s going as the 28th outfielder and 101st overall according to Mock Draft Central.
.
I do understand that given his injury history and the move to Anaheim are causes for concern for Vernon Wells, I think he’s a solid outfielder option that is capable of a .280-85-25-90-15 line.
.
.

Also check out:

• 2011 Fantasy Baseball Profiles
• 2011 Fantasy First Basemen Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Second Basemen Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Third Basemen Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Shortstop Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Catcher Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Outfielder Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Starting Pitcher Rankings
• 2011 Fantasy Closer Rankings

Image courtesy of Icon SMI

Howie Kendrick has been solid every year since breaking in with the Angels in 2006. He’s had plenty of hype, but has never quite met those expectations. Of course he set career highs with 105 games played and 374 ABs last year, which makes it hard to truly break out.

He got off to a slow start last year, but really turned it on in the second half.

First Half:  209 ABs, .239, 28 runs, 4 HRs, 25 RBIs, 7 SBs, .644 OPS
Second Half:  165 ABs, .358, 33 runs, 5 HRs, 36 RBIs, 4 SBs, .948 OPS

Clearly I don’t think he can maintain that second half production, but I do think he’s figured some things out. His splits were impressive.

Prediction:  .310, 70 runs, 12 HRs, 60 RBIs, 15 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
Florida Marlins: Cameron Maybin
Houston Astros: Lance Berkman
Kansas City Royals: Billy Butler