Fantasy FAAB Five: Deep Dynasty League Targets For Sept. 6

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Anderson Tejeda, SS/2B, Rangers
Priority: High

Tejeda is back with the big club as the Rangers look ahead to what they hope are brighter days down the line. He has chipped in a home run and a stolen base in two of his four starts this season, and he has the type of tools to make scouts drool. Tejeda hits for power, he runs, he fields and he throws—as in he has a 70 arm. A natural lefthanded hitter, Tejeda struggled so badly against same-side pitchers that he taught himself to bat righthanded. As a testament to his athleticism, he hit a no-doubt home run while batting righthanded against the Mariners’ Justus Sheffield on Saturday. What I’m saying is: This guy is an athlete.

Tejeda’s hitting approach is untamed, so he might have less value in OBP leagues, but it’s not often you will find this type of tooled-up athlete on the wire. It’s entirely possible that Tejeda, the 22-year-old rookie, will begin to siphon playing time from Elvis Andrus and Rogned Odor. 

Randy Arozarena, OF, Rays
Priority: Medium

The Rays surrendered 2018 first-rounder Matthew Liberatore to the Cardinals in the trade to acquire Arozarena last offseason. Arozarena was coming off a big year at Triple-A Memphis in which he hit .358 with 12 homers and nine steals. His 151 wRC+ ranked seventh in the Pacific Coast League (min. 250 PA). Fast forward to the trade deadline this year, when the Rays traded DH Jose Martinez, who was part of the same trade as Arozarena, to the Cubs. That move created more playing time opportunity for Arozarena at DH and in the outfield. His sprint speed ranks in the 96th percentile this season, and he has showcased his explosiveness at the plate with one home run in his first four games. 

JT Brubaker, RHP, Pirates
Priority: Medium

The 26-year-old rookie has seized on a rotation spot in Pittsburgh as the club hits reset and currently has the worst record in baseball. Like many Pirates pitchers drafted in the 2010s, Brubaker specializes in sinkers and sliders—but he began leaning on a four-seamer up in the zone more often last season. Brubaker still frequently uses his sinker to his arm side, making him tough on righthanded hitters, and spins a good breaking ball.

Bobby Dalbec, 3B/1B, Red Sox
Priority: Medium

Dalbec has huge power worth speculating on in deep leagues where he’s available, especially now that first base is open after the deadline trade of Mitch Moreland. Strikeouts and low batting averages are going to be part of the deal, but he has a carrying tool.

Kevin Smith, LHP, Orioles
Priority: Low

Baltimore picked up Smith when it traded reliever Miguel Castro to the Mets at the deadline. Smith rocketed from the seventh round of the 2018 draft to Double-A in 2019. His 2.79 FIP ranked 20th in the minors (min. 100 innings) thanks to his shiny strikeout, walk and home run rates. Smith has a good fastball/slider combo that plays up because of his deceptiveness and extension. The most encouraging part of this pickup for the Orioles is the organization’s emphasis on changeup development, under director of pitching Chris Holt, whom John Means has referred to as a “changeup guru.” The Orioles have thrown the most changeups in baseball in 2019 and 2020, and the changeup is the pitch Smith needs to refine to round out his repertoire. This could be a good match between player and organization.

Tommy Henry, LHP, D-backs
Priority: Low

A second-round pick out of Michigan in 2019, Henry might have passed through your league’s entry draft because he pitched just three innings after signing. He wasn’t injured. He had just concluded a long junior season for the College World Series-finalist Wolverines. But D-backs correspondent Nick Piecoro reports good news out of Arizona’s alternate training site: Henry’s average velocity is up several ticks to about 93 mph. He was also working to improve his changeup.

 

Short Hops

— With Jarrod Dyson traded to the White Sox, the Pirates have more center field at-bats to distribute among Cole Tucker and waiver pickup Anthony Alford, who struck two extra-base hits in his first four games in Pittsburgh. UPDATE: Alford fractured his elbow on Sept. 5 and is probably out for the season.

— The Blue Jays’ bullpen has the fourth best ERA in baseball (and the third best FIP) and is a big reason for the club’s ascension in 2020. Jordan Romano, Thomas Hatch and Ryan Borucki are Toronto’s breakout bullpen arms. Now another name has entered the mix: 28-year-old Julian Merryweather, who fires mid-90s heat and generates plus vertical movement on both his four-seamer and curveball. He has struck out 13 through his first eight innings.

— The D-backs’ trade of Starling Marte could create a situation where Ketel Marte sees more time in the outfield, thus opening playing time on the infield for rookies Josh Rojas and Andy Young.