Fantasy Baseball Offseason Guide

Fantasy Baseball Hot Stove: Adam Wainwright, Bryce Harper, Mets hitters

November 2, 2011 @ 13:26:30

By Nicholas Minnix
Edited by Tim Heaney

Your fantasy baseball draft isn't far off. KFFL.com's Fantasy Baseball Hot Stove surveys free agency, trades, salary arbitration and injuries that will affect your rotisserie or head-to-head baseball league. You're cleared for your MLB offseason program: The Arizona Fall League, Baseball Winter Meetings, Rule 5 draft and more will shape your fantasy baseball rankings.

St. Louis Cardinals pick up 2012, 2013 options on SP Adam Wainwright

Bueno for Waino

Last week, the Cards made formal a move that John Mozeliak had essentially promised a couple of months prior. Waino's recovery from late-February Tommy John surgery has reportedly gone fairly smoothly.

A few weeks ago, St. Louis shut him down for a week because, when he attempted to throw his first max-effort bullpen session, the motion disrupted scar tissue in his surgically repaired elbow. Last Thursday, the right-hander went ahead with his first full-length, all-out 'pen work without a reported hitch. From here on out, he'll go through a normal offseason routine; he's taking the final two months of 2011 off.

Rotisserie managers should remember that he won't immediately be the ace they remember. There should be more optimism about Wainwright, 30, than there was in the case of Joe Nathan, who was about six years older and had surgery about one month later in 2010 than the Cards' hurler did this year. However, Wainwright could easily have trouble rediscovering the feel for all his pitches as well as regaining his command and location. He's not immune to a more pronounced setback, like Nathan experienced earlier this season, either.

Still, Waino should be a valuable pitcher in 2012. How optimistic the field is will help to determine the price point and, thus, the possibility of a return.

Washington Nationals prospect Bryce Harper has 11-game AFL hitting streak

On Tuesday night, in the Arizona Fall League, baseball's top - arguably - position prospect singled and later homered to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. Harper had begun his fall ball stint by going 1-for-19, but this hot stretch has raised his average to .290. He's also collected five ding dongs, 20 RBIs and three stolen bases with his 62 at-bats (16 games). The switch-hitter has walked seven times and has struck out 12.

Harper, 19, arrived in the Phoenix area a bit cold. He was inactive for six weeks because of a strained right hamstring he suffered in mid-August while with Double-A Harrisburg. The Nats haven't dismissed the possibility that the 2011 No. 1 overall pick will compete for an opening day roster spot in spring training, according to The Washington Post's Adam Kilgore. If Harper mashes throughout his AFL stint, he could make D.C.'s decision tougher.

It's likely that he'll play at Triple-A Syracuse for at least a couple of months. But how likely? The 6-foot-3, 205-pound man-child has displayed evidence that he adapts to new levels with some degree of ease, at least compared to his brethren. No jump is bigger than the one to the majors, however. There stands to be moderate upside with Harper in 2012, but it's reasonable to expect his hype to outpace his production, if he plays.

New York Mets officially announce modifications to Citi Field dimensions

David Wright and Jason Bay have to be pleased with the Mets' renovation project. As The New York Times' Andrew Keh (and a handy graphic) note, changes include the construction of an 8-foot fence in front of the 16-foot wall in left field and the considerable shortening of the distance to the fence from right field to right-center.

Sandy Alderson pointed to data his club collected which demonstrated that New York would've clubbed 81 more round-trippers - and opponents, 70 more - in the past three years, reports Keh. Although the exact effects would be virtually impossible to project, obviously, fantasy baseball players can conclude that the Mets' position players will be a little more attractive in 2012.

The changes' expected effect on offense usually accompanies the Mets' notice of these renovations. Bay expressed optimism that the reduction of outfield territory will improve the club's defense. It may, but how will the increased probability and prospects of a long ball affect the team's hurlers? Keh delivers more details about the franchise's original plans, including a vision that would seemingly have involved "assembling a roster that emphasized pitching, speed and defense." After you examine the Mets' roster, do you think that's true? Fly-ball arms, beware, just a little.