Fantasy Baseball Hot Stove: John Mayberry Jr., Rays shortstop battle, Barry Zito

November 8, 2011 @ 12:48:07

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.

Reid Brignac to battle Sean Rodriguez for Tampa Bay Rays' starting SS job

The Rays handed the starting 6 to Brignac at the beginning of the 2011 season. Shortly after the All-Star break, they sent him to Triple-A Durham because, through 200 plate appearances, he'd hit .193/.234/.219. It was more of the same when the Rays recalled him, a few weeks later.

Don't count out Brignac

Brignac, 26 in 2012, has displayed 20-homer power on the farm, but he's a lifetime .231 hitter in 650 at-bats. He hits the ball hard, however, and there's plenty of room for improvement in his 2011 average on balls in play. His sub-par contact rate is his biggest obstacle to a consistent, acceptable BA. But there's no reason to think that, considering possible variance, he won't bounce back.

S-Rod, 27 next year, is a more accomplished hitter than Brignac, but in his two seasons with Tampa Bay, his .236/.316/.376 slash line in 814 plate appearances hasn't distanced him from Brignac. He runs a bit (24 thefts in 34 attempts) and has thus far gained a bit more trust from Maddon.

Rodriguez's defense is mediocre, however. According to the St. Petersburg Times, Tampa Bay's skipper has stated that Brignac's glove is good enough to be part of a World Series winner.

Maddon believed that Brignac made some good adjustments after his recall but also noted that he must become a more complete player on offense. If the left-handed hitter gets the benefit of some correction and does the little things, he again is a deep fantasy baseball sleeper, even as part of a platoon.

Philadelphia Phillies will give OF John Mayberry Jr. shot to be regular

Manager Charlie Manuel has been a proponent of Mayberry and voiced his belief in the potential of the late-breakout candidate's upside this past spring. In October, he reiterated his support: "He will get every chance in the world to be a regular player."

Mayberry, 29 in December, batted .273 with 15 home runs, 49 RBIs and eight stolen bases in just 296 plate appearances in 2011. He displayed vastly improved control strike zone. He can play all three outfield positions acceptably, at least.

The question: Will he continue to get better (or at least retain the gains he made) versus right-handers? That's the roadblock to serious playing time and roto viability. Whom the Phillies add this offseason may affect Mayberry's outlook, and there isn't much of a track record here, but he has the upside to be a 25-15 player.

Barry Zito expected to be San Francisco Giants' No. 5 starter

The Jonathan Sanchez trade cleared a spot in the 2010 World Series champs' rotation. Eric Surkamp, among others, might've been considered a candidate to claim it, but Bruce Bochy put some speculation to rest by proclaiming that Zito would be his top five's fifth man.

Zito, who'll be 34 next May, made his first career trips to the disabled list this past season. Foot and ankle maladies certainly must've played a part in his registration of a 3-4 record, a 5.87 ERA, a 5.37 K/9 and a 4.02 BB/9.

No one will argue that San Fran overpaid for the southpaw five years ago, but his resume points to a likely bounce-back campaign in 2012. Expect something closer to the 3.91 ERA, 6.73 K/9 and 3.73 BB/9 that he's posted for his career. Naturally, he won't be a high-end target, but he can still be a decent NL-only commodity.

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Nicholas Minnix

KFFL's baseball editor plays in LABR and Tout Wars and won the FSWA Baseball Industry Insiders League in 2010.

The University of Delaware alum is a regular guest on Sirius/XM Fantasy Sports Radio and Baltimore's WNST AM 1570. Follow him on Twitter.

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