NFBC DC Strategies -- Corner Infielders in 2022

In this preseason series, I will be identifying and reviewing the top 450 picks (per ADP) for late-round values that I’ll be targeting in Draft Champions (DC) leagues on NFBC. In this series, I’ll be looking at the corner infielder position.

Further breaking down the top-10 finishers from the 2021 DC overall shows six of the 10 having either three or four multi-position eligible (MPE) players; one roster had seven and two had five. Having a few guys who will get at-bats and can fill in multiple spots on your roster is huge. The most common player from 1B/3B/CI was Paul Goldschmidt (on four of 10, he was the most prominently listed hitter in the top 10). But after that, it was Rafael Devers and Joey Votto (335) showing up three times. For other early-round picks, a couple top 3B guys showed up twice: Manny Machado and José Ramírez . But for later picks that seemed to have paid off well, we have three of Miguel Sanó (196) and Ji-Man Choi (514), and two each of: Jake Cronenworth (207), Ty France (285), Jonathan Schoop (337) and David Bote (472).

The 2021 versions of Choi and Bote fall in the range of 2022 targets we’re looking at for this piece. There are some pretty obvious traits about late-round targets: If you draft a little heavy on stolen bases, then looking for guys who might get a call-up and produce a few extra few homers in a short burst would make for a nice target. Choi is a platoon player on a talented offense who produces when healthy, and Bote ran into playing time when his team decided to sell off veteran pieces. Those are the types we’re looking for.

With our catcher targets, we were interested in two late options for our C3/C4 spots. With those types of hitters, pure volume was the name of the game. With corner infielders, I think we can categorize our targets in two groups: The first is upside plays (think Choi) and the second is late-round volume (think Bote). Upside plays will be guys you can take a shot on in hopes of a big month or two, and volume plays are going to be the best of the late-round picks who should be solid injury fill-ins for most of the season.

All ADPs listed for Draft Champions leagues from December 1 through today

Upside Plays Triston Casas, Boston Red Sox (483 ADP) A lot of buzz has surrounded Bobby Dalbec in Boston, but if his strikeout rate looks more like the first-half version and not the second half, it could become Triston Casas ’ time to shine. Casas has that same power upside as Dalbec, but it’ll come with a much lower strikeout rate. Steamer is projecting him as 10% above average in 2022 should he reach the Bigs; and remember, projection systems are conservative. A big April from him and he could be ready. The Sox were aggressive with Jarren Duran last summer, maybe the same is in the cards for Casas.

Nick Pratto, Kansas City Royals (553 ADP) Not nearly as heralded as Casas, this Kansas City prospect could be ready just as soon. He won’t be as complete a hitter but has prodigious power. He hit 21 homers in less than half a season in Triple-A in 2021 with a .375 ISO (!). If his approach improves a bit and he can keep the K rate under 30% at the major league level, the power will play. The biggest question with these prospects is the path to the playing time, and while Casas is behind Dalbec, the Royals can move around incumbent Hunter Dozier (he’s on a long-term extension) but Nick Pratto will still have to play his way past Kyle Isbel and Edward Olivares . Olivares is intriguing, but I wouldn’t worry about Isbel much.

Darin Ruf, San Francisco Giants (447 ADP) Now you’re talking, boring old guys! Seriously, though, these are the types of plays that can really come up clutch in a DC. Choi was 29 and was a talented platoon player who hit near the top of the order when he was in there. At age 35, Darin Ruf is still somehow the Exit Velocity poster boy. Unfortunately, he gets the short side of the platoon and will also be there to be activated for the Coors Field series.

Volume Plays Carter Kieboom, Washington Nationals (465 ADP) Carter Kieboom has been beyond disappointing as a big leaguer coming from the minors as a top prospect. There aren’t sane arguments against that. That said, he has a full-time job and is being drafted among backup outfielders and 8th inning guys. Having one more guy on your bench who can fill in and actually accrue stats six days a week is well worth a 31st round pick. He is only 24 still, after all, and projected for similar value as guys going in the mid-300s.

Rougned Odor, Baltimore Orioles (485 ADP), MPE 3B/2B No really, hear me out. He’s somehow still only going to be 28, and while we’ve seen enough of the strikeout and walk rates to know he’ll never be much, we KNOW he’s going to hit the ball over the fence. OK, wait, first… his walk rate has been in that 8% range in the last three full seasons with accompanying .200+ ISO numbers. He goes to one of the few stadiums that doesn’t represent a huge hit after playing in Yankee Stadium. Going to a team with worse depth than the Yankees probably has a bigger impact on his value. They gave Maikel Franco four months, and it isn’t like there are prospects knocking down the door. In drafts where I end up with more speed at the top than usual, Rougned Odor being eligible for 2B/3B/CI/MI is a decent way to add some cheap power. Certainly not a breakout coming, but a useful tool down the stretch is well within reason.

Vlad’s Adds (Vlad Sedler’s recommendations) Carlos Santana, Kansas City Royals (452 ADP) The 35-year-old had his worst season at the plate in over six years, hitting a mere .214. Coupled with his .199 average in the shortened 2020 season, it’s no surprise to see him drop nearly 200 ADP spots from the previous draft season. It was also notable that with those 19 homers last season, it was just the second time in the last 10 seasons that he didn’t reach the 20-HR mark. Carlos Santana ’s best days are clearly behind him, but it’s important to know that he struggled in the second half of 2021 because he was playing hurt. He was dealing with quad and hip injuries throughout those final few months. He played through the pain, then had PRP injections not long after the season ended and was feeling great again. Keep in mind Santana is still an on-base machine. Prior to this season, he was one of only four hitters with a 15% walk rate (at least 3,000 PA) between 2015 to 2020. In good company there with Joey Votto , Mike Trout and Bryce Harper . Though he appears to be a bench player when looking at depth charts, we can certainly assume that if he’s healthy and hitting, Santana will find his way into the Royals lineup just about every day. Not a bad snag for a guy going in the 30th round these days.

Jace Peterson, Milwaukee Brewers (544 ADP), MPE 1B/2B/OF The hope is that your main guys stay healthy and you won’t actually have to rely on Jace Peterson for long stretches. He’s a bench guy but a rather flexible one, especially with his cross-position eligibility where he can cover you in the OF, 1B, 2B, CI, MI. Peterson can prove useful if called upon for more consistent playing time if injuries strike, as they tend to do with every team every single year. He stepped up admirably in this way last season, hitting six homers and swiping 10 bags over 302 plate appearances (92 games). He was patient at the plate and drew walks quite frequently (above average 12.6 rate) and had a nice little hot stretch in August where he slashed .353/.476/.966 (OPS, not SLG). Not a pick we should be excited to click on, but one who could provide relief to our lineups when the dreaded injury bug makes its way around the league.

NFBC DC Strategies -- Corner Infielders in 2022

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