Fantasy Baseball Spring Training News and Notes for 3/12/16

Tanaka, Stroman Look Healthy After 2015 Injuries

Initial questions regarding the health of starting pitchers Masahiro Tanaka and Marcus Stroman, two AL East pitchers who had their 2015 shortened by injury, have been answered with smiles after recent Spring Training outings.

The Yankees' Tanaka, ranked 29th by our experts among starting pitchers, pitched three scoreless innings Friday, picking up the win in a 7-1 victory against the Orioles. Tanaka was lights out, striking out three, walking none and giving up a single hit. His spring innings have been watched closely as he is one of only a few pitchers to tear a ulnar collateral ligament and come back without Tommy John surgery. As long as Tanaka's arm holds up all season, he will provide above average production in all pitcher categories. With lingering injury concerns likely to spook more than a few drafters, Tanaka could provide a spectacular bargain on draft day.

The Blue Jays' Stroman was even more spectacular in his start Friday, throwing 4 2/3 scoreless innings Friday against the Red Sox in his third start of the spring. After giving up three hits, zero walks and striking out four, Stroman's spring totals are an impressive 1-0 record, with a 2.79 ERA and nine strikeouts across three starts. Fantasy expectations are running high for Stroman, and our experts fully agree, ranking him as our 27th starting pitcher. He came back strong from ACL surgery at the end of 2015, enticing fantasy owners with a 4-0 record, 1.67 ERA and 18 strikeouts in four starts. Stroman won't be that lights out in 2016, but he will fantastic as he has his best season yet in 2016.

Pirates Sign David Freese to Help at First and Third

David Freese, ranked 36th among third basemen by our experts, might not be the most exciting third baseman, but he produced just enough for the Angels in 2015 to garner another MLB job. That is exactly what happened on Friday as Pirates announced they have signed Freese to a one-year, $3 million contract to help fill in while Jung Ho Kang continues his recovery from last season's nasty leg injury. When Kang returns, Freese is expected to become the right-handed side of a first base platoon with John Jaso. While his overall numbers last year had deep league value, Freese was significantly better in the second half, a career trend of his. Freese is likely to receive a fair share of at-bats when the season opens, but with a career April batting average of .233, chances are high he won't be worth even a deep flier to start the season.

Injury Bug Strikes With a Vengeance, Bites Freeman and Cabrera

First baseman Freddie Freeman, ranked 8th among first basemen by our experts, was still working his way back from a 2015 right wrist injury when he came to Spring Training. Freeman was looking good early on, but he left Friday's game with discomfort in and around his right wrist and hand. Hopefully this is some sort of normal soreness, but if an off-season of rest wasn't enough to help it, Freeman could be looking at missing multiple months. If Freeman were to miss time, Kelly Johnson would be the main benefactor. With Johnson coming off a season where he hit .265 and 14 home runs in 310 at-bats for the Braves, he would be more than worthy of a flier.

The Mets' announced Friday morning that Asdrubal Cabrera, ranked 28th among shortstops by our experts, will be shut down for at least two weeks following a left knee strain. Cabrera is headed to back to New York City to receive a plasma injection in the knee in hopes of avoiding surgery or missing significant time. Ruben Tejada, unranked, and Wilmer Flores, ranked 29th, will be first in line to pick up his at-bats. Flores is the one with the most fantasy appeal, as last year's .263 batting average, 16 home runs and 59 RBI were really close to Cabrera's production. The deeper the league, the more useful Flores could be.

Joc Pederson Named Dodgers' Starting Center Fielder for 2016

After setting the fantasy world on fire during the first half of 2015 when he clubbed 20 home runs, Joc Pederson slumped so badly the rest of the year that he lost his starting job and began to hear chatter that he wasn't ready for the Majors. Dodgers' manager Dave Roberts isn't one of those people as he announced on Friday that there would be no competition for the team's center field spot, it is Pederson's (for now, at least). Our experts have pegged Pederson as the 32nd outfielder, a position his power will help push him towards, but only with an increase in contact will get him there. After working all off-season to learn from and avoid a repeat of his second half swoon, Pederson showed up to Spring Training ready to prove his naysayers wrong. He was hit .273 with a home run in his first 11 at-bats, leaving the jury still out to deliberate on this one.

MLB & Fantasy Baseball Chat Room

[iflychat_embed id="c-12" hide_user_list="yes" hide_popup_chat="no" height="400px"]