Winslow Townson – USA Today Sports
In sports, there are always guys who get a ton of credit, and then there are the players who consistently perform but never get the recognition.
This also applies to fantasy baseball, as many quality contributors often fly under the radar, only to play well year after year. Finding these solid veterans for cheap can be invaluable for your fantasy team, so we are going to create a full squad of underrated performers that are helping your 2013 squad and have been doing it for years.
To continue the series, we look at Boston Red Sox DH David Ortiz.
Despite missing Most of April, the 37-year-old slugger is near the top of the American League ranks in home runs (14) and RBI (49) while hitting right around .300 with an OPS around 1.000 as of this writing. His eligibility is always a downer, but other than only being able to slot him in your utility spot, Ortiz has been a fantastic value for fantasy owners this season. Taken somewhere near round 15 in most 12-team formats, the demise of Ortiz has been predicted (incorrectly) for about five or six straight seasons now.
In his prime in Boston he was obviously appreciated as a top-round pick who was a lock for 40-50 home runs and well over 100 RBI every season. In 2006 he hit “just” 23 home runs with a .264 average, in 2009 he hit .238 (but had 28 home runs and 99 RBI), and since then he has been severely undervalued. Sure, the injury was a concern this year and a reason he was drafted later than he should’ve been after hitting .318 with great power numbers again in 90 games last season. He is well on his way to a 12th straight season with at least 20 home runs, and he has done so all while compiling a career average of .285 and OPS of .929.
He may not play in the field, but defense doesn’t count in fantasy baseball (well, most leagues at least), and he has been one of the most consistent fantasy baseball players of the last decade.
2013 Fantasy Baseball All-Underrated Team
SP: Bronson Arroyo, Cincinnati Reds
RP: Rafael Betancourt, Colorado Rockies
OF: Nick Swisher, Cleveland Indians
1B: Adam Laroche, Washington Nationals
DH: David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox
Stay tuned for the next edition of the 2013 Fantasy Baseball All-Underrated Team on www.Rantsports.com/fantasy
Rich Arleo is a fantasy sports expert with Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @Rarleo, ‘Like’ him on Facebook and add him to your networks on Google.
