Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The Boston Red Sox have been a very streaky team this season. After losing 10 games in a row from May 15 to 25, the team won their next seven games. Most of the hitters have been in a power outage for most of the season, with the exception of a few. However, there has been one player who continues to get on base and light up the stat sheets. His name is Xander Bogaerts.
Bogaerts made his debut last August and finished with a .250 batting average. He was kept in the majors and was the starting shortstop. The team then signed Stephen Drew, forcing Bogaerts to move to third base. Many thought the shift from shortstop to third would affect his hitting. Surprisingly, it’s done the complete opposite.
In 53 games started, Bogaerts hit three home runs and 13 RBI with a .296/.389/.427 slash line. While those aren’t bad numbers, he wasn’t being ranked among the top shortstops. Bogaerts made the shift on June 2 and hit a home run in his first two games at his new position.
In three games at third base, Bogaerts is hitting .308/.400/.846. He hit two home runs and three RBI. Slowly but surely, Bogaerts will make the climb from a middle-of-the-road hitter to a top-10 third baseman.
Currently, Bogaerts is owned in 100 percent of ESPN.com leagues. There has been an increase of 7.1 percent over the last couple of weeks. Luckily, Bogaerts will still retain shortstop eligibility, which will help his fantasy value. He can replace struggling shortstops like Andrelton Simmons or Jimmy Rollins or take over at third base if you need him to.
Bill Pivetz is a fantasy sports writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @BPiv_Sports.
