By Dan O’Shea
I’m in three fantasy baseball leagues, each with some differences between their scoring schemes, yet the same player currently is ranked No. 1 in all three leagues: Alexei Ramirez.
The Cuban Missile has rocketed up the fantasy charts on the strength of a .420 BA, three HRs, 12 RBI, three SBs, a 1.142 OPS and 11 runs scored for the team that shockingly leads all of MLB in runs scored through the first 2.5 weeks of the season.
Ah, right, it’s only mid-April. Ramirez has as much chance of winning the batting crown as the Sox have of winning the World Series crown this year, meaning, yes, there is a chance, a small chance (It snowed in April, so anything can happen, right?).
Honestly, if you have Ramirez on your fantasy squad, it would be a great time to trade him, as his value is at an all-time high. And yet, there are also plenty of arguments for holding on to him. As I’ve noted before, SS is a shallow position, and when you find value there, it might be worth holding onto for dear life.
Also worth noting: Ramirez is, by a very wide margin, having the best April of his career. Historically he is such a slow starter that the Sox have toyed with sending him down early in the season, and he usually either languishes on fantasy benches until late June or spends the first half of the season on the waiver wire. So maybe the early strong start suggests some of this performance can be trusted for the rest of the season.
As recently as two years ago, I lamented Ramirez’ plunging fantasy value, but as I noted in my Fantasy Fix preseason draft guide last month, he had some sneaky fantasy value last year, and seemed like he turned the corner to become a more consistent hitter.
If I had Alexei Ramirez on my fantasy team this season – and I wish I did have him on at least one of my teams – I’d resist the temptation to trade him now, and hold onto him for the long run.
Expert Wire
* Bleacher Report features Week 3 waiver wire pick-ups.
* Sports Grid says not to worry about those slow starters.
* Sports Illustrated analyzes some hot and cold starts among pitchers.
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Dan O’Shea is our man in fantasyland. He welcomes your comments.
Posted on April 16, 2014