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Monitoring players during spring training has become one of the most important aspects of fantasy baseball. It allows us to see which injured players are primed to bounce back, while also giving up a glimpse at which players are ready to break out. So to help you stay ahead of your competition, here are five players on the rise after the first week of spring training.
5. C Miguel Montero, Chicago Cubs
Getty ImagesMontero has struggled to stay healthy is recent seasons and has now played in fewer than 120 games in two of the last three years. Luckily, the catcher has had all offseason to recover and looks completely healthy heading into the 2016 season. The veteran proved this by impressively finishing 3-for-3 on Saturday with a double and a home run. Montero will be a steal towards the end of the draft this spring.
4. SP Kenta Maeda, Los Angeles Dodgers
Getty ImagesMaeda has looked electric this spring. He threw two shutout innings against the Phillies in his spring debut and looked extremely efficient. He may not be on the same level as Masahiro Tanaka or Yu Darvish, but the International sensation should have no problem putting up SP4 numbers in his rookie fantasy season.
3. C/1B Carlos Santana, Cleveland Indians
Getty ImagesSantana homered in his first game this spring, and even though he has only seen seven total at-bats, he currently has a robust .429 batting average. The veteran has shown that he has at least one more year of All-Star production left in his bat and has quietly made a case to be ranked within the top-10 first basemen.
2. 3B Maikel Franco, Philadelphia Phillies
Getty ImagesAfter racking up 14 HRs and 50 RBI in 80 games last season, Franco has picked up where he left off last this spring. He is hitting .345 through five spring games to go along with two home runs and six RBI. The young slugger seems to be primed to finish among the top-10 third basemen this season.
1. SP Masahiro Tanaka, New York Yankees
Getty ImagesAfter another offseason surgery, Tanaka’s fantasy value was in question for the beginning of the season. However, he threw two scoreless innings against the Phillies on Sunday and now appears to be on track to start on Opening Day. My money is on Tanaka reclaiming a spot among the top-20 arms this season.
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