Sleeper of the Week

By Arlo Vander, Fantasy Baseball Cafe

Who led the AL in home runs last year? Easy: Alex Rodriguez. How about RBI? No problem: Carlos Delgado. Wins? Roy Halladay. Holds? Umm…

The answer to that last question is Brendan Donnelly (congratulations if you knew that one). While he may not be a household name like Rodriguez, Delgado, or Halladay, he shouldn’t be overlooked by fantasy owners this season.

Clearly, if your league counts holds, Donnelly can be a very valuable asset. In 2003, Anaheim’s control artist posted 29, second only to Houston’s Octavio Dotel, and there’s no reason to believe he can’t repeat that success this time around.

Yet even if holds aren’t a category in your scoring system, his value shouldn’t be ignored. With a K/9 rate of 9.6 and a 3.2 K/BB ratio, Donnelly put up numbers strikingly similar to Johan Santana and Josh Beckett last season. Thanks to a 1.07 WHIP and a superb ERA of 1.58, Donnelly earned $11 in a standard AL-only league, considerably more than what his owners paid at auction.

Additionally, Donnelly is presumably next in line for the closer’s job should Troy Percival falter or be unavailable. Holds, solid numbers across the board, and the potential to step in as a closer … not a bad package for a player who’ll be available very late even in deep leagues.