2012 1B Sleepers

[kab21]

Anyone keeping an eye on James Loney? 2nd half numbers where nice. .320 Avg/ .534 Slg/ .914 OPS. HR's were still low, only 8 in the 2nd half . Someone to watch.

The previous 4 yrs of boring say otherwise. He's waiver wire fodder/injury replacement in standard leagues.

[SpecialFNK]

Adam LaRoche? I have no clue on the injury he is coming back from. if fully healthy, should he be able to get back to where he was before? depending on whether Washington does or does not get Prince Fielder, LaRoche is likely to be the starting 1B for the Nationals in 2012. seeing how many games he missed in 2011 along with coming back from an injury people could completely forget about him on draft day.

[converge241]

Adam LaRoche? I have no clue on the injury he is coming back from. if fully healthy, should he be able to get back to where he was before? depending on whether Washington does or does not get Prince Fielder, LaRoche is likely to be the starting 1B for the Nationals in 2012. seeing how many games he missed in 2011 along with coming back from an injury people could completely forget about him on draft day.

Laroche is a huge value right now, very unwanted in drafts, if fielder doesnt happen. Thats even with assuming he has his usual bad/slow 1st half.

If he gets relegated to PH obviously that kills him but he could be shopped elsehwere to be a 1b/dh for another team if fielder comes in.

Though Nats are obviously atop the list of teams in on fielder its not 100%

the nats, and his, situation should be sorted out closer to regular drafts but I can confirm im drafting now and folks do not want him

its a shoulder injury torn labrum btw but he was out for a while and reports are good

Smaller leagues he might still be a FA type but single leagues or deeper formats hes a good risk right now

[Broncmet724]

Angels just resigned Kendry Morales to a one year contract. Might be someone to take late in the draft. If the Angels can find ABs for everyone on the roster, well that's the question.

[Curtis Pride]

There will be (at least) 4 rookie/youngster 1b with Belt, Goldschmidt, Alonso, and Rizzo. Goldschmidt and Rizzo will likely go highest, but Belt is unquestionably the best hitter. I would absolutely grab Belt whenever possible.

LaRoche is a possibility, but I wouldn't be drafting him right now except in a very deep league in the last rounds. There are just too many scenarios where he doesn't start in Washington.

Duda is a solid pick.

[SpecialFNK]

what's the deal with Brandon Belt going into 2012? is he guaranteed to start somewhere?
unless he's traded, Aubrey Huff is going to start somewhere. either 1B or OF.
you have at least 2 OF positions covered by Angel Pagan and Melky Cabrera. who's in LF? what are the chances that Nate Schierholtz (.278/.326/.430/.756) starts over Belt (.225/.306/.412/.718) ?
Belt had some interesting splits. LH batter.
vs RH- 18G/141AB - .184/.272/.376/.648/ 7 HR
vs LH- 9 G/46AB - .348/.412/.522/.934/ 2 HR

[bayside]

even though Shierholtz should get 500+ABs in RF, and Belt should be the everyday 1B, it wont happen.
Bochy has proven that he doesnt see Nate as anything more than a defensive replacement and a fill in for when regulars get hurt or need a day off. Which is unfortunate because hes one of the best RF to ever play or the Giants at ATT and could easily hit .280 with 20 HRs over a full season.

I think Belt will get more playing time, but unless Boch comes out in ST and says Belt is the starter at X position, then im avoiding him on draft day. Last years disastrous back and forth between AAA/bigs was so ridiculous that i dont trust any of the Giants management to make it a priority to give Belt full time ABs in 2012. Eventually he will be a good hitter with above average on base skills and 25-30 HR power, but you have to remember that hes been in pro ball for less than 2 years. Still a lot that can go wrong.

[AussieDodger]

Mat Gamel.

He keeps hitting and hitting in the minors, and so far the Brewers have let him have a whopping 171 at-bats.

[Skin Blues]

He's 26 years old. He's been in the PCL for 4 years and has an 886 OPS there. Isn't that near the league average, especially for a player that can't really field a position?

[MasterX1918]

If the jobs his then he's definitely worth monitoring, of course worst case scenario he's a AAAA player like Wood or McPherson but you never know.