Hack's List of Buy & Sell Players

Buy & Sell

by Matt "Hack" Hackenmiller

Note: Ownership is based in Yahoo! Leagues.

Lyle Overbay (.286/.388/.539, 11% Ownership)

Often overlooked because he doesn't produce the typical power numbers that are usually associated with other first basemen, Overbay is putting up solid numbers once again. He provides reliable statistics in runs, RBI, and batting average. For those that play in daily leagues, Overbay is subject to a platoon against left-handers. But that isn't necessarily a bad thing as he has a OPS over 1.000 versus right handers this year. Overbay wont single handily win your league for you, but he will provide solid production for your roster throughout the year.

Rick Ankiel (.261/.329/.483, 31% Ownership)

A nasty crash into an outfield wall pretty much derailed the first two months of the season for Ankiel. Now healthy, he is starting to get his timing back. Ankiel has put together a five game hitting streak, with four extra base hits during that span. It may take some time for the batting average to come around, but Ankiel is a good source of power going forward.

Jordan Zimmerman (2-3, 5.71 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 52 IP, 54 K, 12% Ownership)

The hyped preseason rookie has had some struggles so far this year for the Nationals. But, then again, what National pitcher hasn't struggled this season? Despite the potholes there are actually some positives for Zimmerman. He has a healthy K/9 rate of 9.35 and a solid G/F rate of .85. What is really telling is his .329 BABIP, which shows that he has been pitching in a bit a bad luck so far. This isn't that surprising as the National outfield defense is one of the worst in baseball, meaning there are a lot of fly balls dropping in for hits when the likes of Josh Willingham and Adam Dunn can't get to them. Look for Zimmerman to post substantial numbers throughout the season.

Chris Davis (.207/.266/.434, 75% Ownership)

The preseason hot pick for the hot corner, Davis has struggled mightily to find any consistency this season. Granted, the power has been there, but at what cost as he is on pace to shatter the single season strike out record. But the difference between Davis, and say Jack Cust, is that Cust draws his share of walks to go along with his strikeouts. This leads to Cust helping out in other categories. Davis has walked a ******** twelve times to go along with his 88 strikeouts. Throw in the fact that the Rangers have openly discussed sending Davis back to the minor leagues, its time to sell on Davis before his value is nonexistent.

Trevor Hoffman (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.47 WHIP, 17.0 IP, 15 K, 90% Ownership)

The all time saves leader is having a resurgence in Milwaukee. This is very surprising because most pitchers don't go from struggling at spacious PETCO Park to dominating at a very hitter friendly Miller Park. But certainly, Hoffman has found the fountain of youth so far. The question is, will he continue at this pace? I tend to think that he can't. His BABIP is extremely low at this point and I doubt that he will end the season with an ERA of 0.00. Hoffman may still rack up some saves due to the Brewers not having any other relief pitchers that can do the job. But those saves may come at a cost to your ERA and WHIP.

Russell Branyan (.319/.419/.628, 72% Ownership)

So far this season, Branyan has hit more like Lou Gehrig than the fringe major leaguer that Branyan has been for most of his career. What looks most suspect is that he is hitting over .300 against left handers this season after accumulating a .219/.303/.462 line for his career. This tells me that there is a steep drop off coming. Branyan will still get at bats because the Mariners don't have anyone else to play first base and he might still pop a few home runs, but look for the batting average to fall significantly.

Name to remember...Scott Podsednik, CHIW.-OF. Scotty Pods has returned to the South Side and has began to contribute like it was 2005 again. He may not steal fifty bases like in the past, but he could still produce 20-25 stolen bases, which is very helpful to a fantasy roster. Look for White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen to continue to give Podsednik the green light on the base paths as the summer rolls on.