Denard Span About to Get His Due
Submitted by Imaginary Diamond Blog
Still trying to figure out just what the heck fantasy owners are seeing and not liking from Minnesota Twins outfielder Denard Span. He’s a little light on power and not a dominator on the basepaths, but he’s also extremely reliable and a solid contributor in all five standard rotisserie categories. He’s got the skill set to be a prototype No. 4 or No. 5 outfielder in deeper leagues.
Span is a sure thing for 100 runs and a strong candidate for 15 home runs and 25 stolen bases. A package like that should be owned in far more than 8 percent of ESPN.com leagues. Maybe the trouble has been ESPN’s masterful projection, which had Span finishing the year with a .257 batting average.
Span has been undrafted and unowned while teammate Carlos Gomez — the same Carlos Gomez he unseated as the Twins leadoff hitter last season — is going off the board in the top 20 rounds of drafts. Granted, Gomez has the sexier fantasy game with his blazing speed, but he’s far more prone to cold streaks and far more likely to post a detrimental batting average.
Last season, we said that Span had “the sort of career-defining resolve that makes all the difference between average and good, good and great.” And it comes from being spurned at the beginning of last season when management opted to start Gomez in center field and send Span back down to Triple-A Rochester.
Span has a hunger, a chip on his shoulder that continues to drive him. It’s an intangible that makes a difference, both in real life and in fantasy. Now, it’s time for fantasy owners to see and take advantage of it.
