If you looked at my Sleepers 2.0 and thought, "Ha! Maybe in a league for 4-year-olds," well ... that wasn't very nice. But I have you covered anyway!
We're going a bit deeper here. How deep? Beyond the top 300 in consensus ADP, according to FantasyPros. OK, so I may have fudged it a little for a couple in the 290 range, but it's forgivable given that I have 40 names in all, more than ever before. Be amazed!
And honestly, it was hard to whittle it down that much. I would have liked to include more prospects in here, like Colton Cowser, Curtis Mead and Michael Busch. What it ultimately came down to was the urgency of stashing the player right now.
But of course, not all of these players will be worth stashing in every league. A sizable percentage of leagues don't even draft 300 players. That's what makes these deep sleepers. But even if you know your draft will end before you can get to more than one or two, you'll want to keep an eye on the rest as possible early-season waiver claims.
I would say that the highest-priority of these picks for me are Garrett Mitchell, Oscar Colas, Jake Fraley, Anthony Volpe, Oswald Peraza, Brandon Pfaadt and Matthew Boyd, not necessarily in that order. Spoiler alert, I know.
Just for posterity, I'll point out that last year's deep sleepers included Alejandro Kirk, MJ Melendez, Jose Miranda, Jeremy Pena, Steven Kwan, Jesus Luzardo, Nestor Cortes and Reid Detmers. And that list was only 30 names long.
The French Emperor of Walks has reached base at a .437 clip in the minors the past two years and is one of the breakout stars of the World Baseball Classic. The Twins have left themselves pretty thin on the infield, too, having dealt away Luis Arraez and Gio Urshela.
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A bit like Jonathan India in that he relies on pronounced pull tendencies rather than natural strength to generate power, Steer is nonetheless in a perfect environment for that, and the Reds haven't once wavered in their commitment to him at third base.
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Even with him being the obvious beneficiary of the Brendan Rodgers injury, there has been little attention paid to Montero, who hit .310 with 15 homers and a .933 OPS in just 65 games at Triple-A last year. He's having a strong spring and will get to enjoy all the advantages that come with playing at Coors Field
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He may not have ultimately secured a job this spring after being teased as a Joey Votto replacement, but he made a lasting impression with the same sort of impact power that generated 32 homers and 114 RBI in 122 minor-league games last year.
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It's down to him and Anthony Volpe for the starting shortstop job, and of the two, Peraza is the superior defender and the one who got the call last year. He profiles for decent pop and good speed and would probably be flying up draft boards if not for the role uncertainty.
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The 34-year-old isn't a breakout candidate, of course, but he looked rejuvenated after signing with the White Sox last August, contributing nine homers and 11 steals in 43 games. He's worth a shot once shortstop has been picked clean in deeper leagues.
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After a three-year hiatus, this globe-trotting slugger made quick work of the minors last year, batting .314 with an .895 OPS. He's also made the right field competition a no-brainer this spring with better-than-expected bat-to-ball skills.
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Power is difficult to find late, and while it's basically all Duvall brings to the table, he should bring it in big measure at Fenway Park, where his towering flies to the pull side should play perfectly. He's just a year removed from a 38-homer season, remember.
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Though a knee injury slowed him early in the year, this former Mariner really took to his new hitter-friendly environment after returning to action in July, batting .295 with 11 homers and a .903 OPS in 53 games. And he's been showing off his wheels this spring.
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He's been slow to recover from a particularly invasive wrist surgery, but one that will hopefully address the persistent soreness once and for all. In the meantime, the Twins will keep first base warm for a guy who, even through the soreness, slashed .359/.465/.641 in 35 games at Triple-A last year.
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The 2021 first-rounder is about as safe as prospects get thanks to superlative contact skills that saw him bat .365 in 46 Triple-A games last year. It won't be long until he's batting atop the Brewers lineup, making a considerable stolen base contribution as well.
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A surprise standout with a .302 batting average, 24 homers, 12 steals and .942 OPS between two minor-league levels last year, Dirden has all but sewn up the fourth outfielder job this spring. And the way Dusty Baker raves about him, it's not crazy to think he could eventually wrestle away the center field job.
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Wesneski lacks the eye-popping arsenal that would place him high on prospect rank lists, but the dude just knows how to pitch, throwing strikes, coaxing weak contact and missing bats at a respectable clip. He's continued this spring what he started in September.
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The right-hander seems perfectly suited for a post juiced-ball league, his fly-ball tendencies likely to yield a low opponent's batting average to go along with a microscopic walk rate. He's tempting the Twins to go six-man amid reports of improved velocity.
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It's easy to forget he had a 1.50 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 10.7 K/9 through nine appearances last year before his velocity and control slipped and he was eventually shut down with an elbow injury. You may have heard this before, but it's too early to give up on MacKenzie Gore.
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The most impressive of the Diamondbacks' fifth starter contenders this spring, Pfaadt had a 2.63 ERA at the same pitcher-killing affiliate (Triple-A Reno) where Drey Jameson had a 6.95 ERA and Ryne Nelson a 5.43 ERA. He also led all the minors in strikeouts.
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Bradish turned heads last year with a couple of near no-hitters against high-octane offenses, but his low strikeout totals were a rightful reason for skepticism. He's been working in a changeup more this spring, though, and when paired with his already excellent fastball, the whiffs are piling up.
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He hasn't gotten to pitch this spring because of a (mild) lat injury and remains a relief risk due to persistent injuries, but he's still an intriguing talent in an organization known for bringing out the best in pitchers. He had a 1.64 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 14.4 K/9 the last two years in the minors and had a swinging-strike rate on par with Cristian Javier upon reaching the majors.
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