Chad Young’s 2023 Ottoneu Util/Missing Player Values

When doing my rankings by position, I have to make decisions on who makes the cut to be ranked and who doesn’t. Based on projections, current roster percentages and other data, some players get ranked and others get left out. Before the cut deadline tonight, I wanted to provide an update on a set of players who missed that cut but maybe should not have. Six of these players are utility-only, and therefore didn’t go on positional rankings. Others just weren’t on my radar, so to speak.

All of my Ottoneu Position Rankings: C | 1B | 2B | SS | 3B | OF | SP | RP

A quick version of my regular reminders:

  • These values are for FanGraphs Points leagues.
  • These are non-inflated values for first-year leagues, so the prices will be a little higher in established leagues.

Let’s start with the utility bats.

  • Shohei Ohtani – Ohtani is on my SP rankings, but as a bat, he was left off, as he doesn’t qualify at any position. Ohtani would be in a $75-$80 tier for me, completely alone atop my rankings.
  • Fernando Tatis, Jr. – Tatis will start the year as a utility-only player and will need to make five starts at a position before he earns eligibility. Right now, my best guess is that he’ll be an OF and as an OF, I would put him in the $38-$46 tier, probably near the bottom of that tier. The talent is immense, but there is a lot of risk given the time off and the series of injuries he has dealt with. If he by chance regained MI eligibility, he would be my #1 SS, in a $40-$50 tier by himself. He’d have similar value at 2B.
  • Michael Conforto – Like Tatis, after missing all of 2022, Conforto has been reset to util-only and will have to earn back OF eligibility. Right now, Roster Resource has him in LF, but on a team with an OF listed at DH and another at 1B, I don’t think it is a given that Conforto actually plays LF regularly instead of ending up somewhere better suited to protecting his shoulder. As an OF, he would be in my $6-$9 tier, probably near the bottom. If he never earns OF eligibility, he would be more like $3-$5, hence preferring to keep his price closer to $5 than $10.
  • J.D. Martinez – Martinez is a DH and only a DH and so I can only value him for the utility spot. I have too many concerns about his decline to go over $5 for him, though the fact that the Dodgers signed him is at least intriguing.
  • Kyle Lewis – Lewis fits more in the Conforto camp than the Tatis (who I assume will earn some eligibility) or Martinez (who I assume will not) camps. He is probably best being a DH, given his injury history, but the Diamondbacks have DH options and I bet he gets some OF run over the season. As an OF with enough playing time, he probably just nudges into the $3-5 tier, but given unclear playing time and risk that he never earns eligibility, I’ll stick with $1-$2.
  • Nelson Cruz – Like Martinez, he is a DH and only a DH. Cruz really fell off last year and I blame that more on being almost 43 years old than on the vision issue he had surgery on this offseason. I could see wanting to gamble on the vision improvement being a game-changer, so $1-$2 makes sense.

The next ten names are prospects who I left off my lists (some are util-only and so they missed the positional rankings, others I just missed/didn’t rate highly). These ten were selected because they were picked in at least one of the five Ottoneu mock auctions that have been going on the last couple of weeks.

  • Curtis Mead – 2B/3B – Fun bat that needs to stick at a position or convince the Rays to just let him bounce around. I like him at under $5 and expect him to be up and helpful.
  • Jordan Lawlar – SS – Lawlar has big potential, but with only 97 bad PA at Double-A, it is hard to imagine him helping this year, so he stays in my $1-2 tier.
  • Noelvi Marte – SS – I might like him a touch more than Lawlar for this format, but he hasn’t even had a chance to be bad at Double-A yet, so he isn’t any higher in my rankings.
  • Enmanuel Valdez – 2B/3B – Not sure he hits enough to make up for his lack of defense, which might keep him from being a regular. $1 as a flyer, as he should get a shot this year.
  • Masyn Winn – SS – He’s a guy I am more interested in picking up in August than today. I’d like to see more of the projected power showing up in games, too. $1-$2 tier.
  • Jackson Holliday – Util – I just don’t like rostering guys who are this far away, unless they are generational talents. That’s not who he is. $0.
  • Marco Luciano – SS – Feels like the trend is heading the wrong direction with Luciano. Maybe that makes him a buy-low at $1? I could see that but I would also move on via trade pretty quickly.
  • Edouard Julien – 2B – Given the list of injury risks on the Twins roster, Julien could get a look at some point this year. I am curious how the insane BB% holds up as he moves up. $1-$2 tier for me, but could move up if he starts to really knock on the door.
  • Austin Wells – C – Comes down to position, as scouts are dubious he can stay at C, but the Yankees aren’t playing him anywhere but C and DH. I am staying away as if he sticks, he might be a couple of years away from being MLB ready and if he doesn’t stick, I am not sure he has much value.
  • Marcelo Mayer – SS – He’s a lot of projection and pretty far away still, which means I am still in wait-and-see mode. Watchlist guy, but $0 tier.

Finally, there is one other player getting picked up in some of the mocks (two of the five, so far, for $1 once and $2 once) that I should address since I left him off my SP rankings.

  • Trevor Bauer – He doesn’t have a job. I assume some team will give him a shot, but I don’t think it is a given – it wouldn’t surprise me if a number of clubhouses have made it clear to the front office that they are not interested in him. And if he is signed, I have no desire to put him on my roster where I would have the incentive to be excited if he succeeds. I hope teams just stay away. That’s what I am doing. $0 tier.





A long-time fantasy baseball veteran and one of the creators of ottoneu, Chad Young's writes for RotoGraphs and PitcherList, and can be heard on the ottobot podcast. You can follow him on Twitter @chadyoung.

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