Russell Martin (CA, TOR) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target ~175 Overall

ANALYSIS: Russell Martin hit .290/.402/.430 (all bests since 2007) and finished seventh among C in 2014, but is being ranked just 13th for 2015. I understand the skepticism among fantasy owners, but he did improve his BB% (12.8%) and K% (17%) in 2014 and was surrounded by a much-improved Pirates offense.

In Toronto, he’ll be plugged into the 2-hole in a lineup that averaged 4.46 runs per game in 2014 (5^th in MLB), with protection coming in the form of Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and newcomer Josh Donaldson. The man he replaces, Melky Cabrera, produced a .288/.343/.440 line when batting 2^nd in 2014, which, while not indicative of Martin’s performance, is a promising sign for things to come in front of JoeyBats. Martin will see steady playing time along with the added benefit of DH days to keep him fresh, and I firmly believe Martin will produce top 10 numbers. I would take him over fellow catchers Matt Wieters and Wilin Rosario.