Francisco Mejia (C, SD) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~205-220

CURRENT ADP: ~232 overall

ANALYSIS: Recently touted top prospect Francisco Mejia had an up and down season for the San Diego Padres in 2019. He slashed .265/.316/.438 with eight HR, 22 RBI, and 27 R over 226 at-bats in 2019. This stat line does not paint the whole picture for Mejia as he picked up the pace after the All-Star break when he hit .305/.355/.511 with six HR, 16 RBI, and 19 R in 131 at-bats.

One of the major issues with having Mejia on a fantasy roster in 2019 was his lack of playing time. The Padres often opted to start Austin Hedges over him. Hedges appeared in 102 games compared to Mejia's 79. Thankfully, based on how the Padres handled catching duties down the stretch in 2019, it is likely that the Padres roll with him as the every-day catcher to start the 2020 season. His overall advanced metrics tell us that this is a guy that needed time to adjust to big-league pitching. This was evidenced by his xBA of .229 and xSLG of .381. He also put up a less than stellar strikeout rate of 24.4% and paired it with a walk rate of just 5.9%.

Nevertheless, he picked up the pace as he became more comfortable at the MLB level. He showed more power from the right side of the plate, as shown by his .461 SLG, .773 OPS, and seven HR. That is a stark contrast compared to his .377 SLG, .700 OPS, and one HR from the right side of the plate. It should also come as no surprise that he put up significantly better stats on the road, given that Petco Park is a notorious pitchers park.

Overall, Mejia showed early struggles in 2019 but also showed that he was capable of being a reliable producer later in the season once he settled in. Not having an everyday role can take a toll on a player. The ability is there, he just has to continue to tap into it as he grows more and more comfortable at the highest level and learns to deal with big-league breaking balls. He makes for a great selection at his current ADP as someone you can draft for a bench role with the hopes of him sliding into your starting catcher role very early into the season. Likewise, he is a stellar option at his ADP in two catcher leagues and dynasty formats.