With the new draft pick incentive systems in place in MLB, teams are finally starting to pull the wool away from their eyes and are now seeing the value in promoting their top prospects rather than letting them languish in the minors for service time manipulation – just look to the Diamondbacks landing Ryan Waldschmidt with the draft pick they received for Corbin Carroll winning NL ROTY. Because of those incentives, top prospects like Nick Kurtz will receive added opportunities but for me, the real opportunities for fantasy value lie in the names that are slightly more under the radar. Below is the perfect example of a player who you likely didn’t consider on draft day but can now be picked up in order to completely swing your chances of chasing down a category.

Chandler Simpson – OF – TB – 34% Yahoo, 58% CBS

In one of Sports Ethos’ internal leagues this past waiver run, I put forth a massive bid ($150 FAAB) on Simpson. The reason being was partially that I had a specific need for outfield help but also because I had largely faded stolen bases as a category. With Simpson’s base stealing abilities and prowess, I suddenly had visions of being able to single-handedly turn the tides in the category so I wanted to make sure I landed him. After waivers ran, I was pleased to see the claim had processed but then I did my usual check on the losing bids… Somehow I was the only one to attempt to add him! Clearly there’s a divide between my internal opinion of Simpson’s value and the public’s, so let’s dig in.

Firstly, if you aren’t familiar with Simpson’s profile since he only really found his way onto top prospect lists this offseason, allow me to make an introduction to possibly the fastest man in baseball.

Between 110 games at High-A and Double-A last year, Simpson swiped 104 bags on 121 attempts. Not surprisingly, that was the most by any player in the minors, surpassing the second place finisher (Enrique Bradfield Jr.) by almost 40 bases – so this is not just elite speed, this is an 80-grade skill that can be a carrying tool all on its own. Of course, we’ve seen similar speedsters (Billy Hamilton, anyone? #RememberThatGuy) fall flat in the majors for the simple reason that they just don’t have the juice in their bat to get on base enough to steal bases frequently. Once there, they’re dangerous – but you can’t steal second while walking back to the dugout.

Here’s the thing that makes Simpson different from the rest though – although he flashes only 20-grade power (aka, the lowest possible grade), Simpson carries a 70-grade hit tool that will provide him a legitimate chance at actually reaching his fantasy ceiling.

His plate discipline and speed have both shown up in the early goings of his debut, with a .333 average and two steals in four games. He’s already exhibiting strong contact metrics too, with elite rates in Whiff%, K% and Squared-Up% – although those numbers do come with bottom barrel rankings in exit velocity and barrels. He also has yet to take a walk, though he did manage an 8.7% mark last season so that isn’t likely to last.

Overall, the projection systems are fairly confident in his ability to adjust quickly as well. All of them peg him to hit around .270 or better with roughly one steal per two games played, so extrapolating that out a bit further – if Simpson were to get even 100 games played this year, you’re looking at a hitter with an average somewhere between .270-.290 with 50 stolen bases. Considering only three players topped 50 bags last season, with each playing 155 games at minimum, Simpson could challenge for the league lead even without a full season of playing time.

He may not be a dominant points league player but for roto formats, he could be a bit of a game breaker. Snap him up now before he goes wild on the base paths during the summer.

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