FANTASY FURNACE

With the Fantasy Baseball season entering it’s eighth week on Monday, May 19, 2014, we have three little owned (all under 25%) ‘Hot’ Waiver Wire Pickups for you to consider…

1. Seth Smith-OF-Padres- 22% Owned- Speaking of ‘Hot Pickups’ this 31 year old outfielder has been one of the hottest! Over the last 10 games, Smith has batted an incredible 17-for-35 (.486) and has hit safely in 9 of the 10 games with 7 being of the multi-hit variety.

Last Saturday, Smith just missed hitting for the cycle by a single against the Marlins in a 9-3 loss. Playing for an offensively challenged Padres team, Smith, the only bright spot in their lineup of late, now has raised his season’s average to a fantasy relevant .336 with a 1.004 OPS. Since Smith is a career .268 hitter, he production will go down at some point but ride him while this streak continues.

#12 Seth Smith has been on a tear amassing 7 multi-hit games over his last 10 and batting just under .500 over that span. Photo: AP

2. Gerardo Parra-OF-Diamondbacks- 23% Owned- Parra is another hot hitter who has also hit in nine of his last 10 games with five multi-hit games to his credit. The undrafted outfielder, recommended for those in deeper leagues, has scored 24 runs so far this season while tallying 4 homers and 13 RBIs. Currently Parra is just about at his career .277 batting average.

He can steal a base or two and should finish the season with 15 thefts. Parra isn’t for everyone in every league, just a nice hitter who can help in runs and, should your settings include triples, Parra’s been known to hit a few. (He already has two in the young season).

3. Dallas Keuchel-SP,RP-Astros- 22% Owned- With stats like this 26 year old has, even though he’s pitching for the Astros, there is no reason for him not to be in mixed leagues in most formats at this point. For the season, Keuchel has a 4-2 record with a 3.06 ERA to go along with 47 strikeouts against just 11 walks. His control has helped him pitch deep into most of his games especially his last on May 13th when he threw a complete game shut out vs the Rangers, striking out 7 while not allowing a walk.

In his 8 starts this year, Keuchel gave up just 3 runs or less in 6 of them while facing teams with rather potent lineups such as the Rangers (0 runs), the Tigers (2 ER), and the Blue Jays (1 ER). The little owned southpaw who will face the Angels next on May 18th should be someone to consider grabbing.

#60 LHP Dallas Keuchel is just coming off his complete game shutout of the Texas Rangers. Photo: Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images North America