Shhhh!
Revealing Sleepers this soon can lead to an internet frenzy - and thus kill one’s ability to snag a player in the later rounds.
So let’s treat Colby Rasmus kind of like Fight Club – recollecting the #1 rule Tyler Durden preached:
The first rule about Colby Rasmus is:
“You don’t talk about Colby Rasmus!”
Of course, since you’ve dropped by, we assume you are a card carrying member of the “Colby Rasmus Fight Club” so here are some Quick reasons why we like this kid going into the 2009 season:
If you are a fairly serious Fantasy Baseball junkie – you have probably already started to view various sites in search of the 2009 Sleepers.
For Catchers, we will be honing our fantasy radar on who might be this years Ryan Doumit, or even better - Geovanny Soto. When it comes to pitchers – the phrase “Next Edinson Volquez” will be bounced around more than “Career Opportunities” outtakes of Jennifer Connelly on a Target store riding horse.
And the Fantasy Baseball Indiana Jones in all of us will covet any similar discovery of last season’s Holy Grail of infielder finds – Alexei Ramirez.
Before we continue, let us once again remind you…
“The first rule about Colby Rasmus…”
Prognosticating breakout players obviously often entails some lucky breaks. But in some cases - like Geovanny Soto last season – there were Billboard sized signs for a possible breakout campaign going into 2008. The problem, unfortunately, when an apparent “Sleeper” has too much “writing on the wall” – as mentioned at the top of this article – word spreads like wildfire, and before too long, everyone knows about the player in question – thus diminishing one’s chances of truly capitalizing on drafting him in a later round.
Many who drafted Edinson Volquez last season got on board once the hard throwing Cincy Red began to show he might possess the “right stuff” during 2008’s edition of Spring Training.
Now again, it’s early – some of us may still be recovering from our New Years Eve hangover – I swear, never again. No really.But one of the reasons Colby Rasmus intrigues us here at WaiverSharks.com is because, up until now at least, he has not been preached about by the Fantasy expert elite. Like Alexei Ramirez, and to some extent Volquez – Rasmus remains hidden in the shadows of touted Fantasy 2009 Sleepers like the Reds Joey Votto, the Rockies Carlos Gonzales (Coors Magic?) and the Rangers Nelson Cruz.
This is not to say that all three of these Outfielders (Votto qualifies at 1B and OF) won’t possibly outdo Rasmus during 2009 – but we highly doubt, with the earlybird attention they are garnering, that any of them will be available to be drafted in as late of a round – or even plucked off of the consummate waiver wire, as young Mr. Rasmus will.
Okay – so we’ve established that the St. Louis Cardinals uber-talented outfielder is flying under the radar somewhat? So is Sal Fasano – but that doesn’t make him worthy of our Fantasy attention now does it?
Why else should Fantasy managers tuck a Rasmus feather in their Cardinals caps going into the 2009 Fantasy Baseball season?
Opportunity is big here. If there is no hope for landing regular at bats at some point – hopefully earlier than late – we might as well move on. But in Rasmus’ case, we DO see opportunity is knocking – and a hot spring may be all it takes to see him get the chance to head up to the club at the onset of the 2009 season.
To date - the Cardinals have certainly not been very involved in many offseason player additions. Adding Khalil Greene may alter their infield somewhat – but won’t change the complexion of their outfield.
So who else have they got out there manning left, center and right at Busch Stadium?
Ryan Ludwick – Although some are still scratching their collective Fantasy heads on how and why Ryan Ludwick rose so quickly in 2008 – even if there is some drop off this season, Ludwick, one can assume, has firmly established himself as a starter in the Cardinals line-up.
Rick Ankiel – a solid bat – but (and this would be key) there have been a lot of rumors. Imagine if Ankiel was sitting on one end of the St. Louis Arch – but instead it was a giant catapult – held back by a low grade fishing twine. With one giant “SNAP!”, he could be headed clear over the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial – bounce off the top of the Edward Jones Dome – landing safely into the arms of another city. In other words – Ankiel could be traded.
Chris Duncan – Big Chris has yet to be a major factor in previous seasons that have unfortunately been laced with mammoth slumps and injuries.
Skip Schumaker – We like the NL’s answer to David DeJesus – but we don’t feel Skip has quite the upside potential of Colby Rasmus.
Brian Barton and Joe Mather – Of these two, we are actually more weary of Joe Mather squashing Rasmus’ chances of capitalizing in 2009, since he possesses some very solid power. If Rasmus is considered a Dark Horse in 2009 – Mather may be referred to as the horse galloping down the dark horses neck.
Where could Colby Ryan Rasmus fit in best?
We know we won’t get any answers from Tony LaRussa at this juncture, so lets hypothesize on our own.
How about center field and leading off?! (Let’s start lobbying NOW!)
Yes – it wouldn’t be the easiest place for the rookie from Columbus Georgia to begin his career – but we think he could truly thrive there if given the opportunity. A modestly projected 15 steal - 15 homerun season would certainly not be out of the question – and imagine the number of times he could potentially cross the plate batting ahead of Albert Pujols and Ryan Ludwick.
In addition to the Cardinals Busch Stadium being a decent hitter’s park, they play in the National League’s Central Division, which has a number of good hitting parks. Here’s a super quick breakdown:
Chicago Cubs - Wrigley Field – yes the Cubs have some good arms, but we all know when the wind is blowing out in Wrigley – extra base hits can start to mount up.
Cincinnati Reds – Great American BallPark – Every Fantasy manager has got to know by now that this tiny ballpark’s dimensions are a hitter’s dream!
Milwaukee Brewers – Miller Park – Rasmus certainly has the pop in his bat to drive some balls for extra base here – and just think, the 2009 ROY candidate we are so high on no longer has to face C.C. Sabathia when the Cards visit Milwaukee.
Pittsburgh Pirates – PNC Park – Certainly not cavernous by any stretch – and outside of a decent starting rotation core – the Pirates pitching can be hit on.
Houston Astros – Minute Maid Park – The right field wall is only seven feet high at Minute Maid Park, and if the left hand hitting Rasmus pulled the ball enough, you can envision him legging out a triple near the flag pole extending from Tal’s Hill.
“Tal’s Hill” was named after Tal Smith - Astros’ President of Baseball Operations.
Well before we carry on to the point that you think we own shares in “Colby Stock”, or are Colby’s parents, we will close with this…
Rasmus most certainly struggled in a forgettable and injury plagued 2008 season. If he didn’t – he wouldn’t be a Deep Sleeper this season. Capitalize on the poor campaign he had last year and use this to your advantage WaiverSharks. If you play in a fairly competitive Fantasy Baseball league – many more risky picks will be flying off draft boards in 2009 faster than a flashing dick did in Fight Club. But just remember the first rule of Rasmus!
If any of these guys has a first rate spring – they could go from projected fantasy “sleeper” to “over-hyped rip-off” in less time than the “The Day the Earth Stood Still” lasted at the box office. 20th Century-Fox might as well have used Bender from Futurama to play Gort in this unintentional comedy turkey of the year!
Now we are digging into some Deeper Sleepers! We’ve even broke out some serious 
