The Houston Astros may be the worst team in the American League but it makes for a great opportunity for a younger player to get real playing time and become a true fantasy baseball sleeper. Enter Jimmy Paredes who was just called up after the Astros released Rick Ankiel and Fernando Martinez.
Paredes has been solidly moving up the Astros’ system since they acquired him (along with Mark Melancon) from the Yankees in return for Lance Berkman in 2010. Frankly, Paredes could have been up much earlier if both teams didn’t try to make him an infielder. Even this season Paredes has split time between outfield and third base where he owns a career .882 fielding percentage.
Paredes is a much better fit in the outfield where he isn’t as much a defensive liability. Offensively, Paredes has a very impressive blend of tools that fantasy owners can get plenty excited about.
Like most speedy switch-hitters, he doesn’t walk often. Despite the lack of walks, Paredes is a career .293 hitter in the minors. He improved upon even that in his first year in Triple-A last season as he batted .318 and was off to a .366 BA start over his first 30 games this season.
Rather than growing his walk total, Paredes has significantly improved his hitting. His OPS jumped from .726 in 2011 to .826 in 2012 to 1.013 in 30 games this season. His home run totals have improved yearly from eight in 2010 to 10 in 2011 to 13 last season. He’s also proven to be a good extra-base hitter, putting up 37 doubles and 10 triples over his last 154 Triple-A games.
What was once a project appears to have become a very promising 24-year-old ball player. The speed has always been there, he stole 23 bases in his first 54 Low-A games. He went on to steal 50 in 133 games in 2010, 29 in 93 games in 2011, and 37 in 124 games in 2012. With the hitting continually improving, Paredes is finally growing into the prospect the Astros envisioned when they snatched him up from the Yankees.
An August call-up in each of the past two seasons, Paredes hasn’t gotten much of a chance to prove he can play at the Major League level. To be fair, until this season, he probably wasn’t. His .256 BA, two HR, 21 RBI, and seven steals over 70 games is nothing to get excited about. Even this year he will likely still struggle with strikeouts after whiffing 68 times in his first 242 at-bats. The difference is the added pop, ability to hit the gaps, and a couple more years of seasoning.
Realistically, it’s hard to tell what Paredes can do this year just because the team around him is so miserable. He should definitely fit right in strikeout-wise since the Astros strike out more than 10 times per game. If he can avoid being dragged down by the bottomless pit that is the Astros offense, he can reasonably hit 10 home runs, steal 30+ bases, and bat .280+. His extra-base hits should also give him a higher run total even with minimal lineup protection.
He’s basically a much bigger Jose Altuve and Altuve is a rare example of a player that has continued to play well rather than fit in with the rest of the Astros lineup. If Paredes can pull an Altuve, fantasy owners will surely be patting themselves on the back for snatching him up early.
