5 Widely Available Players Who Are Off to a Great Start

 5 Widely Available Players Who Are Off to a Great Start 

Drew Epstein

4/11/22

Jeff McNeil- Mets 2B/OF (Owned in 53.7% of ESPN leagues)

Technically Jeff McNeil can’t be considered widely available with an owned percentage above 50, but he's worth mentioning here. McNeil is a career .300 hitter and he's just two years removed from an all-star season in 2019 with a slash line of .318/.384/.531. After that, there was the 60 game Covid year and a down year in 2021. So far, McNeil is looking more like himself even if it is just a weekend sample size. With some guys, you can just see that they look more like themselves, and McNeil looked that way to me this weekend. So far this early season, McNeil is 7/16 with 1 HR and 3 RBIs. If this production continues and signs of vintage Jeff McNeil continue to show, he could be a steal, especially with the positional versatility he provides. 

Jurickson Profar- Padres 1B, 2B OF (Owned in 9.6% of ESPN leagues)

Jurickson Profar is another versatile player who has gotten off to a hot start at the plate. The Padres utility man is 4/10 to start off the season with 2 HRs and has walked three times already. As the case with everyone so far, this is a small sample size but Profar should be able to both drive in and score runs in a Padres lineup that will only get better at full health. If he is able to stick in the lineup regularly he should prove to be a useful bench piece in deeper leagues where options are limited with his multi-position eligibility. 

Kyle Wright- Braves SP (Owned in 5.5% of ESPN leagues)

Kyle Wright was fantastic in his 2022 debut against the Reds on Saturday. He went 6 innings giving up no runs on just two hits with a 6/1 K/BB ratio in a winning effort. Being available in nearly 95% of leagues, Wright will also be a must-add in deeper leagues if he can even come close to replicating this type of performance. Wright was constantly throwing strikes and was efficient enough to make it through 6, a rarity at this point in the season following a shortened spring training. Pitching for the defending champions, Wright will have an opportunity to pick up a win every time he steps on the mound as will the rest of the Braves’ staff when able to get through at least 5 solid innings. 

Steven Kwan- Guardians OF (Owned in 2.8% of ESPN leagues)

Steven Kwan was the biggest surprise this weekend. It's not often you can say that confidently about one player. He is an absurd 8/10 to start his career which includes a 5/5 day on Sunday. According to MLB Network, Kwan became just the 5th player since 1900 to record a 5 hit game within his first three career games. The only other time this has happened in the modern era was last year when Yermin Mercedes did it for the White Sox. The #15 prospect in the Guardians system couldn't be off to a better start and he figures to have a chance to show what he can do this season with a team seemingly in a rebuilding year. 

Brad Keller- Royals SP (Owned in 1.5% of ESPN leagues)

Brad Keller was another lightly owned pitcher who was excellent to begin his season on Saturday. He also went 6 shutout innings, giving up just 2 hits with a 5/1 K/BB ratio. He was handed a no decision as the Royals were unable to get anything going off Guardians starter Zach Plesac to give him a lead to work with. Pitching in the pitcher friendly Kauffman Stadium, Keller could be a sneaky good pitcher this season who few people are talking about.