Josh Donaldson/Marcus Stroman
It would have been easy to list Jose Bautista next to Josh Donaldson’s name, but Marcus Stroman has a strong season ahead of him. Calling it now for those of you who like to snag a sleeper-ish type pitcher in your fantasy leagues.
Stroman’s second half last season was the perfect segway into being a strong and feared pitcher option this time around.
The first half for the 25-year-old was rough. Though once the All-Star Break happened, Stroman was strong. He ended up with a 3.68 ERA during the second half, but matched his strikeout count from the first half with 83 Ks but in fewer innings. His WHIP dropped to a 1.239 and he increased his strikeout-per-nine-innings ratio as well. He also has a sinker that has some of the “most sink” in qualified starters according to Joshua Howsam of Baseball Prospectus. The pressure is off of him now and that will only benefit him this season.
Josh Donaldson or “Dong”-aldson as the daily fantasy sports community calls him because of his tendency to hit bombs, is making a name for himself in Toronto. And he’s doing it well.
Since being acquired by the Blue Jays from the A’s a couple years back, Donaldson has two All-Star roster sports with the team and was named American League MVP in 2015, along with Major League Player of the Year in the same season. This doesn’t take away his stellar career in Oakland, but there are no signs the 31-year-old will slow down anytime soon. He heads into the season with a career .278/.365/.503 line.
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