I have gotten a few questions about Stephen Drew, but it is a case-by-case basis with him. I figured I’d write a post giving thumbs up or thumbs down on Drew based on situation.
Dear Nash,
Should I pick up Stephen Drew?
Pretty much everyone with a struggling SS this week.
Lets just start off with the obvious thumbs down. Here are the top 20 short stops as ranked for a standard 5×5 league (Who says Jeter is washed up?). Let’s draw a line below Rafael Furcal. If you have anyone above him as your SS no need take a flier on Drew as your primary SS.
Jose Reyes
Derek Jeter
Hanley Ramirez
Starlin Castro
Alcides Escobar
Elvis Andrus
Ian Desmond
Danny Espinosa**
Jimmy Rollins
Ben Zobrist**
Asdrubal Cabrera
Marco Scutaro**
Rafael Furcal
Alexei Ramirez
Mike Aviles**
Erick Aybar
Emilio Bonifacio*
Dee Gordon*
Zack Cozart
Everth Cabrera
* indicates an injured player
** indicates a player that is eligible at more than one position
Now if you have someone below that line as you primary SS you might wanna give Drew a little look.
Drew has batted 2nd in the Oakland A’s lineup both days he has been with the club. So that is a pretty good spot for him if he can get on base. He should score some runs hitting in front of Josh Reddick and Yoenis Cespedes, provided Reddick can get going again. He also should get a fair amount of RBI opportunities if Coco Crisp can stay hot.
But there are a few things to consider about Drew:
- He is not much of a base stealer, so if you are in need of a speedster at SS Drew is probably not your guy. Perhaps go for a guy like Everth Cabrera.
- Drew has some pop, but he is now playing in Oakland as opposed to Arizona so you might want to temper your home run expectations a little. With just over a month of games left I might hope for 5-6 homers.
- Drew has always been able to take a walk and we know that that fits right into the A’s strategy. So if you are in a league that counts OBP or walks then Drew could certainly be a nice addition to your squad.
Drew can certainly be an interesting pick up, however he is not a guy that I think will save someone’s season unless you have a DESPERATE need for a little pop and some walks from your shortstop position. If you are in a league that requires a second SS (weird, but I don’t judge), a separate 2B/SS or an extra middle infielder and you have a guy like Ryan Roberts, Jeff Keppinger or Luis Cruz toiling away in said spots, you might wanna give Drew a good look.
