This article is part of our The Z Files series.
With only five series left per team, we're down to the nitty gritty. It's getting harder to judge playing time with some teams shutting down injured players and others sitting veterans to get a look at some potential 2018 roster fodder. Last week, we looked at 20 potential helpers down the stretch. Now here's 20 more, each receiving at least 10 plate appearances over the last week and providing the bare minimum of worthwhile action. Some have been playing regularly for a while but have been flying under the radar, others recently picked up playing time. Players are listed in alphabetical order.
Lane Adams, OF, Atlanta Braves: Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis are both durable, everyday players, swinging from the left side. This doesn't avail much playing time for a reserve outfielder, also left-handed. Even before Inciarte hurt his thumb Tuesday, Adams had played a little more lately. Inciarte may be back over the weekend, but with nothing to play for, Adams could continue to fill in. Albeit in just 74 plate appearances, Adams is getting on base at a 37 percent clip, stealing eight bags without being caught.
Jorge Alfaro, C, Philadelphia Philles: Alfaro has a good chance at breaking camp as the Phillies' Opening Day catcher next spring. He was getting extra time behind the plate with Andrew Knapp on the DL. With Knapp back, it's Cameron Rupp in jeopardy of losing starts behind the dish. Alfaro's season for Triple-A Lehigh Valley was rather
With only five series left per team, we're down to the nitty gritty. It's getting harder to judge playing time with some teams shutting down injured players and others sitting veterans to get a look at some potential 2018 roster fodder. Last week, we looked at 20 potential helpers down the stretch. Now here's 20 more, each receiving at least 10 plate appearances over the last week and providing the bare minimum of worthwhile action. Some have been playing regularly for a while but have been flying under the radar, others recently picked up playing time. Players are listed in alphabetical order.
Lane Adams, OF, Atlanta Braves: Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis are both durable, everyday players, swinging from the left side. This doesn't avail much playing time for a reserve outfielder, also left-handed. Even before Inciarte hurt his thumb Tuesday, Adams had played a little more lately. Inciarte may be back over the weekend, but with nothing to play for, Adams could continue to fill in. Albeit in just 74 plate appearances, Adams is getting on base at a 37 percent clip, stealing eight bags without being caught.
Jorge Alfaro, C, Philadelphia Philles: Alfaro has a good chance at breaking camp as the Phillies' Opening Day catcher next spring. He was getting extra time behind the plate with Andrew Knapp on the DL. With Knapp back, it's Cameron Rupp in jeopardy of losing starts behind the dish. Alfaro's season for Triple-A Lehigh Valley was rather unimpressive, sporting a high 32 percent strikeout rate with only seven homers in 350 at-bats. Still just 24 years old, there's plenty of time for Alfaro to hone his plate skills, especially since catchers often take a little longer to develop. His .457 BABIP is skewing his September numbers, but with two-plus weeks left, playing time trumps regression.
Carlos Asuaje, 2B, San Diego Padres: Asuaje has been a regular for about half the season, but is still available in many mixed leagues. His numbers are tepid, but he's playing nearly every day, mostly hitting from the two-hole. Asuaje has picked up the pace the last couple of weeks, recording a .373 OBP with four runs. In leagues with daily pickups, the Padres visit Coors Field this weekend.
Darwin Barney, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays: Normally, I'm not a fan of riding streaks, especially for lesser hitters. However, with so little of the season left, I'll make an exception or two. In September, Barney has registered an impressive 1.000 OPS.
Jabari Blash, OF, San Diego Padres: Blash hasn't hit a homer in September, but he has the potential to hit multiple long balls in a week. He's another pickup for daily leagues, joining Asuaje in Coors this weekend. He'll need to hit to continue to play, but as of now, he's the primary right fielder for the Padres. Keep in mind, however, that in the long term Hunter Renfroe is still earmarked for right in Petco.
Johan Camargo, 3B/SS, Atlanta Braves: Camargo's picked up where he left off before visiting the disabled list, with four multi-hit games in the five he's played since being activated. Camargo is sharing the left side of the infield with Rio Ruiz and Dansby Swanson, playing a lot but not quite every day. With the middle infield occupied by Ozzie Albies and Swanson, Camargo's future looks to be as a utility infielder. He's the type I really like in NL-only formats, since he'll get at-bats all over but will still be cheap since he won't likely have a starting job. I guess he could win the job at the hot corner, but I'm not sure his bat plays there.
Mark Canha, OF, Oakland Athletics: Canha has been platooning with Boog Powell in center field. As the right-handed part of the time share, he'll only playing a couple times a week but in deep leagues, that could be more than one of your current outfielders. Schedules could change, but Canha is slated to face Drew Pomeranz, Chad Bell and Martin Perez in the next week and a half.
Yandy Diaz, 3B, Cleveland Indians: The Indians are impressed enough with Diaz's bat to consider using Jason Kipnis in center field now that Bradley Zimmer is out for the season. It really comes down to Austin Jackson or Kipnis, and apparently the Tribe at least want to see if Kipnis can handle the leather in center. When push comes to shove, I expect Jackson will be roaming center in the playoffs, but so long as the Indians want to experiment, Diaz's bat remains in the lineup.
John Hicks, C/1B, Detroit Tigers: Hicks' playing time has waned this week with Andrew Romine grabbing some playing time at first and DH. Not to mention, at least as it stands now, the Tigers aren't lined up to fact any southpaws for the next three series. But, after highlighting 20 players last week and featuring the same today, pickings are slim. Put Hicks in the "break glass in case of emergency" category.
JaCoby Jones, OF, Detroit Tigers: There's a heavy influence from Motown on the list, but that's to be expected after the Tigers cleaned house. Jones is seeing the bulk of the time in center, despite struggling to make contact. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Jones hit nine homers and stole 12 bases for Triple-A Toledo in 90 games, so he has the skills to contribute across the board in the next two and a half weeks.
Rymer Liriano, OF, Chicago White Sox: I'm a little surprised it took this long for the White Sox to give Liriano a look. He didn't have a bad year for Triple-A Charlotte, swatting 17 homers with seven bags after missing all of 2016 due to a concussion along with facial fractures suffered when he was hit by a pitch in 2016 spring training. He's played sporadically since joining the Pale Hose when rosters expanded. Liriano is still just 26, so expect his name to highlight many post-hype sleeper lists as we head into 2018.
Dixon Machado, SS, Detroit Tigers: Machado filled in while Jose Iglesias tended to his family in Miami. Igelsias is back so Machado heads back to the bench, but he should still see a game or two a week down the stretch. Consider him another emergency fill in.
Ketel Marte, SS, Arizona Diamondbacks: It took several injuries, but Marte finally snagged the regular shortstop role in the desert. He's not running, but he is frequently hitting from the two-hole and scoring runs.
Hernan Perez, 2B/SS/3B/OF, Milwaukee Brewers: The super-utility man is one of those players that is mixed-league worthy if he's playing five games a week, but you aren't sure he'll get that level of playing time each week. Lately, he's been playing a lot, putting him on the mixed-league radar, especially since he also qualifies at four positions. He's another favorite for NL-only since you don't have to pay for 400 at-bats, but he usually will see them by season's end.
Chad Pinder, 2B/SS/OF, Oakland Athletics: Jed Lowrie enjoying a good season isn't a surprise. The fact he stayed on the field for most of it, however, was unexpected. To get Pinder more at-bats, he's played a lot of outfield, especially lately. He's been fanning at a high clip this month, but he's also smacked four homers in the last 30 days, thus making him a sneaky source of power who is eligible at three spots.
Kevin Plawecki, C, New York Mets: Plawecki's been sharing time with Travis d'Arnaud behind the plate, often hitting cleanup. He's responded with a respectable .822 OPS the past month. Catcher is often ignored when looking to improve a roster since the raw production is less than other positions, so it's a better use of resources to look elsewhere. However, with just over two weeks left, you can likely pick up Plawecki for the minimum, and every little bit helps.
Ryan Rua, 1B/OF, Texas Rangers: Rua's only had 24 trips to the dish the past month, but he's taken advantage with a 1.050 OPS, highlighted by a .409 OBP – perfect for deep points leagues. Rua's playing time has been greater lately since the club has faced a series of southpaws. He'll likely sit this weekend, with a couple of starts on the docket next week against lefties.
Rio Ruiz, 3B, Atlanta Braves: As discussed with Camargo, Ruiz is splitting time at the hot corner, playing against righties. He has a little pop, hitting 16 big flies for Triple-A Gwinnett. I prefer Camargo, but in a pinch, when Ruiz plays, it will be with the platoon edge.
Travis Taijeron, OF, New York Mets: Norichika Aoki has been playing a lot of left field, leaving the scraps for Taijeron. Not really a prospect at 28 years old, Taijeron hit 25 homers for Triple-A Las Vegas, one of the best spots for offense. He only has four hits since his promotion, but three are for extra bases. Don't rush to pick him up, but if you find yourself in dire need of a homer, Taijeron has pop.
Richard Urena, SS, Totonto Blue Jays: Admittedly, not many of these batters are enticing for mixed leagues, with Urena an example of one playing nearly every day. Not only that, he's hitting leadoff ahead of the still dangerous Josh Donaldson and Justin Smoak. The 21-year-old infielder is getting on at a 40 percent clip, which will surely fall, but as said earlier, opportunity is key and Urena looks to play nearly every day through the end of the season.
