Jed Lowrie

The best laid plans of mice and Mets. While that could be the lead for several Mets players, it suits Lowrie best, considering his season consisted of nine pinch-hit appearances in September. Signed as a free agent last winter, Lowrie had seemingly shaken the injury-prone label, averaging 155 games in his final two seasons with the Athletics. His woes began with knee soreness early in camp. Diagnosed as a knee capsule strain, Lowrie rehabbed and was close to a return when he had a setback. While dealing with the knee, Lowrie then encountered hamstring and calf issues, keeping him shelved until September. The silver lining is Lowrie's absence helped pave the way for Rookie of the Year Pete Alonso to break camp with the big club. Lowrie will return, likely in a reserve role. Barring an injury to a regular, he won't garner enough playing time to be fantasy relevant in anything but deep NL-only leagues.

Lowrie has been oft-injured throughout his 11-year playing career, but that has not been the case over the past two seasons. He is getting healthier in his mid-30s and is coming off the best season of his career. The switch-hitter is stronger from the left side of the plate where his offensive production has been 25% better than league average over the past two seasons. His numbers are more league average against lefties, as he has exited the days of his extreme splits from his younger age. He did his damage the past few seasons in a park known to help pitchers, and the move to Queens in free agency is mostly a lateral one in terms of park factors. Lowrie has both second- and third-base eligibility on draft day if your league uses a 10-game eligibility rule. He figures to jump around the diamond with the Mets, playing every infield position except shortstop.

Lowrie was a bargain for players last year because he came cheaply and he did something he's only done one other time in his career -- avoid the disabled list. His 2017 looked a lot like his only other full season across the board (11.3 walk percentage, 15.5 strikeout percentage, 119 wRC+), but betting on back-to-back healthy years from him is an exercise in futility, especially at his age (turns 34 in April). Like most switch hitters, Lowrie's power side is the left side while he hits for a decent average in limited exposure to lefties. The power spike, for him, came from him getting back to hitting more flyballs (43.5 flyball percentage), which is something the injuries in 2016 did not allow him to do (32.0 percent). The second base job is Lowrie's for 2018 and he can contribute in everything but steals, but you better have a good backup plan in place.

The bane of Lowrie's value has always been his injury woes, and unfortunately 2016 was no different. The veteran infielder was set to take hold of the starting role at second base for Oakland following an offseason trade, but he landed on the disabled list in May after fouling a ball off his lower leg. The injury bug bit again over the summer, as he dealt with left foot pain for many of the games following the All-Star break and eventually opted to undergo season-ending surgery on his left foot in August. Due to all of this, the switch-hitter appeared in roughly half the games last season, batting a middling .263 and posting a horrific .059 ISO, his first time ever putting up an ISO below .100. Lowrie's defensive versatility will likely help him maintain a decent role going forward, but with the Athletics' focus on giving their younger infielders more playing time, he could be demoted to a part-time utility role if he continues to regress.

Signed by Houston to a three-year deal prior to last season, Lowrie figured to serve as the team's stopgap starter at shortstop until Carlos Correa was ready to join the big leagues. After a solid first month (.300/.432/.567 with four home runs and 10 RBI), the 31-year-old suffered a ligament tear in his right thumb that sidelined him until after the All-Star break. By the time he was healthy enough to return, Correa had already staked claim as the starting shortstop for the Astros, which forced Lowrie to settle into a timeshare at third base with Luis Valbuena. The veteran infielder also dealt with a separate thumb issue and other minor ailments to his foot and quad that affected his playing time late last season. Lowrie was limited to just 69 games, hitting just .222 with nine homers and 30 RBI. He was re-acquired by Oakland over the offseason, opening up the path to playing time as Lowrie attempts to re-establish his fantasy value.

Lowrie fell off a cliff in 2014, combining a huge batting average drop with an equally-large power decline. He finally played a full season in 2013 and responded with a .290 average and 15 homers, but even though he was able to play 136 games in 2014, he managed only six homers to go with his .249 average. Those numbers, combined with limited range and a poor arm at shortstop, led the A's to decline extending Lowrie a qualifying offer after the season and he thus became a free agent. Lowrie did injure his finger in mid-August which caused him to miss two weeks and likely affected his final month of the season, but he was struggling before the injury and even had back-to-back months in May and June where he failed to hit .200. Lowrie's past signs of power earned him a deal with the Astros to play short, but his 2014 was very concerning and there's little reason to think he'll return value as anything more than an endgame selection.

Oakland acquired Lowrie in an offseason trade with the Astros. The deal paid immediate benefits for the A's as Lowrie turned in his first full healthy season in the majors, hitting .290 with 15 homers. Lowrie's .319 BABIP topped his career average, so his average may dip some in 2014, but Lowrie provides excellent pop from a middle-infield spot and will continue to be productive for the A's and fantasy squads as long as he can avoid the injuries that have plagued his career. At least until Addison Russell is ready to take over as the starting shortstop in Oakland, Lowrie's role with the A's should be stable, and he could simply move to second base upon Russell's arrival.

If not for (yet another) freak injury (an ankle injury suffered on a collision at second base), Lowrie's first season in Houston would have been considered an overwhelming success. Lowrie showcased his power, looked competent at short and stepped up as a leader in a young clubhouse. When healthy, Lowrie has the potential to be an elite option at short. The hardest part is keeping him healthy, especially when considering that conditioning does not really factor into the problem: nearly all of the injuries he has experienced over the past few seasons were of the fluke variety. With the Astros shedding nearly every other player in his late-20s in November, one has to imagine Lowrie is next. The only question that remains is whether general manager Jeff Luhnow waits until he can get top dollar for Lowrie when he puts together a full season or whether he deals the shortstop at the first chance he gets.

Lowrie saved the Red Sox's bacon in April when the team struggled out of the gate. He was hitting everything and forced his way into the starting lineup at shortstop. Eventually the bat cooled off, injuries crept in and we saw that he was exposed in the field at shortstop with the more playing time he received. He's had stretches of great hitting, like he had last April, but also has trouble staying healthy. He finished with just 341 plate appearances, even after it appeared he would double that total based on his hot start. However, Lowrie will get a chance to prove he's an everyday player after he was traded to Houston, where he'll likely start at shortstop.

Lowrie resurrected his young career in 2010, smacking nine homers and 24 RBI in 171 plate appearances after overcoming a bout with mononucleosis and a previous wrist injury. This was the second time since getting called up in 2008 that Lowrie has shown good production -- he knocked in 46 runs in 260 at-bats in 2008. He's got good extra-base power and can play multiple infield positions, including some work at first base in 2010. He gives Boston some options: they can include him in a deal, they can trade Marco Scutaro and start him at short or they can keep him as a utility guy. Any way you slice it, Lowrie appears poised for a mini-breakout season in 2011.

A wrist injury that first cropped up at the end of 2008 ruined Lowrie's 2009 season, which began with him as Boston's starting shortstop. While the reports project him to be healthy for 2010, the Red Sox were unwilling to rely on his bounce back and signed Marco Scutaro to be the everyday shortstop. Lowrie, if healthy, will serve as a utility guy who can spot start at short, second and third. Of course, the condition of his wrist will impact his ability to hit the line drives and doubles we saw when he came up to help the Sox in 2008.

Lowrie was a godsend for Boston last season when he came up to replace the injured Julio Lugo. His 24-RBI August stood out as Lowrie provided some timely hits for the Red Sox during the second half of the season. Lowrie has doubles power and has developed into a utility guy, capable of playing three infield positions. He fielded shortstop well, not having a great range but making all the easy/medium plays and has a strong arm. The timely hitting and good fielding is something the club wasn't getting from Lugo. This development has caused the organization to search for a taker for Lugo. If Lugo is traded, Lowrie is the sure starter at shortstop in 2009.

Lowrie bounced back from a down 2006 season, increasing all of his percentage categories while making the shift from second base to shortstop. He displayed good pop for a middle infielder, burnishing his prospect status at Double-A Portland and Triple-A Pawtucket. Lowrie's name has been mentioned in trade talks with Minnesota. A trade would help his career immensely as Boston is set at middle infield with Julio Lugo and 2007 Rookie of the Year Dustin Pedroia.

Lowrie struggled through injuries in 2006 and regressed in all of his percentage categories. He showed some good pop for a middle infielder while at Stanford, but displayed very little last year. He's got good plate discipline and hits equally well from both sides of the plate. With Hanley Ramirez gone and Dustin Pedroia moved to second base, Lowrie is the highest-rated shortstop prospect in the organization. The Sox will want to see how he bounces back in 2007, probably beginning the year in high-A.

Lowrie is an excellent fielder with a strong arm and above-average range. He showed decent power for a middle infielder at Stanford, is a switch-hitter, and knows how get on base. After playing mostly second base in college, he was moved to shortstop with the Low-A Lowell Spinners in 2005. He's not big physically, but has good bat speed and torque and takes a big cut for his size (6-0, 185).