Zack Cozart (SS,CIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Leagues

OWNED IN: 34% of Fleaflicker Leagues

ANALYSIS: It seems like Zack Cozart has been around forever in Cincinnati. It also feels like forever since he was talked about as a fantasy commodity even at an important position such as SS. But now Cozart has made a huge impact and it all has to do with his placement. Cozart has been a career .250 hitter and showed his early power threat in 2012 by belting 15 HR. Between 2013 and 2015, Cozart only hit 25 HR and saw his stock plummet.

Now we enter 2016 where manager Bryan Price decides to bat Cozart on the leadoff spot and showed true faith in him as a solid table setter. The move has clearly paid off as Cozart has eight home runs, 22 RBI, a .303 BA and has brought his BB/K ratio back to his career .32 mark. His OPS of .861 is the highest of his career and his wRC+ of 124 represents a major improvement in his performance.

His ownership has been steadily growing over the past few weeks and the time to jump aboard is closing fast. Deeper leagues should have already caught on to his breakout campaign but more shallow leagues will notice that SS is such a tough position to find quality depth at. Cozart can be a long term replacement for the pesky position while he keeps hitting leadoff. He isn't going to steal any bases but he does represent a player who can get on base and stay productive.