Austin Hays (OF, BAL) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

BALLER MOVE: Target ~240s

CURRENT ADP: ~268 overall

ANALYSIS:

Austin Hays has been a name on fantasy players’ radars since he had a brief debut with the Orioles in 2017, but, despite the major league club not being relatively competitive, the organization chose to delay his call-up after injuries waylaid his ‘18 and ‘19 campaigns. That’s likely to change now as Hays has little competition for playing time in 2020.

The 24-year-old is a solid overall hitter with a .266 career average and a K% that hovers around 20%. He’s also improved his BB% over his last few minor league seasons, suggesting a better feel for the strike-zone, which helps get the most out of his 60-grade power. After a solid 17 homers across 87 Minor League games, Hays cracked four homers with two steals and a .309/.373/.574 slash line over a limited 75-PA sample for Baltimore in 2019.

Since Hays should get a chance to sink or swim in centerfield, he could be a source of cheap 25-homer pop and sneaky 10-steal potential on an aggressive Orioles squad. Out of 489 players with at least 25 baserunning opportunities, Hays’ 28.6 ft/sec mark was 82nd. That’s tied with Whit Merrifield and Javier Baez, meaning those legs can play if given the green light; yet, Hays’ ADP has been dropping in recent weeks . A potential 20-10 season with a .250-.260 average and consistent at bats is arguably better than what you’re getting from Nomar Mazara and Shin Shoo Choo are going over 20 picks earlier.