RADIO
CURRENT ADP: 89
RANKINGS STATUS: Undervalued
ANALYSIS: After a sensational start to his major league career, there is a lot of speculation surrounding Masahrio Tanaka and his slightly torn UCL. Tanaka burst onto the scene last year but was shut down in the second half of the season so that his arm could heal and he could avoid having Tommy John Surgery. Some pitches' arms heal fully just by resting them. Others have had to eventually get the surgery that would sideline them for a full season. Yankee fans and any fantasy owners that kept Tanaka or plan on drafting him are hoping that Tanaka’s right arm is back to normal.
Before being shut down for the partial tear of UCL, Tanaka was dominating Major League hitters and on his way to Cy Young type season. The type of fantasy numbers he was putting up are the type to make owners wet their pants. In 20 starts Tanaka went 13-5 with a 2.77 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP and very filthy 6.71 K/BB ratio. He walked just 21 batters while striking out 141 in 136.1 innings. Now imagine those numbers projected through an entire season.
The Yankees put Tanaka through long period of rest before beginning an easy throwing regimen to start the spring. Tanaka looked great in his first spring training start and first bullpen sessions. He has reported feeling no pain and says he feels just fine after pitching.
The fear here is that Tanaka’s arm might be a ticking time bomb, ready to pop at any moment and require the dreaded Tommy John Surgery. However the potential he presents if fully healthy is enough to take the risk on draft day when you consider where he is currently being drafted. Tanaka is being drafted behind James Shields, Julian Teheran and Alex Cobb. If Tanaka stays healthy, he will easily outperform those pitchers. Take the risk.
