Yesterday, I asked about possible sleepers on the Florida Marlins. I defined a sleeper as a player who is in line for 200-350 ABs who, with an injur...fortuitous event, would become a full-time player. Aaron Boone was offered along with Reggie Abercrombie. I noted in the Comment section that the minor leagues don't offer much help either.
A team that I do like in the National league to provide a slew of possible sleepers is the Washington Nationals. Their starting LF and CF are Ryan Church and Nook Logan. Neither has the track record to weather a three-week slump. Waiting behind them is OF Alex Escobar and Chris Snelling, two players who have been very highly regarded as prospects. Either player is a great end-of-draft pick-up in deep NL-only leagues and bears watching in mixed ones. Additionally, the Nationals have Kory Casto waiting in the minors for this job if Escobar and Snelling prove as frail as their pasts indicate.
Making the team more attractive is the leg injury of 1B Nick Johnson, himself a sleeper in mixed leagues. Will New Orleans 1B Larry Broadway have a good spring and open the year with the Nats? A new manager may reward that type of performance in order to set a new atmosphere on a last place team. Can Travis Lee recapture whatever it was that made him a highly-regarded player?
If the Nationals had well-regarded pitchers, I'd positively aver that they will finish ahead of the Marlins in the NL East. Since they don't, I can say, with equal confidence, that the Marlins with finish ahead of the Nats. Of course, finishing 4th or finishing 5th means nothing.