Last Minute Adds: Speculating on 2015 Playing Time Right Now

There's less than a week to go in the season, and it's fairly likely that in a number of your leagues, your place in the final standings is all but assured. With that, many owners will fall asleep at the wheel of their teams with little to do until offseason drafts. Now could be the time when you can sneak a couple players onto your roster that can have a potential impact for your team in 2015 and beyond, and here's a few examples.

Nick Franklin, 2B/SS, Tampa Bay Rays

Franklin was one of the key pieces the Rays received in return for David Price, but Franklin has not been in the majors much since being acquired. He has seen a few starts at second base since being called back up, with the team shifting Ben Zobrist around to left field or right field on those days. I think that the Rays bring Franklin to Spring Training with the intent of having him be the primary starter at second base, and could potentially provide 10+ home runs and 10+ stolen bases a year while doing so. It's also not out of the realm that the organization tries to make him into a similar player to Ben Zobrist, capable of playing in a super-utility role but used more frequently than that.

Aaron Sanchez, RP, Toronto Blue Jays

This one is purely speculative, but I think that the Jays give Sanchez a shot in 2015 at the closer's job, and he runs with it in March as well. Casey Janssen is a free agent this offseason, and with the number of pitching prospects in the high minors and already at the major league level, I can very easily see the conversion for Sanchez to a permanent relief role starting soon.

Will Middlebrooks, 3B, Boston Red Sox

Middlebrooks is already starting for the Red Sox, but I have this feeling that he ends up included in a trade package at some point in the offseason and handed more consistent playing time. Trading Middlebrooks allows the team to give 3B prospect Garin Cecchini a shot at everyday playing time, and Cecchini might be a better fit with the rest of the Red Sox lineup as a high average/on-base percentage hitter than Middlebrooks.