2012 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper Third Baseman: Lonnie Chisenhall

Cleveland Indians Third Baseman Lonnie Chisenhall had a modest .255-27-7-22-1 line in his 66-game debut. He didn’t blow you away, but remember that Chisenhall turned just 23 as the season came to a close. Obviously, at that age there is plenty of room for improvement.

He is locked in along with second baseman Jason Kipnis and catcher Carlos Santana as Cleveland goes with a youth movement.

Chisenhall’s overall numbers weren’t great, but he did finish strong. After hitting .238 in 126 at-bats from June-August, Lonnie hit .279 in 86 September at-bats. He hit four home runs in September (21.5 HR/AB) and three prior (42.0 AB/HR). While you would like to see more at-bats per strikeout than the 5.05 he averaged in September, it was more than a full at-bat per strikeout better than June-August.

Chisenhall didn’t exactly tear it up in the minors, hitting .262 at the Double-A level and .267 for Triple-A Columbus. That said, he continued to move up the ranks to make it to the show at 22. The fact that he wasn’t overwhelmed with the jump is encouraging.

The fact that he held his own against left-handed pitching also serves him well. He actually hit lefties (.260, .888 OPS) much better than righties (.253, .640).

Chisenhall should not be thought of as your fantasy starter, even at a shallow position like third base. I wouldn’t even want him as my corner infielder either. Not with the bevy of first basemen available. You won’t have to either. With a Mock Draft Central ADP of 366, that would be the 31st round, which is more than most leagues have.

Chisenhall is a guy to keep an eye on if he starts the season off the way he finished last year. He can also help out if your third baseman goes down with an injury.

Also check out:

• 2012 Fantasy Baseball First Base Rankings
• 2012 Fantasy Baseball Second Base Rankings
• 2012 Fantasy Baseball Third Base Rankings
• 2012 Fantasy Baseball Shortstop Rankings
• 2012 Fantasy Baseball Catcher Rankings