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2012 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper Shortstop: Zack Cozart

Ryan LesterJun 7, 2018

Zack Cozart is slated to start the season at shortstop for the Cincinnati Reds. He got an 11-game taste of the bigs last July and he held his own.

Cozart had 37 at-bats, in which he collected 12 hits for a .324 average. He scored six runs, hit two home runs and had three RBI as he finished with a .811 OPS. It wasnโ€™t perfect though as he struck out six times while failing to draw a single walk. Still, you canโ€™t help but be impressed with his debut.

Unfortunately, an elbow injury that led to surgery and an early end to his season.

Cozart started slowly, hitting .267 for Single-A Dayton from 2007-08. His average dipped to .262 for Double-A Carolina in 2009, but his OPS jumped 22 points to .758. His average dropped to .255 and his OPS to .726 for Triple-A Louisville in 2010 despite the 17 home runs he slugged.

Last year he began to figure some things out. Besides what he did for the Reds, he hit .310 with a .824 OPS for Triple-A Louisville. He hit seven home runs in 323 at-bats. While I wouldnโ€™t expect 20 HRs from him, 15 wouldnโ€™t be a reach should he stay healthy.

Cozart did not steal a base for the Reds, but that doesnโ€™t mean he doesnโ€™t have potential. He stole nine bases for the Louisville Bats before getting the call. He swiped 30 bases for them in 2010.

Cozart doesnโ€™t come with much of a risk. His Mock Draft Central ADP is 360, which would make him the last pick of the 30th round in 12-team leagues. Given his age (26) and upside, heโ€™s definitely worth a roll of the dice at the end of your fantasy baseball draft.

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