Fantasy Baseball Sleepers 2012: Young Pitchers Paying Big Dividends

Pitching has taken over Major League Baseball. The number of young studs on the mound has shifted the way that the game is played, both in reality and fantasy. 

With all of these arms available to you, draft strategy can shift in the earlier rounds. Unless you want to spend a first- or second-round pick on Justin Verlander or Roy Halladay, you are stuck without sufficient hitting. 

Going after bats early and finding the up-and-coming pitchers that can produce good results will help make you a champion. 

Here are some of the best young arms that you can grab later who will pay off huge. 

Jeremy Hellickson, Tampa Bay Rays

In his first full season as a Major League pitcher, Hellickson was able to post a 2.95 ERA and 13 wins for the Rays. Those are terrific fantasy numbers for anyone, much less a rookie, and there is still plenty of room to get better. 

The one area that Hellickson struggled in last year was missing bats. His ERA was so low because the Rays defense is so good. His .223 batting average on balls in play is not sustainable, so his numbers will balloon a little bit this season. 

However, now that he knows what to expect from the American League East and can be more comfortable with his stuff, Hellickson's strikeout numbers are going to go up, his walk total will go down and he will be a better fantasy pitcher overall as a result. 

Derek Holland, Texas Rangers

Even though he is probably more famous for his Harry Caray impression than his mound presence, Holland is an emerging star for the loaded Texas Rangers.

Yu Darvish is going to capture all the headlines, but Holland will carry the staff early while the Japanese star gets acclimated to the game. 

Holland has a power arsenal, and he was able to put everything together in 2011. He had much better command than at any point in his career, which allowed him to post a career-best 3.95 ERA and record four shutouts. 

He will win games pitching for that Texas lineup, will post good strikeout totals and an ERA around 4.00. As a mid-round selection, that is pretty darn good. 

Travis Wood, Chicago Cubs

Wood has always had good potential as a starting pitcher, but the Reds experimented with him in the bullpen last season too. Now that he has been moved to the Cubs, who are going to keep him in the rotation all season, he is a breakout candidate waiting to happen. 

He is not going to be a star, but he can be a valuable fantasy pitcher because of his ability to miss bats and an improved arsenal of stuff that allows him to pile up good fantasy numbers. 

Since the Cubs are going to be terrible this season, don't draft Wood looking to get a lot of wins. If you want someone who can give you 180-190 innings with an ERA under 4.00 and 150 strikeouts, he is the player for you. 

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