Fantasy Baseball Sleepers 2012: Under-the-Radar Players You Can't Win Without

No sport features as many unknown players than in baseball. With 30 teams it’s hard to keep up with everybody in the sport.

Unlike football where fantasy owners could care less about linemen and special teams, in baseball, you have to be aware of everybody.

Instead of skimming through hours of old box scores and reports, I’ve compiled a quick cheat sheet for you to find the four biggest sleepers that will be available in the last few rounds that can be the difference between a championship and another disappointing season.

JD Martinez, LF- Houston Astros

Somebody has to put up numbers on the ‘Stros right?

Martinez made his debut once Hunter Pence left town and ended up hitting six home runs and 35 RBIs in only 106 at-bats.

That projects to 17/101 in a full season. 

The 24-year-old will likely be the No. 3 hitter and nobody on the team will have more opportunities to succeed than Martinez.

He’ll get plenty of ABs and is in no danger of losing his spot. Certainly worth the late-round risk.

Francisco Cordero, Closer- Toronto Blue Jays

CoCo has been a closer for a decade now, and is still getting it done at an outstanding rate.

Last year he saved 37-of-43 games and registered a 1.02 WHIP despite playing for an underachieving Reds team.

With the big bats of the Blue Jays, there should be more save opportunities. He never gets hurt and is a very safe bet. When you get to the 25^th round or later that’s all you can ask for.

Brandon Belt, LF/1B- San Francisco Giants

After putting up outstanding numbers in the minors he had a rude awakening to the big leagues. He hit only .225 with nine homers, 21 runs, 18 RBIs and three stolen bases.

He has the tools to hit for power and draw plenty of walks. It’s only a matter of time before the 23-year-old puts it all together.

He just needs the reps.

He’ll be battling for the starting spot at first base in spring training, but I think Belt wins the gig and keeps it for the entire season.

Aroldis Chapman, SP- Cincinnati Reds

It’s clear his future is as a starter and the Reds may keep him in Triple-A for a month to allow him time to develop.

Don’t let that scare you off.

Nobody throws the ball faster than Chapman and he imposes a real sense of fear into opponents. That will happen when you possess the fastest pitch ever recorded in a major league game.

He will surely walk a lot of batters, but his strikeouts will make up for it and then some. Last year he struck out 90 batters in 50 innings.

You could expect a similar rate as a starter.

This is the guy that can single-handedly save your team later in the season, just be patient with him.