Fantasy Baseball Sleepers 2012: Neil Walker and Players Who Will Keep Improving

One key to playing fantasy baseball is looking for players who were solid the previous year and will keep getting better. Usually we look to rookies and prospects for that, but it does happen with veterans as well. 

Two years ago, no one was drafting Jose Bautista. But 97 home runs and 227 RBIs in his last 310 games played has made him a first-round pick in most drafts. 

While the players on this list are not likely to put up those numbers, they will have tremendous value when you are making picks in the draft. 

Here are some underrated players who will keep getting better in 2012. 

Neil Walker, Pittsburgh Pirates

With second base becoming a deeper offensive position than it has been in the past, the temptation could be to target one of the big names—Dustin Pedroia, Robinson Cano, Ian Kinsler, etc.—very early on. 

However, if you are willing to wait, there are plenty of solid players available that will give you solid production. 

Walker is right at the top of the list. He does not have one great skill that is going to make him an elite player, but he does a lot of things well enough. He is not going to hit .300, but he will get you a .275 average with 12-15 home runs and 10-12 stolen bases. 

Not bad production for a player you can probably get in Round 10. 

Brett Lawrie, Toronto Blue Jays

Lawrie's sleeper status is debatable, especially considering how good he looked at the end of last season. 

Don't underestimate just how good he is going to be for the Blue Jays in 2012. He won't be Evan Longoria or Jose Bautista with the bat, but he should easily be in that second-tier of third basemen. (He will likely play the bulk of his games in the outfield, but he is still third base eligible.)

For his first full season in the big leagues, don't be surprised to see Lawrie put together a .280 average with 25 homers, 85-90 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He is a star in the making, and he is going to get the playing time to show off all his skills.

Cory Luebke, San Diego Padres

Whenever the Padres put anyone on the mound, they are worth taking a flier on. Luebke moved from the bullpen to the rotation halfway through last season, and the results were stellar. He had a 3.31 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and nearly 10 strikeouts per nine innings pitched. 

Even if Luebke doesn't duplicate that performance over the course of an entire season, if he comes close to it, he will be one of the 15-20 best starters in fantasy baseball.

He added velocity to his fastball and change-up last season, which helped him miss more bats.

The Padres aren't going to score enough to help Luebke win games, but all the factors he can control will be outstanding.  

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