It would take some kind of player to supplant the leagues most valuable fantasy hitter, Hanley Ramirez, from his lead off role in Florida. A role in which he racked up 30/30 season and scored 125 runs. Since camp opened, the Marlins have had that player, Cameron Maybin, penciled into the lead off role; moving Ramirez to the third spot in the lineup. Maybin is lightning fast and hitting at a .315 clip this spring with two doubles, a triple and a home run with two stolen bases.
But, with a week left in Spring Training, Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez thinks Emilio Bonifacio might lead off.
Emilio Bonifacio may end up winning the third base job. If that happens, manager Fredi Gonzalez said Bonifacio could lead off and Maybin could hit either second or in the lower third of the order. "I think if he's on the team, I think that's a pretty good spot for him,'' Gonzalez said after the Marlins' 5-4 loss to the Mets.Bonifacio isn't hitting for as high of an average as Maybin is this spring (Bonifacio is hitting .278), but he has many more extra base hits as he's tallied four doubles and three triples to go along with his three stolen bases.
At this point, late in the fantasy draft season, Bonifacio isn't even being drafted in mixed leagues. Maybin has an Average Draft Position in the 24th round at 276.50. If Bonifacio does win the third base job and leads off, he can be considered in the late rounds of deep mixed league drafts. If you've already drafted, he's surely waiver wire material.
Maybin, on the other hand, if he gets moved to where he's batting second should retain his current fantasy value. If he gets moved to the lower portion of the batting order, his fantasy value drops a bit.
This situation may not get solved in the next week, or maybe in the next few weeks. Keep an eye on it. If both Bonifacio and Maybin are in the top third they are solids fantasy players. If one drops to the bottom, he's not going to help your fantasy squad as much as someone else you could probably find on the waiver wire.
