10 Spring Training Position Battles With Major Fantasy Baseball Implications

New York Yankees' Fifth Starter

Between Masahiro Tanaka, Luis Severino, CC Sabathia, and Sonny Gray, it seems like four spots in the New York Yankees' rotation are pretty set. That leaves one spot up for grabs, and both Jordan Montgomery and Chad Green would be interesting if they were to land it.

Green is being stretched out as a starter after spending almost all of last season in the bullpen. He was filthy there, posting a 40.7% strikeout rate with just a 6.7% walk rate. In any other bullpen, he'd easily be the team's fire-stopping reliever. The Yankees happen to be just loaded there, allowing them to see what Green has as a starter.

The good thing with Green is that we don't have to guess what he can do as a starter; we've already seen it. Back in 2016, he started eight games, finishing with a 27.2% strikeout rate and 7.4% walk rate. That got overshadowed by a 5.94 ERA as Green struggled mightily to keep the ball in the yard, but the plate-discipline numbers alone would make him viable if he were to nail a job.

The other positive of Green is that he doesn't need to be a starter to carry fantasy value. With the numbers he posted last year, he can suck down your ERA and WHIP as a reliever while also providing a ton of strikeouts. His floor is great, meaning Green's at least worthy of consideration as things stand now.

Montgomery would need to win the job to be fantasy relevant, but there's plenty to love about what he did last year. He had a 22.2% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate, but it seems that strikeout number could have been even a bit higher based on his 12.2% swinging-strike rate.

Additionally, dingers aren't as big of an issue for Montgomery. He held opponents to just a 26.5% hard-hit rate, well below the American League average of 32.8% for starters. With the ability to generate whiffs and limit hard contact, Montgomery has two of the necessary pillars for becoming an ace. That makes him worth a stab late in drafts, too, even without the assurance that he'll start the year in the rotation.