Power surge not enough to redeem Chris Carter
Chris Carter's two homers Wednesday give him six in his last 13 games, which would normally be a good thing. But not when those homers are six of only eight hits during that stretch, accounting for a .229 (8 for 35) batting average.
Carter has become the game's preeminent all-or-nothing hitter. He swings hard and usually misses, but when he gets a hold of one, it goes a long way. He hit .223 with 29 home runs last year, and the way things are shaping up this year, that may be the best-case scenario for him.
So what is that player worth in Fantasy? In Head-to-Head leagues -- at least ones of standard size -- close to nothing. When he's cold, he's positively useless, and taking a zero (or maybe 5-10, given his above-average walk rate) from a player for weeks at a time is one way to pile up losses. Even in Rotisserie leagues, it takes a special set of circumstances to use him. You need to be firmly committed to him, sticking with him through all the miserable weeks so you don't miss out on stretches like this one, and willing to take your lumps in batting average.
I know home runs are rare these days, but not enough for all that.
