Don't look now, but the Phillies' Ryan Howard may just be a Fantasy asset again.
Think back to the beginning of last year. He was finally recovered from the Achilles surgery that ruined his 2012 and was coming off a spring training in which he hit .322 with seven home runs in 87 at-bats. Expectations were rising. Believers were coming out of the woodwork. Most everybody, if only in the deepest recesses of their hearts, held out hope for a rebound.
It didn't happen, of course, which is how we wound up where we are now. But if you think back really hard, you might remember his 2013 actually lived up to the hype at first. He hit .282 with six home runs in his first 117 at-bats, putting him on pace for a 30-35 home runs over a full season.
His troubles began on May 19, when he sat for the first time with "chronic knee soreness." It persisted over the next couple months, causing his numbers to plummet. Only in July did the Phillies discover he had a torn meniscus, ending his season.
So now, here he is in full health for the first time since 2011, when he hit 33 home runs with 116 RBI, doing all the things we said he couldn't do anymore. I don't know about you, but when I review the history, I'm thinking we may have written him off too soon.