Fantasy Baseball: 5 Late-Round Hitters With Power Upside

4. Randal Grichuk, St. Louis Cardinals

NFBC ADP: 216.46 | Hard-Hit Rate: 39.9% | Fly-Ball Rate: 43.8%

Randal Grichuk did not experience any such in-season improvements with his strikeout rate. But dude can still straight rake.

Of the players with at least 450 plate appearances, only 10 had a fly-ball rate above 43.0% and a hard-hit rate above 39.0%. Grichuk was one, along with lesser-known up-and-comers such as David Ortiz and Giancarlo Stanton. Sure, it comes with some downsides, but this is an elite group.

Grichuk's numbers -- at least in the power department -- look even better if we narrow the scope to after his return from the minors. The St. Louis Cardinals recalled him from Triple-A on July 5th, and from then on, he had a 44.5% hard-hit rate and 43.9% fly-ball rate. If he had posted that hard-hit rate for the entire season, it would have been second in the league behind just Ortiz. When he makes contact, you can bet that sucker is going to fly.

The strikeouts are a major burden for Grichuk, and they're a chunk of the reason he's still available beyond the 200th pick. He's never going to be a high-average hitter. As long as you're willing to accept that, he can be a solid option as you scrounge for dongs late.