David Freese

2013

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2012

Freese may have finally left his bad luck behind in 2011. Oh, he had a two-month stint on the DL with a broken hand, but that was all forgotten once October rolled around, as he hit like a man possessed (.397/.465/.794 and five home runs in 63 at-bats). His postseason heroics will likely overrate him some, but one shouldn't consider him flash in the pan, as he's always been a pretty good hitter and just needed the opportunity. Though his career-high 10 home runs in just 333 at-bats is a good sign, his exorbitantly-high .359 BABIP might suggest his batting average is coming down a little in 2012. Then again, his BABIP has always been high.

2011

Freese can't seem to catch a break. Every time it looks like he's going to be handed the job at the hot corner, injuries or other circumstances ruin the opportunity. Last season, he even suffered a fluke toe injury when he was already on the DL with an ankle injury. When he was healthy, he didn't provide the home runs you would expect from a corner infielder, though his .361 on base percentage shows promise. Once again, he's at the top of the organizational depth chart at third, but the Cardinals could be looking elsewhere in the offseason.

2010

Poor guy. In March it looked like Freese would be the main beneficiary of Troy Glaus' shoulder surgery. Fantasy owners paid accordingly. After a couple of weeks of backing up the likes of Brian Barden and Joe Thurston, Freese was sent down. Although he continued to show his strong power, he had an ankle injury that kept him out of action for a couple of months. By the time the Cards called him up in September, his time had passed. The good news is that Brett Wallace is now gone, so Freese may have a clear path to the third-base job in 2009. That is, if he can hold off Allen Craig, Barden and Thurston.

2009

Freese came over from the Padres a year ago, blocked by Kevin Kouzmanoff. His path to the majors isn't any better in St. Louis, with Troy Glaus ahead of him and Brett Wallace and Allen Craig coming up behind him fast. As a 25-year-old playing in Triple-A for the first time in 2008, Freese hit .306/.361/.550, so he's proved himself to be good with the stick. He probably will not be able to hold off Wallace for much longer, so if he doesn't make the majors in 2009, he'll probably be elsewhere by 2010.

2008

Freese turned in a solid season at High-A Lake Elsinore last year (.302/.400/.489 with 17 homers and 96 RBI), but that was as a 24-year-old in a low-level league that favors hitters. Freese's path in San Diego was blocked at third base by Kevin Kouzmanoff and top prospect Chase Headley, so an offseason trade to St. Louis should improve his fantasy outlook. He'll likely spend 2008 in Double-A with an outside shot of reaching the majors in September.