One of the most crucial moments of the season is picking up the right players at the beginning of the year. As much of a master-mind we think we all are on draft day, there are players who fly under the radar every season who bloom into stars by the All-Star break.
Here are 5 players who could be on the verge of exploding onto the scene and are under 50 percent owned.
Related: Fantasy Baseball 2015: 15 Tools You Need
Josh Helmuth is the editor of CraveOnline Sports
Photo Credit: Getty
Early Season Pickups fantasy baseball
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Anthony DeSclafani - Cincinnati
Starting Pitcher
18% owned
Surprisingly winning a rotation spot over Tony Cingrani to start the year, DeSclafani is a popular name in the fantasy world right now. Be cautious, as he's only had two starts -- but over those two games against the Cubs and Pirates he's only given up 2 runs over 13 innings.
Fantasy analysts like him and if he can keep the ball down in his home ballpark he could be a solid contributor.
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Anthony Gose - Detroit
Outfield
40% owned
It's still hard to tell how much playing time Gose will get, splitting some time with Rajai Davis, but Gose came out of the gate last week hotter than a pistol.
So far he's hitting .407 with 1 HR and 1 stolen base, but if he gets more playing time, he has the ability to steal 30 bases and still have some pop in his bat.
Add now and watch his playing time slowly increase as the season progresses. He could wind up being a poor man's Starling Marte.
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Devon Travis - Toronto
Second Base
44% owned
The rookie came out of nowhere to win the starting second base job out of Spring Training and is off to a sizzling 371/.421/.657 start. It's hard to tell how long it will last, but minor league stats last year suggest he could be a solid contributor. Last year he hit .298 with 10 HRs and 16 steals at Double-A.
Pick him up and enjoy the ride as long as it lasts.
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Kevin Kiermar - Tampa
Outfield
26% owned
Kiermar had flashes of greatness last season, and so far he's doing everything he can to make you add him to your roster this year.
In only 36 at-bats he has two home runs and is hitting over .300 so far this season, and he's only currently hitting leadoff, meaning the Rays have plenty of trust in him.
Pick up the young 24-year-old right now, especially in deeper leagues where he's a must own.
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Mike Moustakas - Kansas City
Third Base
48% Owned
The secret is almost out on Moose, which means you should act quickly. Not only has he reportedly worked on his approach this off-season (whatever that means, doesn't everyone?) but he's raking in the two-spot.
Manager Ned Yost was criticized for hitting him second at the beginning of the season, but now he looks like a genius -- Moustakas is hitting .359 with 2 HRs, even has a stolen base.
There's obviously no way a career .239 hitter can keep this pace, but he's only 26-years-old. We've seen guys much older turn their careers around. Grab him now and see if he's for real. He very well likely is.
