Jobs were won or lost in spring training, and for fantasy owners, perceptions were changed. The month of exhibition baseball holds different meaning depending on who you ask, but the outlooks of some players for the regular season does change. The following is a list of eight players whose perceptions changed the most for fantasy owners.

Cody Anderson, SP, Cleveland
Anderson’s ERA wasn’t eye-popping in spring, but the results were impressive with a major uptick in his velocity. His fastball typically averaged in the low 90’s last season, but he was topping out at 96 mph with better conditioning and won a rotation spot this spring. Anderson didn’t seem like a strikeout asset prior to 2016, with a terrible 4.3 K/9 in his major league debut last year and a career 6.8 K/9 in the minors. However, he had 19 strikeouts in 24.2 innings this spring, and there’s hope he will be able to help in mixed leagues at some point.


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Nick Ahmed, SS, Diamondbacks
Ahmed started at shortstop last season, but looked like the odd man out in the Arizona middle infield after the team acquired Jean Segura from Milwaukee. Now it looks like a three-man rotation in the middle infield after a spectacular offensive spring from Ahmed. He hit .433 with 13 extra-base hits. Already the best defensive player in Arizona’s middle infield, Ahmed has carried his offense into the season with a homer and three multi-hit games.

Brandon Drury, 3B/OF, Diamondbacks
There didn’t seem to be a roster spot for Drury coming into the season, but like Ahmed, he forced Arizona to keep him on the 25-man roster. Drury had already seen time at three infield spots last year, and he added versatility by playing the outfield during spring. He hit .389 with a staggering 10 doubles and four homers in only 72 at-bats. Jake Lamb must play well at third base to hold off Drury, and Yasmany Tomas is also on notice in the outfield.

Juan Nicasio, SP, Pirates
Nicasio was an extreme longshot for a rotation spot after being picked up from the scrap heap by Pittsburgh, but mastermind pitching coach Ray Searage apparently fixed him. Nicasio threw 15 scoreless innings, whiffing 24 batters, and he beat out Ryan Vogelsong for the fifth rotation spot. Nicasio has shown an increase in velocity after a couple years of lower velocity, and he was a top prospect at one time with Colorado. After an outstanding season debut vs. St. Louis on Wednesday, it looks like Nicasio is here to stay.

Bud Norris, SP, Atlanta
Norris had a terrible time last season; he compiled an ERA above 7.00 for in Baltimore; after his release in August he joined San Diego and had a 5.40 ERA over 16 innings. His excellent velocity remained intact, though. The rebuilding Atlanta team is looking at him as a reclamation project. This spring his ERA (6.46) didn’t bounce back. However, strikeout and walk numbers can be more indicative of improvement during spring training, and Norris certainly showed something with 21/6 K/BB in 23.2 innings. He was very good in his first start of the season vs. Washington, and could be a decent flier in NL-only leagues.

Joey Rickard/Hyun-Soo Kim, OF, Orioles
Kim entered the season as Baltimore’s potential leadoff man. He showed great on-base skills in Korea before arriving to the O’s. However, he had a nightmarish spring, and there was even talk of Kim returning to Korea. While he remains on the roster out of necessity, Rickard has seen the playing time in left field in the early going. The Rule 5 draft choice turned some heads this spring, hitting .397 with eight walks. Off to a nice start, Rickard was a popular late addition in AL-only leagues.

Aaron Sanchez, SP, Blue Jays
Sanchez has always possessed the stuff to be a dominant starter, but his command was nowhere near ready for the majors before this season. After adding weight in the offseason, he came out firing this spring and won the fifth rotation spot. Sanchez had a 1.35 ERA and 19/3 K/BB in 20 innings during spring, and his performance was similar in his first start of the regular season vs. Tampa Bay with one earned run allowed in seven innings, with eight strikeouts and no walks. No player’s immediate stock increased more this spring.

Trevor Story, SS, Rockies
You know all about Story by now, and it’s probably too late to add him unless you’re in the shallowest of leagues. He hit two home runs in his major league debut, and now has four homers in his first three major league games. Sitting in for Jose Reyes while the veteran waits on his suspension, Story looks like he’s going to play regardless of whether Reyes returns to Colorado this year. A 20/20 man in the minors last year, Story hit a sizzling .340 with six homers during spring. It’s also telling that he cut down on his strikeout rate compared to the minors, with 13 walks in 20 games. Hitting second in Colorado’s batting order, the sky is the limit.