Fantasy talk: Michael Morse status report

Michael Morse has finally put it all together over the last few years with the Nationals. He has become a fixture in their young lineup and has an incredible amount of raw power. He is also one of the more underrated outfielders in the game. Despite missing most of the first half of the season, Morse hasn't disappointed his fantasy owners this year, providing solid power numbers.

Morse had quite a career before we wound up with Washington. He was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2000 draft by the White Sox. He briefly played in Chicago's farm system for about 2 years, putting up decent numbers. He didn't provide any power, and his batting average was around .250. The White Sox front office gave up on Morse in 2003, shipping him to Seattle in a deal centered around Freddy Garcia. Seattle thought very highly of Morse once he started to hit well in their farm system. From 2005-2008, he constantly bounced around between Triple-A and the Majors. He didn't hit the way that Seattle imagined he would, so the Mariners sent him to the Nationals in exchange for Ryan Langerhans. (Yea, Remember him?) The Nationals kept Morse in a bench role in 2009 and he just did alright yet again, hitting .250 in a part time role. In 2010, Morse began to open some eyes. He hit .289 with 15 homers and 41 RBI in only 98 games. This allowed him to be in the everyday lineup in 2011, and he has run away with the opportunity. He had a huge breakout year, hitting .303 with 31 homers and 95 RBI in 575 plate appearances. He was also 29 years old at the time, which indicated that he was in his prime.

Entering 2012, Morse was still a sleeper pick in the drafts. Not too many people knew about him at the time, however his raw power appealed to many owners. Morse was forced to miss a chunk of the first half of the season, but has hit well when on the field. He has hit .292 with 12 homers and 47 RBI in 76 games. That is pretty good, and I'm excited to see what he can provide down the stretch. Morse is going to continue to be a big power threat, therefore I'd recommend that you continue to draft him. The Nationals' lineup is only getting better with each and every passing year, so perhaps next season he'll have more protection.