The definition of a reach is to pay for stats that a player has never been able to put up before. Why pay for Mike Stanton like he’s going to hit 40 home runs? Even if he does hit 40, you received no extra value because that’s what you paid for. It’s not likely he will exceed those expectations, and if he under performs you made a bad investment.
Even if it’s not smart, it’s always fun to reach on a few players. Everyone has their favorite guys, their sleepers. While you probably can’t lose your league by taking a shot on someone late in the draft that doesn’t pan out, you can certainly help win it.
Here is my list of deep sleepers, guys ranked outside of ESPN’s top 300.