Ignore Jay? No way!

FANTASY baseball owners spend so much time looking to discover the “next big thing” they often overlook amazingly consistent talent simply because the names aren’t sexy enough.

If you want to bring home that title this season, your path to the championship should be paved with proven talent. Forget Cody Bellinger. Stop waiting for Yoan Moncada to be called up. Go out and get yourself a guy who not only produces with consistency, but has also done it for years. Go get Jay Bruce.

It is astounding how many people dismiss Bruce from fantasy consideration. He’s only hit 20 or more home runs in eight of his past nine seasons. He also has breached the 30-home run plateau in four of his past six years, driven in at least 87 runs in five of his past six and crossed the plate at least 70 times in seven straight. He also is on pace to surpass all of those totals this year.

So why does this perennial powerhouse sit on draft boards until the 14th round, and why is he usually relegated to throw-in status during trade negotiations? Is it the strikeouts and batting average?

Granted, a .249 career average isn’t anything to write home about, and a guy who whiffs 25 percent of the time isn’t ideal, but in this era in which we laud strikeout kings such as Chris

Davis, Joey Gallo and Trevor Story because they are capable of mashing 30 homers a season, why are we hung up on this with Bruce?

Is it because he doesn’t steal enough bases? He is a masher, not a base-stealer, but if you want to try this as an excuse, understand he has averaged eight steals a season over the past six years — more than any of the aforementioned sluggers.

Fantasy owners get way too hung up on rookies and supposed sleepers. With every year that passes, a new crop of hopefuls appear on the scene, and most of them disappoint. Be that owner who builds a team on substance, not flash. Build with Bruce and bring home that title.