Fantasy Baseball Vision

Three Fantasy Pickups for September

2014-09-03T08:47:00.000-04:00

By John Campbell

With one month left in the MLB regular season, fantasy baseball owners are looking to make some smart moves to position themselves for a title run. In order to do that, it is very important to stay on top of the game in general. Teams are shutting down players left and right due to injuries, and that means other players are going to get a chance to have success. Baseball in the month of September is much different than in April. Here’s a look at 3 guys available in more than half of the fantasy baseball leagues out there. They should all be able to have quite a bit of success in the last month, so pick them up if there is space.

Jake Odorizzi

For one reason or another, fantasy baseball owners are pretty slow to pick up on Odorizzi this season. Perhaps they are scared off by a slow start to the regular season, but the 24-year-old still has plenty of potential. In a recent start against the Baltimore Orioles, he was absolutely dominated. Some people in fantasy baseball might be a little scared off by that, but he is a guy who has been solid since the All-Star break other than that appearance. Considering the fact that he strikes out hitters at a high rate, he is worth the gamble down the stretch.

Arismendy Alcantara

At this stage in the season, versatility is key. There are very few solid players available in free agencies that have eligibility at 3 different positions in fantasy baseball. Alcantara can play at 2^nd base, shortstop or outfield if need be. His batting average is not very high, but he is someone who can contribute decent power numbers and speed. Now that he’s getting a chance to play every single day, he’s going to put up numbers.

Michael Wacha

After starring in the playoffs last year, Wacha has battled through a pretty rough 2014 regular season. He has been injured for a while now, but the 23-year-old is now getting a chance to contribute down the stretch. He has been rehabbing nicely in the minor-league system, but as soon as the year is over in the minors, St. Louis could call him up and use him right away. Grab him now before he is officially back in the rotation.

Hold Off On Pitching In 2014

2014-02-01T10:02:00.001-05:00

By Will Banks

The fantasy baseball 2014 season is right around the corner, and people are starting to do their initial research for their draft strategy. There are always several different ways to attack a draft, but this season it would probably be wise to avoid going after starting pitching early on.

When you take a look at starting pitchers these last few years, there have really only been a handful of dependable starters who can be counted on to provide outstanding value. There is just too much inconsistency at the position right now, and a lot of that has to do with injuries. So many of the best pitchers in the game go through cold spells or injury issues that is just seems like a huge risk to draft them in the first, second or even third round in fantasy baseball 2014.

One pitcher who is the exception to the rule is Clayton Kershaw. He has been a Cy Young caliber pitcher for the last three seasons, and he should be dominant once again in fantasy baseball 2014. However, even he is not completely clear of any injury. His workload has been pretty heavy these last few years. The Dodgers might be wise to cut him back a little bit now that they have him locked in to such a long contract.

Pitchers such as Yu Darvish, Adam Wainwright, Felix Hernandez, Max Scherzer and more may appear to be bonafide aces, but they are simply not as consistent as top end positional talent. There are also going to be plenty of starting pitchers who come out of nowhere and post low ERAs while picking up double-digit wins. The same can’t be said quite as much for an infielder or outfielder. The smart money going into fantasy baseball 2014 is to invest in the Mike Trouts and the Miguel Cabreras of the world and wait for pitching later on.

NL East Prospects...Worth a Look

2014-01-11T14:42:00.000-05:00

This crop of prospects coming up in the NL East has All-Star written all over most of them. Each has a specific skill set that separates them from others in their organization. They are worth drafting in all Dynasty Leagues or a spare bench spot if possible. Definitively keep them on your waiver priority list when they get their shot.

NL EAST

Atlanta Braves

Atlanta has a stockpile of B grade prospects but no real slam dunk prospect that will contribute in 2014. That being said I feel their best prospect for the future is Lucas Simms. He is a local kid who throws in the mid 90s with both a curve and change. He throws strikes and has a very athletic build. Last year he went 12-4 with 134K in only 117 innings while only giving up 83 hits. Look for an increase in innings and monitor how a larger workload could affect him.

Miami Marlins

Many come draft day will be thinking of Christian Yelich as a possible sleeper to target. He is the one getting all the pre draft press at the moment. The one I want you to consider is Jake Marisnick. He went from A ball to The Show last year. Coming off minor knee surgery he is good to go come spring training. CF is his to lose as I feel Yelich will have competition from Ozuna in LF. Once he secures CF the best possible scenario would for him to hit 2^nd in the order . If he hits 7^th or 8^th his value drops dramatically. He has potential for a 12/12 guy who could put up some good Run numbers hitting in front of Stanton.

New York Mets

Probably a mid season call up Noah Syndergaard is the real deal. IN 117 innings pitched between High-A and Double-A last season the right hander went 9-4 with a 3.06 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 133 Ks. After getting time in big-league camp during spring training in 2014, Syndergaard will likely start the season with the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s. Sound familiar? New York did the same with its other two top pitching prospects; Harvey and Wheeler. Be the first to use your waiver request or FA dollars to snag this guy if you do not draft him.

Philadelphia Phillies

Maikel Franco, 3B, began the 2013 season with the Clearwater Threshers for 65 games. All he did was hit 16 home runs (40 XBH), 52 RBI for a .299/.349/.576 slash line. At the time of his promotion he was leading the Florida State League in doubles (23) and tied in HR (16) with Minnesota Twins mega prospect Miguel Sano. He was promoted to Double-A and continued to hit. Somehow the fast rising prospect performed even better against more advanced pitching. The final line after 69 games though was promising to say the least: .339/.363/.563 with 15 HR, 51 RBI (30 XBH). His combined stats for the season were 36 2B, 3 3B, 31 HR, 103 RBI, 1 SB, 2 CS, 30 BB, 70 K, .320 AVG, .356 OBP, .569 SLG in 541 total at bats across High-A & Double-A. It looks like Asche and Howard are blocking his spot at the Major League level but he is only 1 injury away from a call-up.

Washington Nationals

The Nats have a true 15/20 leadoff hitter in Brian Goodwin. He is the top OF prospect in the Nats system. The 2011 1^st round pick put up a fantastic slash line last summer and then was a standout in the Arizona Fall League which is a final tune up for the Bigs. In Arizona he had a 19 game season which he put up a .296 BA with 4 Doubles, 1 Triple, 2HRs and 3 SB in 88 Pas for the winning Mesa Solar Sox. He wil be the Nats replacement for Denard Span who is signed through this year so a trade of Span or an injury will keep Goodwin down in Triple A until then.

AL Central Prospects...Worth a Look

2014-01-06T13:26:00.001-05:00

It’s been 3 years today since launching my site. With 63K hits and 500 posts I still enjoy the writings and interaction with other passionate Fantasy Baseball followers. Made some great internet friends, joined some fantastic leagues and helped many compete in their leagues. So a simple quick thanks for all the people who come by my site from all over the world. I do appreciate your support. Now back to the task at hand. Let’s continue with prospects to keep on your radar for 2014. I especially like all that the AL Central has to offer.

AL Central

Minnesota Twins

Josmil Pinto should be drafted in all leagues this year as a backup catcher. With Mauer being moved to 1B the Twins will have an opening behind the plate. To date the Twins have signed Kurt Suzuki to mentor the core of young catchers the Twins have in camp. Of that core Pinto is by far the best offensive and Fantasy relevant catcher in Minnesota. He followed up his strong 2012 numbers with a .309/.400/.482 line in 2013, combined between Double-A and Triple-A, with 32 doubles, 15 homers, and 66 walks in 126 games. In a small sample size with the big league club he hit .342 with a .964 OPS in 83 PAs. If he breaks camp this spring on the 25 man roster he could see ABs at DH 1x a week when not catching.

Kansas City Royals

Yordano Ventura has quite an electric fastball. His 97.5 average fastball velocity was the highest among every single pitcher who made a start in 2013. Even cooler, his fastball touched 101.9 mph according to PITCHf/x. It’s not outrageous for a reliever to throw that hard, as nine of them have since PITCHf/x has delivered reliable data. But starting pitchers simply don’t. That velocity comes with some wildness but that is expected for a 22 year old. I feel he gets a shot in the Royal’s rotation but will be on a 120-140 innings limit. So take a chance on this pitcher with tremendous upside.

Detroit Tigers

There’s plenty to like about Castellanos, the top prospect in Detroit’s organization. His bat is very quick through the zone, and there’s never been much of a question among scouts about the quality of his hit tool. His power stroke is showing signs of life, as he has increased his home run total in each of his three full minor-league seasons; he hit seven homers in A-ball in 2011, 11 across three levels in 2012 and 18 in Triple-A last year. Another big positive for Castellanos is the improvement in his contact rate. He struck out in 23.1% of his plate appearances in 2011, followed by 20.2% in 2012 and 16.8% last year. Though he will not be a top 10 3B in 2014 he will not hurt your peripherals if you miss out on a top tier player at the hot corner.

Cleveland Indians

Danny Salazar throws one of the game’s hardest fastballs, as a starter. He knows it and he loves it, and for him, the heater is a swing-and-miss pitch. He uses it to work up in the zone, and the fastball accounted for half of Salazar’s strikeouts in his career. The other stuff is pretty good, but the fastball is special. He did start 10 games in 13 for the tribe but is still an unknown commodity come draft day. I have participated in a couple of mock drafts so far this year with some true fantasy baseball junkies and was able to get him in round 13 and 14…remember that come draft day. A true 2^nd SP stud.

Chicago White Sox

I have to admit I have not seen much video on Jose Dariel Abreu but I do trust the brain trust for the White Sox and the other 10 teams that tried to land him. With the emergence of Cespedes and Puig you have to think this kid is as well is very special. What we do know is he will have 1B and OF eligibility and be hitting in the 3 hole. I will be targeting him in all drafts. He recently went in the 10^th round of my most recent mock. If he is still available at round 10 he is a steal!

NL Central Prospects...Worth a Look

2013-12-21T12:16:00.002-05:00

Let’s continue our series on viable prospects to consider draft day in 2014. These come from the NL Central Division. Some I like, some are a wait and see.

Chicago Cubs

Javier Baez could eventually be better than Castro and that’s saying a lot. Baez has raw plus power and has showcased it in the Minors over the last year. He accumulated 17HR, 19 doubles and 4 triples in only 337 plate appearances in a very pitcher friendly league before his last promotion. Baez has a very hard and violent swing that he never shortens or adjusts for and situation. He’s not very widely known yet, but within a year Cubs fans will be clamoring for a Baez-Castro infield combination especially with light hitting Darwin Barney not in the Cubs long term plans. Only an injury away from the bigs or if Barney hits below the Mendoza line in June up comes Baez.

Cincinnati Reds

Billy Hamilton will be on everyone’s radar come draft day looking for that potential 100 SB season. The prototypical leadoff hitter needs position in the Red’s lineup and then needs to get on base. The only problem I see is the Red’s using him strictly as a pinch runner and defensive replacement. If that happens he drastically drops in vale. If he gets a starting gig he should be a 3^rd round draft pick with a stat line of 80 Runs and 80 SB.

Milwaukee Brewers

With the Brewers parting ways with Corey Hart and Mat Gamel they are in need of a 1B. Has the answer to 1B been inside the organization all along? At some point, Morris will be given a chance to prove he is the 1B for the job. What he needs to do is be above average with the bat to have value. He does have thump by providing 57 HRs and a .219 ISO in 337 minor league games. He is worth a draft pick if he is the front runner for the job in spring training.

Pitsburgh Pirates

A twin to the other Pirates phenom of Gerrit Cole, righty James Taillon is a genuine monster power arm with a very high ceiling, a top of the rotation guy. But for 2014 I feel it will depend if A.J. Burnett re-ups with the Bucs. If not Taillon make the show. He has cracked 100mph on radar and has a curveball that is a plus pitch. I will be drafting him in all leagues this year.

St. Louis Cardinals

Just about everyone has heard of Oscar Taveras but will he make a contribution to the Cards in 2014? Taveras lost a great deal on playing time in 2013 due to an ankle injury but is now fully healthy and will be given an opportunity to complete for the RF job in 2014. One problem with Taveras in 2014 is that the Cards have too many OF even after losing Beltran. The pickup of Bourjos, they already have Jon Jay, and they will be moving Allen Craig to LF to give Adams the 1B job. I love Taveras’ ability but it may be a numbers game that keeps him out of the line-up on a consistent basis. Unless it is a dynasty league draft I would hold off on Taveras.

Prospects in AL West...Worth a Look

2013-12-15T14:18:00.003-05:00

Here is the next round of prospects to keep on your radar. With only 60 days until pitcher/catcher report it time to start ranking your players. I’m in my first mock draft with the guys at Fantasy Gameday and you can follow along here. Some surprises so far on player valuations with these managers.

American League West

Seattle Mariners

Taijuan Walker looks like a number one starter on almost any team but the Mariners do have King Felix. Saying that, he will get the nod at probably the #3 SP slot to begin the season. He has accomplished all he can in the minors and even got a quick look (15 innings) in 2013. He has 94-95 mph stuff with late movement, a sluvre curve and a straight change in the mid 80’s. He is worth a draft slot in any format his year. I will be targeting him in the 22nd round area.

Texas Rangers

Michael Choice grew up driving past the Rangers Stadium as a youth. He is now back as the hometown kid. The 24 year old should take over the duties in LF for the Rangers on opening day after being traded from Oakland. He had a debut in September and went 5 for 18 in nine games. He has been a Minor League All-Star averaging 14 HR and 89 RBI while hitting .302 in 132 games. The latest scouting report is a guy with raw power good bat speed and draws walks.

Oakland A’s

Addison Russell has moved up the ladder very fast in Oakland after being drafted #11 in 2012. Probably still a year away but an injury to Lowrie or Sogard could bring him up. His stat line from Double and Triple A last year was just sick…29 Doubles, 10 Triples, 17 HR and 21 SB while hitting .275. The scary part is that he still has room to fill out his 6’ 195 pound frame at on 19 years old.

Los Angeles Angels

Kole Calhoun has less than 220 MLB ABs and may not be a true prospect but he gets the nod because he will be the everyday RF in 2014. In the minors he never hit below .292 and had a .354 season gong before being called up again in 2013.

Houston Astros

Even though Jonathan Singleton had the 50 game suspension setback last year he still has the chance to win the 1B job this year in Houston. Since only 7 1B hit over 25 HRs last year in MLB he has the raw power to exceed that figure and worth a draft pick. The knock on him is his dedication and of course it’s hard to draft an Astros player but he has the opportunity to work himself into a run producing spot in the middle of Houston’s line-up.

Prospects in NL West...Worth a Look

2013-12-12T17:16:00.001-05:00

Well, it’s Zero degrees in my neck of the woods and no better time than now to start our Fantasy Baseball work for 2014. I will open up the season with a breakdown of each team’s prospect that should have fantasy value at some point in the season. These guys may not break camp with the big club but they will contribute at some point. All of these players should be drafted in Dynasty Leagues and taken with late round picks to stash on your bench at least keep on your radar.

NL West

The D’Back’s have in my opinion the best pitching prospect in baseball. He is Archie Bradley. It seems strange to say that a #7 overall pick in the 2011 draft has exceeded expectations but he has and here is why. His control and command. It is what moved him from High A to Double A in just 5 starts. He ended the season with a combined 14 Wins, 1.84 ERA and 162Ks in only 152 innings pitched. With a 6’4” 225 pound frame he can consistently hit 94 mph and touches 97 with late life. He is Verlander/ Latos like and will not start the season with the big league club but should be a fixture in their rotation come June. Worth a draft pick to stash on your bench.

With the Rockies bringing up so many young players like Arenado, Rutledge, and Rosario over the last year plus the cupboard must be bare for prospects. That may be true for position players but the weakness of the Rockies has always been their SP. Their best prospect (that will see time in 2014 and provide Fantasy Baseball relevance) is Eddie Butler. He will not break camp with the Rockies but he is projected as a top of the rotation guy with the best Slider and Changeup in Colorado’s organization. A 1.90 ERA and an 8.2 K/9 minor league stat line is impressive. He will be 1^st call up to fill rotation spot for the often injured Rockies SPs. Not worth a draft pick but keep on radar.

It’s well known the Dodgers have OF depth as deep as it gets with Kemp, Crawford, Puig, and Either. It is also known they miss a lot of games due to injury. So if a trade does materialize to move an OF or the injury bug comes biting sooner than later up comes Joc Pederson. Playing this winter in the Venezuelan league to get more ABs he has projected again as a 20/20 guy at the MLB level. Last year he put up 22 HR and 31 SB in 123 games. A wait and see come spring training if he is worth drafting.

The Padres have one of the youngest teams in MLB and many of their top prospects are at the age of 20 years old. The only real prospect that has a chance to break camp is C Austin Hedges. He will get a shot because of Grandal’s injury when he came back from his 50 game suspension. Grandal had reconstructive knee surgery in early July and should miss some time to start 2014. Hedges is a 15 HR guy with a little speed. He really only should be looked at in the deepest drafts this year.

The Giants are very deep pitching wise at the Minor League level but the best chance for an early season contributor will be Andrew Susac at catcher. With Posey possibly moving to1B and DHing at AL parks, Susac could break camp with the team as the 2^nd Catcher. What he does best is get on base. He sports and incredible .507 OBP in the Arizona Fall League and had a .368 OBP last year. He has some pop with 29 XBH is 262 ABs last year.

Finish Strong

2013-08-27T15:51:00.002-04:00

I know it has been awhile since I have posted...due mainly to an injury, then there are kids, family and even a little burnt out. But it’s final stretch time; time to take out all stops and try to win your league. I want to help you gain ground in a category, block another manager from gaining ground against you and maximize your games played and innings limits down the stretch. Let me know how I can Fix Your Team.

Many injuries lately and they have rippling effects. Harvey goes down and that may keep the Mets from sending Wheeler out for the rest of the season. If it wasn’t already decided, Harvey’s injury will make Miami shut down phenom Fernandez very soon too. Those coming back from injury will be Kemp, Jeter, and Montero. Those still hurting are Tulo, Rasmus, Reddick, Weeks and Cain. The waiver claims are coming fast and furious. Some mid level vets may get placed in a high potent offense so keep eyes on Morales, Byrd, and Willingham.

The call ups are coming soon so keep an eye on minor league studs like Castellanos in Detroit, and a Polanco in Pittsburgh. These two bats can give big dividends for 30 games. In Tampa any of their stud SP can come up and give a spot start. The Pale Hose have already called up Avisail Garcia after the Rios trade and he can play. The 2 studs in Minnesota should be called up but I feel only Sano gets the call and Buxton stays put. Would live to see both Springer and Singleton get the call in Houston but do not see the last place AAAstros doing either. Recently Seattle DFA’d Harrang so that leaves a chance Seattle’s best prospect Walker gets a few starts on the hill before the season ends.

League Updates

2013-07-08T21:35:00.001-04:00

I have been down with a jacked up knee for 5 weeks now. It has cost me time with my kids and wife, ability to work effectively and time away from Fantasy Baseball. Nothing is worse than being injured. So what I need is a vacation so I am heading to Northern Michigan over All-Star weekend.

I thought this would be a good time to give updates on my Fantasy teams. With the injury, it has kept me from being as engaged as I would have liked on an everyday basis. I had missed out on some great call-ups, line-up changes and waiver claims. Anyway, overall I am having a decent baseball season but it could be better. Here are links to my leagues.

http://baseball.fantasysports.yahoo.com/b1/81865

Money where I am currently in 1^st place, 12 team 5X5 Roto. Even with Kemp and Reyes going down for extended time I have been able to maintain a great standing. My pitching has been very dominating in this competitive league led by Scherzer, Bumgarner and a trade of Samardzija. Best pick up was getting Josh Donaldson for Ryu in early May. Currently next to last in Average so if I can pick that up could sail to a victory.

http://baseball.fantasysports.yahoo.com/b1/1144

4^th year Dynasty League where I have finished 1^st,1^st and 2^nd since its inception. Currently 3^rd after dropping from 2^nd last week. Daily 6x6 H2H league with OPS and Saves. This is one league that has suffered due to my injury. Just haven’t been as engaged in streaming players on short scheduled days and moved Puig before his call-up for Hamels and Nick Franklin. 12 team league where two managers have bailed. Will have openings if interested…let me know.

http://baseball.fantasysports.yahoo.com/b1/109530

Auction Public Yahoo League. Currently 2^nd place and 5 point behind. I have bounced in and out of 1^st most of the year. 6 of 10 counting stats are in double digits with worst being Wins which I sit at 5.5 points. Best auction draft was Machado for $1…he will be at $30 next year.

http://baseball.fantasysports.yahoo.com/b1/126730

Roto Authority Invite 5X5 Roto Money League. Highly competitive league and currently I am in 8^th place and 38 points behind. In early May I was actually in 2^nd place but have free fallen since. I actually think I only posted 10 HR in the last 3 weeks of May. Braun, Utley, Morneau, Howard and Aramis have hurt me as much as my knee hurts. Injuries are just part of Fantasy as in life….but they still hurt. Another problem with this team is I had no multi-position players so line-up flexibility was nonexistent. I will never do that again.

http://games.espn.go.com/flb/leagueoffice?leagueId=14805&teamId=6&seasonId=2013

Razzball Commenter League. Currently 4^th and 21 points behind. The 3 teams ahead of me are all at 90 points and I am at 69. Probably not going to compete for a championship but will try and hold on to my position. Personally I do not like the ESPN format but I play 1 of Razzball’s 40+ leagues every year. The format of this league relies too heavily on staying healthy; only 1 DL spot and 3 bench spots. Biggest hurts have been Price and Braun. If those two were healthy or I had more DL room I could have gained another 5 points or so. I currently lead league in Ks but am next to last in HRs. The rest of my counting stats are 7,8s and 9s.

http://rotobanter.baseball.cbssports.com/

The most unconventional league I am participating in this year. Nearly everyone is a writer of fantasy sports and the counting categories are as follows: Hitting OPB, SLG, PA, RP(runs produced), SB-CS. Pitching BB/9, HR/9 K-W/PA, K/9, RA(Runs allowed). Was in 1^st for a month, then 2^nd for 6 weeks and now currently 4^th. This league has huge roster with contracts and minor leaguers. Just recently I had 12 on DL…yeah I know. Biggest hurts were Tolu, Reyes, Peavy, Burnett, Halladay, Youk. Still think I can finish 3^rd or even 2^nd when I get healthy. That would put me in the money.

Hope to have many more consistent postings and analysis after All-Star break. Sorry for such limited content during my injury and rehab. I appreciate all the readers that have contacted me and wished me well.

The Doubles Machine

2013-06-19T17:59:00.001-04:00

Orioles’ third baseman Manny Macho continues to hit doubles at a record pace. Currently the 20 year old has 33 doubles in his first 72 games. The record is 67 set by Earl Webb back in 1931. He has a solid chance to set history. Machado has hit in the 2 hole all year and put up a .324 average to go along with 5HR and 37 RBI and 5 SB. His OPS is a whopping .845. He recently had a 14 game hitting streak snapped. But can right back with 2 knocks in his next game. A look at this doubles chart shows balls hit from foul line to foul line. This kid just plasters the ball to every part of the park including some ground rule doubles. Many think that when he hits 200lbs 20-30% of those doubles will be HRs. Scary!

I only own Machado in 1 league, it was an auction league where I put up Machado for a buck and no one countered. At the time I thought I had a below average 3B going into the season. How wrong I was, I am now winning this league thanks in part to Machado. At 20, Machado is Trout/Harperesque player without the media hype. I went and looked up A-Rods 20 year old season for comparisons in doubles. A-Rod had one of his best hitting seasons ever at age 20 so maybe not a fair comparison but here are his numbers at age 20 and 21. Remember though A-Rod was hitting in the 3 hole at that time too. 54 Doubles, 36 HR, 123 RBI, and 15 SB while hitting .358. At 21 A-Rods numbers look much more the same as Machado. 40 Doubles 23 HR, 84 RBI, 29 SB while hitting .300.

Machado may not get the Trout-Harper hype but he would be my main target in any Dynasty/Keeper League. Remember too that the day will come when he qualifies at SS. When that happens he could be a number 1 overall fantasy pick just like A-Rod was for nearly a decade.

If Machado can push his doubles count to north of 40 by the All-Star game it will be the talk of the All-Star break. So if you want to make a move for Machado try to do it now because the hype will increase 10 fold over the next 4 weeks and his remaining 23 games until the break.

Time To Buy Low

2013-06-12T22:45:00.002-04:00

Earlier in the week we discussed some undrafted gold through the first 40% of the season. Now it is time to look at some highly drafted players who could be great buy low candidates. The struggling stars can help bolster your squad for the 2^nd half of the season. I have given you players at each hitting position that can give you a competitive advantage going forward. I feel every one of these players is definitely poised to rebound and should be targeted now for trades. When going after these players look what need the current managers has and fill it for him while pilfering the player you want. He are the players you should target for trades immediately.

C Matt Wieters: Currently 11^th in catcher ranking. He will finish as a top 5 catcher because his career OPS in the 2^nd half is 50 points better than it is currently.

1B Ryan Howard: Some think he is old and plays hurt but what you need to know is his first half OPS is .853 and his second half is .962 over a 10 year career. He has 6 straight years of a second half OPS increase.

2B Martin Prado: Bad luck is all that Prado is experiencing. His current BABIP is .262 with a league average of .297 and his career BABIP is .317…that’s a lot of balls not getting through for hits, so he is well overdue.

SS Starlin Castro: If you read my blog you know I am a Cubs fan and watch Castro all the time. I have never been as high as others on him but currently he is just at all time lows in BB 4%, highs in Ks17% and low at BABIP .282. This 200 hit a year player will get his hits but not the power.

OF Jason Heyward: Such a slow start, then the surgery. Remember Dunn struggled few years back with same surgery. Anyway he has 6 multi-hit games in June and should get some rest occasionally so Gattis can play. The window on Heyward is closing fast so make some offers.

OF Giancarlo Stanton: Just throw out to his current manager that he is dead last statistically of all 3 hole hitters and that he will not see anything to hit due to the Marlins poor team.

OF BJ Upton: Could it get any worse for the older Upton Brother? Negative. In his last 10 he is hitting .258 with 2HR and a double. The base stealer who averages over 30 a year will be putting up some great numbers over the next two months and he will finish with stats near to where his career numbers are. He is one I am trying hard to get in a couple of leagues.

U Victor Martinez: Just a profession hitter who gets to hit behind Miggy and Prince. Who couldn’t put up counting stats with those hitting machines always on base. He is back to hitting over .300 in his last 20 with some pop too.

CI Justin Morneau: He is finally healthy and hitting…just not for power. I see him going on a 10 HR barrage over a couple week period very soon. He is hitting .297 with an OBP of .351. Probably the easiest of all players on this list to get.

MI Rickie Weeks: Recently put in a quasi-platoon at 2^nd. That won’t last for long and should spark a fire in Weeks. Look for some added power and SB when he gets his shot.

Undrafted Gold

2013-06-07T14:54:00.000-04:00

Looking back on drafts there are always players drafted that make manager’s look brilliant. Then there are players that every manager passed on and turn out to be fantasy studs. I took a look at some of the best undrafted hitters to date and I was a little stunned to see so many out there. The players I have listed all had ADPs over 300 which made them undrafted in 12 team 25 man rosters. These top 10 undrafted hitters are all now ranked in the top 75 hitters in Fantasy Baseball. Most of these hitters are legit and I see only a small regression coming if any at all. My guess is if you have not plucked one of these players off waivers by now you are probably in the bottom third of your league. Hell, most of these players are still available and with all the injuries to key players out there right now you should nab a couple.

10. Daniel Murphy: The career .291 hitter doesn’t sparkle in any one counting category but he is consistent and makes a great player on your bench with dual eligibility. To date his line is 36/4/26/1 .290 and 69% owned.

9. Evan Gattis: I guarantee he wasn’t drafted in even 1/10 of a percent of all Fantasy Leagues with an ADP of over 800. This is the classic example of taking advantage of an opportunity. If McCann doesn’t go down we never hear of Gattis. He now has a job in LF and still has C eligibility. His line is 23/13/26/0 .270 and 71% owned.

8. Mitch Moreland: A guy that has been around but not your prototypical power hitting 1B that Fantasy managers look to own. I picked him up in one league a month ago to replace Konerko at CI. I have been pleased that he has as many HR as Prince. His line is 27/12/29/0 .288 and 48% owned.

7. Matt Joyce: The quintessential platoon RHP killer. A great player to stream against all righties. His line is 33/10/26/4/ .255 and is 41% owned.

6. James Loney: He was lucky to even land a starting gig this year but has completely outperformed all expectations in Tampa. If anyone on this list will regress I would have to go with Loney. His line is 27/7/32/2 .338 and is 50% owned.

5. Daniel Nava: Just a total breakout season for Nava. He is a big reason why Boston is winning. His line is 35/8//38/0 .293 and is 63% owned.

4. Geraldo Para: He is player I actually drafted in many leagues. When it was clear Eaton would be down for a large part of the season I knew Para would be hitting lead-off and staying in the line-up every day. He is 1 of only 6 OF with over 41 Runs scored this year. His line is 41/5/20/5/.310 and is 59% owned.

3. Matt Carpenter: The best player to own with multi-multi-multi-multi position eligibility. He is a player I completely missed the boat on but wished I hadn’t. He leads all of baseball in Runs scored. His line is 49/5/20/1 .335 and is 87% owned.

2. Josh Donaldson: If he still had C eligibility he may be ranked #1 on this list. He just continues to crush the ball to all fields and hit for a high average. I traded Ryu for him early when I missed out on 3B in one draft. His line is 32/8/37/2/ .330 and is owned in 81% of leagues.

1. Nate McLouth: This was a player 5 years ago I felt could be a perennial 20/20 guy. This is the first year in a while he has an everyday gig and he is doing everything he can to keep it. He is atop of a solid line-up and will continue to put up counting numbers. If he can hit for power like he did in 08’ (23HR) he could be a top 20 player by year’s end. He could finish with a .300 BA and 50 SB.

PED Scandal & Fantasy Impact

2013-06-05T19:24:00.000-04:00

First I want to say that I think I am ready to try some PED or HGH. I went down Monday with a knee problem that may be a partially torn ACL or a torn Cartilage and at my advanced age I want some help. My knee is as big as my head and my Ortho Doc wants to give me an MRI if the swelling doesn't subside by next week. I freakin' hate getting old!! Anyway, my take on the current PED scandal is really "no surprise". Money is just too big for players not to try and get an advantage, whether it be a contract year, just signing that big contract and wanting to live up to the expectations or a player just trying to keep himself in the show or on a 40 man roster. The so-called 20 man list really only has 11 players to date with Fantasy relevance, which is what really concerns me. In that 11 players, Gio Gonzalez is only suspected of buying legal substances but I guess it is guilt by association. The other 10 are to have purchased or were injected with banned substances by Biogenesis. One aspect of this hunt is that 3 of the players have already been suspended for 50 games for testing positive for high levels of testosterone or amphetamines. Too me this seems like double jeopardy if they get a 2^nd suspension. With all that said this is what I think will end up happening. Just before the All-Star break MLB will come out with a definitive list of players it will try to suspend. The Players Union will cry FOUL and will appeal all suspensions as a group and want to be able to have lengthy cross examinations with Tony Bosch. It will come out Bosch and his employees were paid for testimony. The final outcome will be no suspensions this year and that’s great news to Fantasy Managers but come next year many top stars could be sitting until July 2014. I could be wrong but that’s how I see this washing out. So if you own any of the players listed below and are nervous, especially if you own multiple players on the same team, you may want to test the trade waters. I have already seen a few of these players get moved today in leagues where if not for this scandal the quality of these trades would be suspect. But in time of uncertainty getting 50-60 cents on the dollar for a player isn’t bad. Remember part of something is better than all of nothing. Personally, I am sitting tight on the players I own…but will entertain trade offer sent to me. I have other issues like 5-6 players on the DL at the same time…we all have troubles my friend. Here are the top Fantasy Players being targeted so far.

Ryan Braun	Brewers
Everth Cabrera	Padres
Melky Cabrera	Blue Jays
Francisco Cervelli	Yankees
Bartolo Colon	Athletics
Nelson Cruz	Rangers
Gio Gonzalez	Nationals
Yasmani Grandal	Padres
Fernando Martinez	Astros
Jesus Montero	Mariners
Jhonny Peralta	Tigers
Alex Rodriguez	Yankees

Insert Johnson Everyday Or Night

2013-05-30T20:12:00.000-04:00

First I have to say I’m glad to be back from vacation. My teams took a small hit while I was gone as I was limited to internet access on a lake in Northern Michigan. Anyway back to baseball and the latest move happening in Atlanta.

Now that Juan Francisco has been cut loose Chris Johnson is the everyday third baseman in Atlanta. After Johnson’s red hot start when Freeman was down, he has been able to keep the average up and still provide a great SLG%. What you get with Johnson is streakiness that cannot be denied. Twice this season he’s had 6 game stretches where he has hit over .500; then comes the 1 for 17 stints. Last year after being traded away from Houston, Johnson hit .345 for Arizona with 5HR in his first 8 games. He then was well under .200 for the next 19 games.

While only being owned in 29% of leagues he is a great pick up for any CI slot. By this time next week he will be owned in well over 60% of leagues so if you have room for a player with dual eligibility that will now get everyday ABs in very good offensive line-up Johnson is your man.

Do not expect him to continue with a .346 BA the rest of the year but he could finish near .290 and from this point on get you 12 HR and 50 RBI. If you already own him this could be a great time to sell high, especially in H2H leagues…talk with any manager that owns Moustakas, Aramis, or Lawrie at the moment.

A Search Brought Up Some Rotten "HAM" In Fantasy Baseball

2013-05-19T14:11:00.000-04:00

While recently looking in one of my leagues for a manager who owned Cole Hamels, I typed “ham” into the player search box. The search revealed of course all the players in MLB whose name included “ham”. What surprised me was the 6 current players that came up in my search were all playing well below their pre-season rank and thus in some cases crushing their fantasy owners. One was a minor league player that most prognosticators felt could lead the lead in SB if called up. A majority of these players were early round selections and were anchors of fantasy teams. Here are the players with their pre-season and current Fantasy rank.

Gordon BeckHAM: Pre-season 339 now1023 3% owned. A late round pick in many leagues at MI. Many still think Beckham is a solid 15/15 option but he has been hurt and has taken up DL space on some rosters.

Billy HAMilton: Pre-season 305 now 1136 10% owned. The all team single MiLB season SB leader in history at 155 was suppose to be called up once any Reds’ player went down with injuries. Well that injury happened and then happened again but still no Hamilton. That is because he is struggling to hit above .200. 1 out of every 10 Fantasy managers is still holding out hope…not sure why.

Josh HAMilton: Pre-season 24 now 676 98% owned. One of my favorites to win AL MVP. Luckily I do not own him in any league as he went 1^st round in all my Leagues. I liked him but not 1^st round. Those that did are floundering in the back half of most leagues. He is the type of player that most managers would rather sink with than trade at a low value.

Josh WillingHAM: Pre-season 122 now 370 71% owned. Willingham has battled injuries with his wrist. With 35 HR last year there was a big fantasy expectation for Willingham this year. I feel he is a great buy low candidate at this time.

Joba CHAMberlain: Pre-season 683 now 684 1%owned. Really his only fantasy option was for in Holds leagues. He is currently on the DL and is becoming categorized more as a bust as the Yankees have waited nearly 5 years for him to produce.

Cole HAMels: Pre-season 35 now 778 97% owned. Hamels has been very good in all but 2 of his starts but he is still 1-6 with an ERA near 5.00. The Phillies are near the bottom in all hitting stats and their OF is well below par defensively. I do not own Hamels but would like to trade for him. Unfortunately Hamels owners would be trading on his name rather than his current stats. If you can snag him up on the cheap do so.

Jason HAMmel: Pre-season 244 now 930 44% owned. Hammel somehow has collected 5 wins on the year with a 5.72 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. If you own him congrats on the Wins but his other counting stats have probably brought your staff way down. To me has amassed his win by smoke and mirrors and is not even close to owning.

A Call-Up in Tampa Bay Is Coming

2013-05-16T13:14:00.001-04:00

With David Price getting pulled early last night due to triceps soreness and possibly looking at a DL stint the Rays will be forced to call up one of their Triple A studs. I personally feel Price needs the DL stint both physically and mentally at this point. If not a DL stint he surely will miss his next start at the very least.

So what does this mean for Fantasy owners? If you own Price or you need some help on the SP side only two names come to mind for a replacement; that would be Chris Archer and Jake Odorizzi. According to the Tampa Bay Times, they have stated that Odorizzi will get the call ahead of Archer. I have to disagree. I feel Archer gets the call based on his lower HR/9 rate. Regardless who gets the nod; both SP have minimal big league experience, but both are lighting it up in Triple A. Each has a K/9 ratio over 9.00 with an ERAs under 4.00.

I will be picking up Archer in at least 1 league and Odorizzi in another because Archer was plucked off waivers last night. The good news is whomever is called up they will get 2 starts next week. The first, against the Blue Jays and the next against the Yankees.

The Quality Start...A Good Measure of Quality in Fantasy Baseball

2013-05-14T18:11:00.002-04:00

In baseball, a Quality Start is a statistic for a SP defined as a game in which the pitcher completes at least 6 innings and permits no more than 3 Earned Runs. In today’s Fantasy Baseball world there are leagues that use QS as a counting stat. Last year in a Points League I was in, it was one of the more weighted counting stats. Currently I am not in any QS leagues but do follow the stat.

To me, there are pros and cons in using QS as a barometer to gage effective SPs in Fantasy Baseball. Particularly the 3ER in 6 innings, which leads to an overall 4.50 ERA…those numbers are completely useless to a manager in Fantasy. Though a SP giving up 3ER in exactly 6 innings is quite rare that is the criteria used to qualify for QS. Bill James assumed that if all SP QS stats were compiled over a decade that an ERA of around 3.20 would surface. In fact the only known study that was conducted from 1984-1991 found that the average ERA in Quality Starts was a staggering 1.91. Now that is why QS should be considered when evaluating players either on draft day or waiver wire pickups.

So why am I writing about QS today. It is because of a player I drafted and own in 5 of my 6 leagues. He is the only SP in MLB to be 8 for 8 in QS this season. He is 4-2 with a 2.03 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP. His K/9 ratio is slightly lower than I would like but the ERA and WHIP outweigh the low K total. Currently he is sporting a 41% GBR and not giving up the long ball as he did last year. This Lefty is only owned in 57% of leagues and has another easy match up Sunday against the Mets. The player is of course Travis Wood SP CHC. MLB only has one other SP to be perfect in QS this season and that is Patrick Corbin who is 7 for 7. Not a bad pick up either.

Roy Oswalt Version 3.0

2013-05-12T09:01:00.000-04:00

Is it time to own Roy Oswalt once again? Let’s see what the former NL leader in ERA, Wins, winning % and starts brings to the table. The 35 year old recently allowed 1 ER on 5 hits in his first outing for in extended spring training. It was 3 innings and 43 pitches. His stuff was consistent and his velocity was decent according to Colorado scouts. The projections on Oswalt are to arrive in Colorado’s rotation by early June.

We all remember the time in Texas last year where he signed late, had a poor performance as both a starter and a middle reliever. His line last year was un-Oswalt; a 4-3 record with a 5.80 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. His career numbers are better. A 163-96 record with a 3.28 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP over 12 seasons. Oswalt was always the quiet and consistent star in Houston, which I feel most people have forgotten because of the last two part time odd seasons. I know Oswalt has things to prove and he is ready to be a full time MLB pitcher. That means competing, not complaining and reporting for spring training next year, according to him

Things to remember; Oswalt has finished in the top 6 of the Cy Young voting 6 times, he has an excellent stat line while pitching in Coors. In 5 starts he is 4-0 with a 2.25 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP and a K/9 ratio near 8. The word is he is taking this chance extremely serious and wants to pitch well beyond this year…so I would declare it is safe to say this is probably his last chance. With that being said I am picking Oswalt up on all teams I have bench room at the moment. No need to scoop up Oswalt immediately because he is still owned in less than 1% of leagues. If I just showed you his career number then labeled him as Player A and told you he was widely available you would be eager to pick that SP up. He is worth a month long look on your team.

Stashing Minors On Your Bench

2013-05-07T19:52:00.000-04:00

It’s that time of year where we will start to see more and more players being called up, the AAAstros just brought up Trevor Crowe and Jimmy Paredes. The Rockies called up Nolan Arenado and he has already paid dividends. Everyone wants to find the next Trout or Harper and stash them on their bench until they make their MLB debut. Now we are only talking about single season pick-ups because all these players are already on Dynasty teams. Here are the 10 most owned Minor Leaguers in CBS Fantasy Baseball and I will try and give you an analysis if they are worth stashing and taking up potentially valuable bench space.

PLAYER	% OWNED
Wil Myers, OF, Rays	79
Jurickson Profar, SS, Rangers	52
Oscar Taveras, OF, Cardinals	49
Yasiel Puig, OF, Dodgers	41
Zack Wheeler, SP, Mets	40
Billy Hamilton, SS, Reds	38
Dylan Bundy, SP, Orioles	34
Gerrit Cole, SP, Pirates	34
Travis D’Arnaud, C, Mets	34
Mike Zunino, C, Mariners	29

Myers is a must own. He will get the call sooner than later. Myers is already better than Sam Fuld or Matt Joyce who TB is currently running out there every day. He presently has 3HR and is hitting .275 for Durham. The Rays can still win the AL East but they will need Myers’ bat to do that. If you can pick him up do it today.

Profar was seen in spring training as someone who could break camp with the big club but that didn’t happen. The reason; he has no open position in Texas' infielf plus his .231 average in Triple A doesn’t help either. Unless there is a significant injury to the Rangers infield I do not see Profar having any impact in Fantasy this year.

Taveras will be no more than a September call up because power hitting Matt Adams is in his way. Yes I know Adams doesn’t play OF but Adams bumps Craig to the OF and thus blocks a path for Taveras. Taveras too will need probably two major injuries in St. Louis to get his shot this summer.

Remember when Puig hit over .500 in the spring with a ridiculous 1.333 OPS? People thought he would replace Ethier or the Dodgers would trade Ethier, well neither happened and Puig plays a position that the Dodgers are incredibly deep at currently. I just see no scenario where Puig gets a shot this year.

Wheeler has MLB stuff and has had 3 consecutive QS in the minors. The problem is the Mets will not contend this year and there is no reason to bring him up. They will let him build up innings in the minors and let him perfect his newly acquired change-up. His fastball and curve are already MLB ready.

Hamilton was a lock to be called up when the first Reds player went down. Well Ludwick went down and then his replacement Heisey went down too; then Hamilton and his speed on the base paths stayed down as well. The reason he stayed put was a below the Mendoza Line batting average. No matter how fast you are if you can’t get on base you are not MLB ready. Until he hits at least a consistent .240ish he is not getting called up until September.

Bundy has already seen Dr. Andrews and that is never a good sign. His sore flexor tendon has him shut down for 6 weeks. Then he will neeed another month of throwing…not pitching. Then he can start pitching and now it’s July/August. So now he has to have at least 3 starts at Double A. Yes he is good and yes he will be a stud #1 but this year is shot people. He has no Fantasy relevance in 2013.

Garrit Cole is one I would stash immediately. The Pirates are contending and have played the toughest schedule to date in MLB. That means the next two months they will be playing below average teams and get the Cubs 2x along with Houston and the Mets. If any of the Pirates SP goes down or cannot produce Cole is up immediately. He is a pure #1 with size, power, durability and poise.

D’Arnaud was supposed to get a little seasoning and take over for Buck around this time. But now D’Arnaud is out with a broken foot and Buck is the best Fantasy Catcher. The young Catcher should be down for 2 months so why hold a catcher for that long when other options are available at Catcher.

Mike Zunino may be the best catching prospect around but he has Jesus Montero in front of him. It would take a combination of trades and injuries to propel Zunio to a starting role this year. Plus he is only hitting a .195 and that doesn’t help his cause.

What’s Happened To David Price?

2013-05-05T20:14:00.001-04:00

His start over the weekend went from bad to worse. When he left the game he was charged with 4 earned runs. Then shortly after the game, the official scorer changed an error on Zobrist and that put Price on the hook for 9 earned runs. That put his season stat’s to an abysmal 1W 3L with a 6.25 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. He has now given up over 50% of his 2012 earned run total in just 7 starts. Hitters are pounding him to a tune of a .302 average. The major reason for his inflated numbers this year is what he is doing with RISP. Hitters are drilling him to a tune of a .478 average with RISP and 2 outs. In previous years he has dominated in those situations. He has only 1 K in those situations where as in the past he has posted a K 24% of the time.

So what can we attribute his struggles too? His velocity is still there; his walk rate is lower than his career averages and Tampa Bay is putting up Runs for him. He is just losing focus and concentration in critical situations. After winning the AL Cy Young, getting a 6MM raise, an off season where he was in more demand after all the awards I think everything off the field has compounded itself into a mental drain. Then last week we had the Tom Hallion incident where each called the other a liar and Price went to social media to vent his frustrations and look for justification. At this time he has to just concentrate on baseball. Unfortunately I think it gets worse before it gets better.

This Thursday we get a chance to see both former Cy Young winner square off against each other when Toronto travels to Tampa. This will be only the 3^rd time in history that both CY Young winners from the previous season square off the following season. Mentally speaking I feel this game is more important for Price and Tampa’s team. I only own Price in one league this year but it was a league where I went out of my normal draft strategy and took Price in round two. I in no way condone taking SP that early and I have learned from the mistake and assure you it won’t happen again. I know there are managers out there that own both Price and Cain; I feel for you and you probably too took the SP route way too early. Learn from your mistake and if Thursday goes bad try and move Price based on last year’s accolades.

April's Surprise Players

2013-05-02T19:30:00.002-04:00

Now that we are into May let’s look back on some of the biggest surprises of April at each position. These players and their hot starts may not translate into yearlong Fantasy studs but they are worth a look and some are readily available in most leagues. The major criteria I looked at were Fantasy counting numbers and average draft position. What we can learn is that there is so much value late in drafts that drafting players in rounds 10-15 that out produce their counterparts will propel you the top of your leagues every year. Then there are those undrafted players who thrust themselves into mainstream Fantasy radar every year. So here is a snapshot by each position on who has come out of the April gate on fire.

Catcher: John Buck NYM, he has a fantasy line that in unreal for a catcher in April. His 9HR and 27 RBI have outdone all other Catchers in the last 10 years. The only Catcher close in the last decade was Charles Johnson with the Rockies. He was the only Catcher to hit over 6 HR in April, and Buck had 9 diggers. Buck is only owned in 76% of leagues and the problem with owning Buck is he may not even be around the 2^nd half of the season with Travis D’Arnaud waiting for his shot.

I have to gives some praise to Carlos Santana and his amazing 1.194 OPS in April along with undrafted and former truck driver Evan Gattis with 6HR and 16 RBI in a platoon role in Atlanta.

First Base: Chris Davis BAL, he had a month that put him on pace for 56 HRs this year. His 9HR 28RBI and .337 BA easily top every other 1B in April. It took until last week before he was owned in over 90% of leagues. The 10^th rounder is by far the best power value to date from all drafts.

Close on his heels though is Mark Reynolds. The all time single season K leader is making tremendous contact this year and his 8 HR and 22 RBI have helped Cleveland and Fantasy owners put up league leading numbers. The Tribe had scored more runs than the Tigers in April thanks to Reynolds hot bat.

Second Base: Chase Utley PHI, the recovery from injury Utley was my predicted comeback player of the year as stated in my Audacious Predictions. Utley has put up numbers like he did back when he was a perennial top 20 pick. All he did was hit 5HR with 19 RBI and 4SB. That puts him on pace for a 25/25 year.

Another player with 2B eligibility who went virtually undrafted is Ryan Raburn. All he has done is post 1.062 OPS to lead all 2B. He is someone the Indians have to give more playing to and is a player I have picked up all week in every league I could.

Shortstop: Jean Segura has by far put up the best stats than any other SS for his draft position. He had 3HR. 3 Doubles, 3 Triples and 10 RBI to go with 8SB. He also leads all SS with a .321BA. Segura is showing why he was the gem in the Greinke trade last year. Then for good measure he finished off April just a double shy of hitting for the cycle. He does have an inflated BABIP at the moment so look for a regression coming soon.

Outfield: There were so many choices for outfielder and those that were ranked high coming into drafts are producing but a couple of late rounder have given owners superb value. The first I have to mention is Starling Marte. The leadoff hitter for the Bucs is hitting .321 with 3HR 13 RBI and 7 SB. Its amazing he is only owned in 77% of leagues to date. The next is another leadoff hitter but in the AL; Nate McLouth. The last two week in April he hit .485 with 5SB and 14 Runs. He is the most picked up player over the last two weeks too. You too can still jump on the McLouth wagon because he is only owned in 66% of leagues.

Utility: I based this off players with at least a 3 position eligibility. No one has been better than Yuniesky Betancourt. Not to be more than a platoon/bench player for the Brew Crew this year he was forced into full time playing when Milwaukee lost every 1B and needed help at 3B due to injury. In 24 games he has shown both power and the ability to hit for average. If you are in daily leagues and need bench help pick up Betancourt.

Starting Pitcher: A couple of players who went virtually undrafted lead this list; that being Clay Buchholz and Ervin Santana. Both are having outstanding rebound years. Buchholz leads the surprising Red Sox and the Majors with 6Wins. His ERA just a tick over 1.00 and WHIP under 1.00 to go along with his 47 Ks. Santana who may have found his past glory and control leads the Royals with 3 W and a 2.00 ERA and a WHIP at 1.03. Buchholz is barely available in leagues but Santana and his possible 200Ks is widely available.

Relief Pitcher: One of the first to get a ride on the Closer carrousel was Jim Henderson in Milwaukee once Axford fell off the planet. The undrafted Henderson who didn’t even make a MLB roster until he was in his 30^th year of life brings a powerful 13.5 K/9 arm to Fantasy Owners. The other RP is another grey beard in 36 year old Jason Grilli. He also may have the best nickname in baseball today “Grilled Cheese”. With a league leading 11 Saves he is on pace to be the 1^st Pirates’ Closer with over 50 Saves. As a 16^th round pick it just shows the volatility there is when taking Closers too early.

April saw some fantastic hitting and pitching; there were 67 Shutouts and nearly 800 HR hit so its hard to say if it is a hitters or pitchers year. There were snowouts, coldouts, along with big time injuries, a near perfecto, Revere's catch and a 19 inning affair, then a statemnet that the Cubs may leave Wrigley. .All that and still some tremendous numbers being put up. I’m just glad to have a half dozen fantasy teams and to be talking/writing about baseball everyday!

Stanton Down & Ozuna Up

2013-04-30T17:48:00.000-04:00

With Giancarlo Stanton being shelved for a few weeks the Marlins have called up Marcell Ozuna. Ozuna was a dangerous power hitter in the Marlins low minor’s organization. In fact, he has only played 10 games above A ball but in the last two years he has put nearly identical slash lines. 2011 and 2012 he hit .266 with 23 HRs and 24 HRs. He had slightly more Doubles too. This season in Jacksonville he was hitting .316 with 5HR. He will slide into right field and probably hit 5^th in the lineup. This could be a showcase for the Marlins and if Ozuna can hit MLB pitching Stanton would be on the move for a boatload of prospects sooner than later.

Expect some occasional mammoth power and a very high strike out rate. I know it is hard to own anybody in a Marlins uniform but if you are desperate for some power in your lineup it might be worth picking up Ozuna for a week and try to get a couple of HRs. Ozuna does have some 10-15 SB speed so a nice parker and pilfer could happen in the same game. The down side is his low contcat rate so your BA could take the brunt of the disappointment. Personally I will not be picking up Ozuna in any leagues because he is a true boom or bust fantasy player. If I had to compare him to a player it would be Dayan Viciedo but with more speed.

The Magnificent Marwin Gonzalez...Who?

2013-04-28T12:06:00.000-04:00

So who is Marwin Gonzalez? That’s what I said when I first heard his name. That time came when he was the one who broke up Yu Darvish’s perfect game earlier this month. Since then he has beaten out the career light hitting Ronnie Cedeno for the stating SS position in Houston.

According to his manager Bo Porter the whole organization is excited about his progression so far this year. Gonzalez’ himself states it was his time in Venezuelan winter ball that changes his approach to hitting. He studied all the good hitters who were preparing for the WBC. Whatever he learned or picked up has now made him fantasy relevant.

In the past coming up through the Cubs and then the Astros organization he was considered a light hitting but slick fielding infielder. In fact he has only play in over 110 games in his career one time. He has never hit more than 4 HR at any level and has only broken double digit steals twice in his 7 year career.

So let’s get to the present and decide if he is usable. Currently hitting .321 with 3HR, 7 RBI, 10 Runs and 3 SB. Uh, yeah…he is especially usable. The 6'1" 210 lbs ranks as the 6^th best SS to date and the 12^th best 3B. Nice bonus to have the two position eligibility. Though he currently is hitting 9^th for the Astros, he is getting on base and the hot hitting Altuve (.340 BA) has been driving him in. Since he is on a very bad Houston team, fantasy owners are still shying away from owning him. Currently only owned in 14% of leagues. I have picked him up in a couple of leagues. So if you have Aramis or Zimmerman on the shelf due to injuries or you cannot take Prado’s or Moustakas’ slow starts you should examine if you have roster room for Gonzalez. On the 2B side he is crushing players like Walker, Espinosa, Ackley and Kipnis. Remember I warned you about Kipnis here.

An Angel Will Be Stealing

2013-04-25T20:00:00.001-04:00

I recently picked up Peter Bourjos in every league he was available. I had him on my watch list since the drafts ended and thought he would have increased fantasy value if he could hit in the 2 hole this year. Well, Scioscia has actually put him in lead off since the Aybar injury.

I didn’t have Bourjos on my radar for his BA but he is going into tonight hitting over .300 with an OBP of .380. Though he has not even attempted a SB this year he is one of the fastest men in baseball. Now that he is hitting leadoff I expect him to start running and showcasing his blazing speed on the base paths. One reason he is now leading off is he has a modest 6 game hit streak and has more walks than Ks in the last 10 days. As I mentioned here back in February, Bourjos was the forgotten man in the Angels potent line up. Remember just a few years ago he was hyped as much as Trout was in the Minors.

If Bourjos can continue to draw some walks I am expecting a small explosion in SB in the next month. He once swiped 50 in the minors and 22 as recent as 2011. A top the Angels order the Runs should come in bunches too. A great pick up this week as he is only owned in 9% of Yahoo Leagues, 7% of ESPN. Do not expect the BA to stay north of 300 but as Bourjos matures, age 26 season, he gets better and better. He should beat out at least 1 infield hit a week. Remember that the Angels GM had every chance to move him once Hamilton signed but he was the one who stayed this winter…not Morales or Wells.

Closer News

2013-04-23T23:34:00.003-04:00

The changes come quick and often in Detroit. Many thought Rondon would be the closer for the Tigers and I saw him scooped up in many leagues. Then Leyland told the media that Valverde and his post Save Dance had been signed and will be closing games starting Wednesday.

As you all remember Valverde had 35 Saves last year but fell out of favor after an atrocious post season. He then had trouble finding work and didn’t sign MBL contract. Well he’s back and to me the post season, big lights, high drama means nothing to the Fantasy community. Valverde can pitch, he can collect Saves with that team, and he has significant value.

In other Closer news it looks like Rodney has no way to replenish his pixie dust magic from last year as I predicted, as he blew the game tonight after a solid Price outing. Look for Farnsworth to make the jump back into his closer role that he held in 2011 sooner than later.