Monthly Archives: November 2011

Scott Evans

Arizona Diamondbacks 2011 Minor League Review

| Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 2 Comments

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Arizona Diamondbacks 2011 Minor League Review

Organizational Talent Rankings via Baseball America:

2011 (23) | 2010 (28) | 2009 (26) | 2008 (20) | 2007 (3) | 2006 (1) | 2005 (13) | 2004 (13)

2011 Affiliate Records

MLB: [94-68] NL West

AAA: [77-67] Pacific Coast League – Reno

AA: [84-54] Southern League – Mobile

A+: [63-77] California League – Visalia

A: [67-72] Midwest League – South Bend

A(ss): [33-43] Northwest League – Yakima

R:  [41-35] Pioneer League – Missoula

The Run Down

Jerry Dipoto’s recent success as Arizona’s GM is well noted by now, as is his new gig with the LA Angels.  Dipoto leaves the Diamondbacks farm system flush with promising pitching talent.  The system that already featured frontline arms like Jarrod Parker and Tyler Skaggs bolstered their starting pitching even further by nabbing both Trevor Bauer and Archie Bradley in the first round of June’s draft.  Bradley is a couple years away from the majors, but Bauer is ready to make an impact in 2012, and should be on your mind come draft day.  The Arizona hitting prospects aren’t nearly as exciting.  Matt Davidson is a quality third base prospect, but he needs more time to develop and likely won’t see any time with the big club for a year or two.  Beyond him, the D-Backs feature a handful of okay-ish outfielders.  I’ll be surprised if any Arizona hitting prospect is fantasy-relevant in 2012.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Grey

Zack Cozart, 2012 Fantasy Outlook

| 2012 Fantasy Baseball Rookies | 44 Comments

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The Janish-Renteria tandem isn’t just the name of a Center for Disease Control in Sweden; it’s also what was standing in Zack Cozart‘s way going into 2011.  That was an easy combo to beat out for the shortstop job.  But Dusty looks at rookies and laughs maniacally while daintily pushing his toothpick to the side of his mouth.  Then Cozart had to have Tommy John surgery on his non-throwing arm.  Tough break (or is it tough tendon?) because even Dusty was about ready to let Cozart do his thing in the majors.  In his brief stint in the majors (11 games), he hit 2 homers and batted .324.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Grey

Anthony Rizzo, 2012 Fantasy Outlook

| 2012 Fantasy Baseball Rookies | 42 Comments

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By my calculations, Anthony Rizzo is the top rookie 1st baseman heading into the 2012 fantasy baseball season.  (For all of you screaming Paul Goldschmidt, he has too many ABs to be considered a rookie and too many Christmas presents to be considered a Jew.  Sorry to all you, Zimmermaniacs.  Though since we’re talking about Goy-schmidt, I like his home park better so he gets the edge over Rizzo if rookie eligibility doesn’t matter, which, in the big picture, it shouldn’t.)  Rizzo put up big numbers in Triple-A last year with 26 homers and a .331 average.  Unfortunately, those numbers were in the PCL which is like hitting with an aluminum bat on the moon.  He also contributed 7 steals, which again reminds me of Goldschmidt or Au-shit as his name translates to in German.  It’s nice when a big man can knock the cover off the ball and chuck in some steals.  Reminds me of a young Adam Dunn.  Rizzo, I will call you Donkey Kong Jr.  So what can we expect of Anthony Rizzo for 2012 fantasy baseball?

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Grey

Yahoo’s Fantasy Baseball

| Y to Z | 25 Comments

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If you search for fantasy baseball, the first result is Yahoo Fantasy Baseball.  (We’re first for fantasy baseball blog.  Natch!  Or natchurally, if you’re long-winded.)  But this isn’t about Yahoo fantasy baseball.  (Is Yahoo always with an exclamation mark?  Yahoo has a volume problem, huh?)  When people find us, they are not searching for Yahoo fantasy baseball, but what are they searching for when they find us?  Since it’s a holiday, I decided to break away from the normal schedule of 2012 fantasy baseball rookies and look at exactly what people do search for when they find us.  Last year, we had our biggest year.  Over 7 million people found us.  (I think about 6.9 million found us with the search query “What is SAGNOF?”  Neverthehoo…)  That’s a big Happy Thanksgiving to you from all of us here at Razzball.  Now here are 20 actual searches for people who found Razzball and my answers to their searches:

1.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Scott Evans

San Francisco Giants 2011 Minor League Review

| Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 3 Comments

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San Francisco Giants 2011 Minor League Review

Organizational Talent Rankings via Baseball America:

2011 (24) | 2010 (29) | 2009 (8) | 2008 (16) | 2007 (23) | 2006 (21) | 2005 (30) | 2004 (28)

2011 Affiliate Records

MLB: [86-76] NL West

AAA: [65-79] Pacific Coast League – Fresno

AA: [76-66] Eastern League – Richmond

A+: [90-50] California League – San Jose

A: [70-68] South Atlantic League – Augusta

A(ss): [34-42] Northwest League – Salem-Keizer

The Run Down

Maybe it’s just me, but these Giants prospects are boring.  They’ve got a few guys who’ll eventually make nice big league ballplayers, but after dealing Zach Wheeler to the Mets in the Carlos Beltran trade, I see little reason for excitement.  They’re deep behind the plate, affording San Fran to take their time with guys like Tommy Joseph and Andrew Susac.  Don’t expect to see either young catcher rise above AA in 2012.  Joe Panic, the 29th overall selection in June, could rise through the organization quickly, but don’t expect to see him in a big league uniform until 2013, at the earliest.  That leaves guys like Surkamp, Hembree, Brown and Peguero who could realistically make a fantasy-impact in 2012.  And that’s just barely scraping the realm of realism.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Grey

National Dee Keeper Society

| 2012 Fantasy Baseball Keepers | 55 Comments

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Dee Gordon can steal 70 bases.  ‘Nuff said.  He’s Juan Pierre before he started bulking up and hitting two homers a year.  “Juan, did you eat all your spinach?”  “Yes, mother!” For some reason, I picture Juan Pierre living with the mother from Throw Momma from the Train and talking like Napoleon Dynamite.  Dee Gordon is so fast he just ran into your room, moved your last wisp of hair from the left side of your head to your right side and all you felt was a small breeze.  On Bill James’s Speed Score, he had a 9.0 in Triple-A.  Jose Reyes was the fastest in the major leagues last year at 8.4.  Frankly, the name Dee Gordon just sounds fast to me, and don’t call me Frank Lee.  He’s like a coked-out-of-his-mind Ron LeFlore on six Red Bulls.  He’s Michael J.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Grey

Matt Moore, 2012 Fantasy Outlook

| 2012 Fantasy Baseball Rookies | 54 Comments

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On September 22nd, Matt Moore went into Yankee Stadium and delivered a gem — 5 IP, 0 ER, 5 baserunners, 11 Ks.  Even though it was against the Yankees B lineup, which was produced and directed by Roger Corman, his lights-out performance in September was exactly what he’d been doing in the minor leagues since 2007.  His Triple-A year in 2011 — 1.37 ERA, 13+ K/9 in 52 2/3 IP.  His Double-A stats in 2011 — 2.20 ERA, 11+ K/9 in 102 1/3 IP.  Together, 1.92 ERA and 12+ K/9 in 155 innings.  Those are Bugs Bunny numbers, and if anyone knows what “Bugs Bunny numbers” means, like Alfred E.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
Scott Evans

St. Louis Cardinals 2011 Minor League Review

| Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 5 Comments

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St. Louis Cardinals 2011 Minor League Review

Organizational Talent Rankings via Baseball America:

2011 (24) | 2010 (29) | 2009 (8) | 2008 (16) | 2007 (23) | 2006 (21) | 2005 (30) | 2004 (28)

2011 Affiliate Records

MLB: [90-72] NL Central

AAA: [77-66] Pacific Coast League – Memphis

AA: [62-78] Texas League – Springfield

A+: [68-70] Florida State League – Palm Beach

A: [81-56] Midwest League – Quad Cities

A(ss): [37-38] New York Penn League – Batavia

R:  [45-23] Appalachian League – Johnson City

The Run Down

After decimating their farm system in 2009 with trades and promotions, the Cardinals have reloaded quickly and impressively.  Due in large part to the strategic amateur scouting systems implemented by Scouting Director Jeff Luhnow and Assistant GM Mike Girsch, the Cardinals have a slew of promising arms – both starting & relief – and quite a few exciting position players in their Minor Leagues.  By now, many of us are familiar with what Lance Lynn and Eduardo Sanchez can do at the big league level, but injury kept both beneath the rookie minimum in IP, so they’re included below.  MLB-ready pitching talent is a little thin, as a few of their brightest arms (Carlos Martinez, Tyrell Jenkins) are simply too youthful.  Look for St.

Please, blog, may I have some more?