Francisco Rodriguez will miss the rest of the season; he needs surgery to repair a torn ligament in his thumb that he injured in his sparring match. Cut me, Mackey Sasser, cut me! On a not that serious but kinda serious note, besides Nolan Ryan, are all pitchers the wimpiest athletes? Coach, I have a hangnail, I think you’re gonna have to scratch me. No, not on my back, I mean from the game.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Miguel Tejada
Chris Davis is so easy to strike out that pitchers should let him get a 4th or 5th strike like you’d give the small-for-his-age kid in little league. “Good cut, Chris!” Then the parent who needs anger management screams, “It’s on a freakin’ tee! Hit the damn ball!” Davis is also so easy to strike out the Rangers felt like they needed to go out and get someone who is marginally better. Enter Jorge Cantu. Or as I like to call him, the guy I told you to sell back at the end of April when his value was at its highest. Cantu gets a boost in value because he’s now going to be hitting in a lineup with Giant Machine and Hulk Machine, while calling Coors South home. I’d grab Cantu off waivers if I was hurting at my corner infidel spot. Meanwhile, Chris Davis heads to the minors to try and reclaim that glory that had Bill James projecting him for, like, 40 homers and 10 steals. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Ian Kinsler – Back to the DL with a strained groin and could be out until the end of August. Who had July 29th in the ‘Kinsler goes back on DL’ pool? Kinsler’s officially dropping way down in 2011 drafts. He might be the fourth Ranger drafted next year. I smell a sleeper post about him from January Grey. January Grey, “Leave me alone, I’m watching Jersey Shore.”
Brett Wallace – It’s ironic he’s only a 1st base prospect because he’s getting passed around the majors like a trollop who’s been a lot farther than 1st base. For those keeping score, he’s gone from STL to OAK in the Matt Holliday deal, OAK to TOR for OF prospect Michael Taylor (whom Toronto got in the Halladay deal), and now from TOR to HOU for OF prospect Anthony Gose. The book on Walllace is he’s a great hitter with a bad glove (hence the move from 3B to 1B). Now it’s one thing when STL trades a 1B (when they have Pujols) or when Oakland trades a 1B (Billy Beane likes to keep busy) but when the Lyle Overbay-playing Blue Jays trade a 1B prospect one has to wonder. Is something wrong here 0r is the Jays GM, Alex the Greek just opa’ing prospects into the fireplace? Either way, Lance Berkman looks like he’s about to embark on the Casino Bus. If Wallace gets called up, he’s immediately mixed league material. He hit 18 homers in 385 minor league ABs this year. Though it was in the PCL. BTW, this is the longest blurb ever for a roundup. I don’t even remember who I was talking about. Oh, Brett Wallace! Yeah, he can hit, grab him now in NL-Only leagues, deep mixed leagues and keepers, just in case he’s called up.
Please, blog, may I have some more?I’m beginning to think with Billy Beane that the emperor’s wearing no clothes. Moneyball is still a great book, Joe Morgan is still a moron and Chad Bradford is still an underhander. Those things are true. But the A’s were 4th in the Majors last year in steals — what happened to steals cost outs? Not to mention, Beane’s team hasn’t been competitive in three seasons. Was Moneyball just a symptom of the era? Was it simply fortuitous that Beane’s coronation came during the era of the three run homer? Was Moneyball a by-product of steroids? Would Moneyball be written today? Hard to imagine Michael Lewis sitting down with a GM of a sub-.500 club and polishing his pedestal, right? And none of this has to do with fantasy baseball or Ben Sheets. (I wrote the preceding the other day, then right before I posted this I saw Sky Andrecheck wrote an SI piece in the similar ballpark. Literally.)
If Sheets can stay healthy, he’s liable to return more than his ADP. That “if” is ginormous. That “if” sits next to you on a plane and you can’t put down the armrest. You show up at a party of 500 Tongans and that “if” is the second biggest thing in the room after the buffet table. You hook up with that “if” at a bar and people will think you’re beer goggling. Okay, I think I made my point. The other issue with Sheets is his falling K-rate. Back in 2005, if Sheets was healthy, he was a Cy Young-type performer. Regularly posting 200+ Ks and next to no walks.
Please, blog, may I have some more?The top 20 shortstops for 2010 fantasy baseball are a bit deeper this year, but they’re still shallower than the top 20 2nd basemen and ranked only ahead of the catchers for depth. All the 2010 fantasy baseball rankings can be found under that thing that said 2010 fantasy baseball rankings. (Don’t worry, one of my New Year’s Resolutions is to link to things a little more seamlessly). Shortstops usually get the short end of the stick when I’m drafting. If I don’t get Hanley, I’ll probably just take a flier on some late round player. In leagues that play a middle infielder, then you might need two of these schmohawks. Hopefully, you can grab two decent 2nd basemen and only need one of these guys. As with the other top 20 rankings, I point out where I think tiers start and stop and my projections. Anyway, here’s the top 20 shortstops for 2010 fantasy baseball:
1. Hanley Ramirez – Already covered him in our top 10 for 2010 fantasy baseball post.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Top twenty catchers, 1st basemen and 2nd basemen are in the books. Third basemen will be here shortly. Today, it’s the top 20 Shortstops for 2009 Fantasy Baseball’s time to shine. Hmm… Actually, most of these won’t shine. They’re dull with a chance of boring. As I said in the beginning of the year, the shortstops are even shallower than the 2nd basemen. This held true. A good two weeks in the major leagues and you too can make the top twenty list for shortstops! Okay, enough of the hubbub on the tomfoolery. Anyway, here’s the top 20 shortstops for 2009 fantasy baseball and how they compare to where I originally ranked them:
1.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Yesterday, Andy LaRoche made a last ditch effort for some of his parents’ love. He went 5-for-5, with 2 homers, 4 Runs and 6 RBIs. He had his best month of the season in September and he’ll still be 26 next year. I might actually own Pirate players next year. Weird! BTW, the Pirates were playing in their final home game of the year in what has been a miserable decade season. With this last opportunity for the Pirates to give their fans something to cheer about, the 3rd base coach put the brakes on LaRoche as he rounded 2nd heading to third on a long double. Who cares right? LaRoche needed a triple for the cycle! Wait, it gets better. Zach Duke is cruising for the entire game. Runs into slight trouble in the 9th inning, but the Pirates have an 11-1 lead. So what does the manager do with two outs, the never fear-inducing Blake DeWitt at-bat and Duke dealing with a very reasonable 103 pitch count? He lifts Duke rather than let him get the complete game. The Pirates deserve contraction. /rant Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Hiroki Kuroda – 4 IP, 10 baserunners, 3 ER and 7 runs total. As he provided a Ticker Shock.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Brandon Webb may miss the rest of the season. Nothing good comes from drafting a top pitcher. Nothing, I tell you. I own Peavy in two leagues, so I’m right there with youse. Remind next year to revert back to not drafting starters in the first five rounds. Actually, next year you probably will be able to get Webb and Peavy after the fifth round. Hmm, that’s a pickle. Guess we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Webb was diagnosed with an “Ain’t Getting Better” problem. Captain Obvious says, “When a guy misses three months, then goes for an MRI, it’s not a good sign.” I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s shutdown for the year. But you’ve held him this long, what’s another day or two to hear the full prognosis? BTW, prognosis is doctor-talk for the 411. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:
Coco Crisp – Out for the season when his shoulder went snap, crackle, pop.
Please, blog, may I have some more?There were signs…. He’d call Dexter Fowler, “Dudley.” He’d call Todd Helton, “Tootie.” He’d hit like a menopausal woman with no occasional hot flashes. But you take the good, you take the bad… It’s “Take the good” first! Where’s the good, Garret Atkins? It’s time to clean house and Atkins is the first one to go. Here’s what I said in February in the rankings, “The Holliday trade to the A’s hurts Atkins value too. And, frankly, for the last three years, Atkins was hurting his own value. He’s gone from 29 to 25 to 21 home runs since 2006. If you were taking the SATs, the next number in that sequence would be 17. His slugging percentage has been following suit, as well. The way Atkins is headed, he’s going to need 2nd base eligibility to have any value by 2010.” And that’s me quoting me! Atkins hit 2 home runs yesterday. Sell! Sell! Sell! He’s an average 3rd baseman who will probably be traded from the Rockies in the coming months. Honestly, you’re probably be better off with Mark Teahen at 3rd. Someone somewhere many years ago said Atkins is going to hit 30 homers because he plays in Coors and for some reason people have not stopped believing it. It’s a crock. You know who else is crizzap? Troy Tulowitzki. Who are you, Troy Tulowitzki? I know, Stephen Drew; I know Ben Zobrist. I do not know Troy Tulowitzki. The Rockies are the new blech. So it’s time to shake things up, right? Yes. For you and the Rockies. Anyway, here’s some more players to Buy and Sell this week in fantasy baseball:
BUY
Carlos Gonzalez – They’ll probably trade Hawpe to a contender and play Carlos Gonzalez full-time. Or just sit Seth Smith. The Rockies HATE Seth Smith. (Caps for emphasis and the doode reading over your shoulder.) CarGo’s a solid flier in deep, NL-Only leagues, especially keepers. In mixed leagues, if you have room, I’d take the gamble because you never know and you might be able to flip him for a better, more reliable piece if he starts off hot. He does have 15/15 potential, but he’s probably no better than Ben Francisco at this point.
Please, blog, may I have some more?Josh Hamilton hits the DL and could be out for two months. I’m not one to say I told you so, but… Man did I call this one! Schadenfreude, snitches! Sorry, I had to get that off my chest. Really, no one could’ve saw this coming….
Please, blog, may I have some more?We at Razzball realize that exporting our views across the country has damaging consequences on the blogosphere. To help make amends, we are reaching out to leading team blogs and featuring their locally blogged answers to pressing 2009 fantasy baseball questions regarding their team.
Please, blog, may I have some more?